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Prescot memories

Here are memories of Prescot and the local area. You can start now: Add your own Memory of Prescot or a Prescot photo.

Childhood, Great Memories

I was born in Victoria Place, Prescot in 1940. Does anyone remember Jonny Mather's sweet shop? I remember the street party when my dad painted Cictoria Place white, and the first car in our street, it was an Austin 8 owned by Mr C Fairclough in no 1 Court. And the Christmas that our Christmas tree caught fire and burned down, it was run off an accumulator because we only had gas. I 'remember 'pegleg' Williams the baker, Bobby Roberts the policeman, old Oakey's shop and sitting under the gas street lamp on a evening telling ghost stories.

Watching The Queen

I remember the Queen coming to Prescot and waiting opposite the council offices to see her go past. We all had little flags. We waited for a long time then the car was spotted in the distance. We raised our flags and whoosh! She had gone past before we had time to wave them. I can remember being disapointed. I remember the Salvation Army place. On Sunday nights in summer we used to go out and watch their open air services. I remember Mrs Bamforth and also Miss Batton and Miss Chataway. Audrey

Beaconsfield Street School

I also remember the school in Beaconsfield Street and I remember Audrey who was in my class.
Albert Street is clear in my memory too as it was in the Salvation Army there that I learnt to play the cornet in their band.
Strangely, I have little recollection of the coronation celebrations though I do remember the street party in Victoria Place for the Festival of Britain.
There was also a day in 1953, I think when the school had a holiday so we could watch the Queen drive through Prescot. I watched from opposite the Council Offices.
Ken Fairclough: ken.fairclough@smithsonlaw.net

Beaconsfield Street

I went to primary school in Beacoonsfield Street from 1952-1959. I have a very hazy memory of a street party in the street for the coronation. I remember white cups and saucers, a large teapot with an extra handle on the front, sandwiches and cakes. I remember tables down the street and me sitting on a bench at the table. I remember bunting in the windows. Does anyone else remember this? My best friend was Jean Finney who lived at the bottom of the street parallel with Beaconsfield Street. Her back gate opened out into Albert Street where I lived. My grandparents were Eva and Bill Harrison and my mum was Annie Harrison.

Beaconsfield St Was my Childhood.

I was born in number 11 in 1932. My family name was Clough. MY dad was known to most people as Sammy Clough. We moved to number 28 a few years later. My Grandparents lived at 24. My great aunt at 22. I went to primary school and Sunday School in the Street . We used the shop at the top of the street known as Ginny Woodward's.
Most of my memories were of 1940s, of air raids when my sister and I slept under the stairs during the Liverpool blitz. I recall evacuees coming to the school. I lived in Beaconsfield St. all my early life I left Central School in Whiston at 14 years and 2 months old. I left school on the Friday and started work at Stephenson's Printers in Market Place on the Monday.I was married from the street at Prescot Parish Church. My first child was born in Beaconsfield street. It truly was my life for so... Read more

Knowsley Park

Approximately 1955 to 1959. I remember going to Knowsley Park for the Sunday School 'treat'. We would walk round the town in procession in our best clothes behind our banners. The procession would end in Knowsley Park and we would have tea in a marquee - sandwiches, cakes, jelly and cups of tea in white cups and saucers. After tea we would have races - for example the egg and spoon race. Does anyone else remember this? My maiden name was Lamb.

Memories of Merseyside

1977 Silver Jubilee

I remember the build up to the Silver Jubilee when we were all having a street party, it was great when all the neighbours came together to make it great. I lived on Two Butt Lane in Rainhill. It brought all of us together. It was so much fun. I lived there all my young days when we used to have big bonfires on the field, everyone came together to have fun. I had a great childhood there. I would like to visit again to see the changes.

Alamein Barracks at Huyton

I had never even heard of Huyton, much less been there until I joined the Territorial Army in 1967. I had enlisted at a recruiting office in Manchester and attended the Alamein Barracks for my basic training in 1967.

In those far off days we wore our uniform instead of civvies when leaving the barracks and I have happy memories of a bunch of us "squaddies" riding on the top of a double decker bus into Liverpool city centre for an evening's entertainment!
The trouble with this was that the beery evening always seemed to be followed by an early start the next morning! Believe me Corporal Stewart's drill was not the best cure for a hangover. Sometimes instead of drill we would pile into the back of a "three-tonner" and drive out to the nearest firing ranges at Altcar.

I passed out successfully and was posted to the 42 East Lancashire Squadron of the Lancs Yeomanry - soon to become 33rd Signal Regiment. ... Read more

The Mayfair Picture House

I left Huyton to go in the army in 1956 and met my lovely wife and stayed in Wiltshire but never forgot The Mayfair picture house. It was Joey Dutton and me who started calling it 'The Ranch' because of all the cowboy pictures.

Alamein Barracks

These barracks were used as the recruit training centre for the Territorial Army and all volunteers serving with the 33rd (Lancashire and Cheshire) Signal Regiment completed basic training here in the 1960's before passing out to "trade training" with the Royal Signals. I completed my initial training here and quickly went on to train in Germany at RAF Geilenkirchen with the 42nd Signal Squadron. Altough the official MOD records show RAF Geilenkirchen closing in January 1968, it continued in service as a training location for the Territorial Army. I served there in November 1968 with 33rd (Lancashire and Cheshire) Signal Regiment on exercises for my annual camp. I recall US servicemen were also based there so it would have been used as a NATO base (AFCENT, Allied Forces Central Europe). As a German speaker I had more than my fair share of guard duty on the main gate interpreting for the GI's, as it seemed the US Army posted mainly black soldiers on the gate and they needed language... Read more

Huyton Village

I can remember Huyton when it was a village, in the 1950s. The Police Station was at the end of Derby Rd. not far from St Micheal's Church. At the other end was Richardson's , a grocery shop which often had a ginger cat on the steps. My mother would buy her groceries here and I can remember sugar being weighed out into blue bags.
About half way down Derby Rd. was the council offices with a War Memorial outside and close by was a small track which took you to an open space with swings and a sandpit.
No supermarkets in those days!
The NHS clinic was close to the underway pass to the station but on ths opposite side of the road, the library was in the road behind.

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