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Sherburn Hill memories

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

Childhood Memories.

I remember Tommy Johnson who used to be our Scout Master and I spent many happy times when the troop went camping all over the country. I moved from Pittington to Sherburn Hill aged 2 in 1939 to 6 North View where I lived until I joined the RAF in 1955. Some of the friends I remember from then are my cousins Bill and Jack Pritchard, Wallace Harper, Jack Dixon, the Shead family and Meredith family and many others. I often wonder what became of them all. If anyone remembers me, please get in touch

Growing up in Local Avenue

Hi I am Michael Johnson, some of you may remember Tommy and Brenda Johnson who lived in Sherburn Hill for most of their lives. Tommy worked for Alfie Law who had the Post Office and Grocery shop on the 'Hill'. Tommy worked around the villages of Sherburn, Sherburn House, Pittington. Littletown and all the farms. He had a travelling grocery van and that was his life until he retired in 1983. He was also a layreader at St Cuthberts Church Shadforth. I was a choir boy there until my voice broke. I remember watching the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth 2nd on Mr Law's television...the only one almost in the village!!! I played on the Rec and put pennies on the colliery railway line when 'Monty' the engine came along. I went to the Tin School until I passed the 11 plus when I went off to the newly opened Johnston Grammar at Durham. My mates were Brian Danby, the Haywood brothers, Keith Hutchinson, Gordon Spedding... Read more

Memories of County Durham

Little School And The Little Shop on The Corner And The Little Chapple on The Corner

Hi, my name is Shirley Stoke. I have lots of lovely little memories of living in Haswell, I have a really good memory. I used to live in Church Street. I loved the school across the road from my house and when I used to go to chapel on the corner. I can also remember I used to play with a little girl that used to live up on the hill among the trees in that big house right at the top, and she had lots of little chocolate eggs that she used to put along the window sill and they used to melt when the sun come out. I can also remember lying in bed on a night and listening for the big trucks coming through Haswel to the slaughter house and I can hear all the poor little animals getting shot - sorry but that's some of my memories, but they were good memories no matter what. I just love my home, town's my roots as they say.... Read more

Pit Village in my Youth

My name is Ken Orton and I lived in Thornley from 1947 until 1974, the year I married. I was born in Shadforth but my parents moved from there to Thornley when I was about one month old. We lived at 72, Thornlaw North until 1967 and then moved to 2, St Cuthbert Road, where I lived until I met my wife and married.
My childhood in Thornley was a marvellous time and I would not have liked to have lived anywhere else than in a pit village when I was growing up. Although we didn't have much, because my dad was a pitman and there were six children in the family, everybody we knew was the same as us and so we never missed what we never had. We always had enough to eat and presents for birthdays and Christmas, although not as much as bairns nowadays. Even my bairns did better that I did but, since we didn't expect to have a great deal, we were never... Read more

Growing up in Thornley

I was born in Durham in 1969 and grew up in Thornley until I left in 1985 and moved to South Africa. I have been back a few times over the years and have seen many changes my father still lives in Thornley and will never leave the place now.
I still have great memories of the place and a lot of my school friends still live there.

Memories of Thornley

Having read Kenneth Ortons' memories, it brought back visions in my mind of the good times growing up in the loveliest little village I know. When I was born in 1947 my mam and dad lived with my grandma at 60 Thornlaw North so there is a chance that me and Ken may have grown up playing football and cricket in the street together. I do remember the mountain glide to this day I have never seen one as high as the one in Thornley, I wonder if it is still there, or have the Health and Safety idiots taken it down! We lived with my nan for about two years I think, then we moved into one of the new steel house that had just been built in Hillside Crescent, we moved into number 19 and it's garden backed onto my nan's old house. All the kids used to roam the fields, nobody would chase you off because you never damaged anything, we all respected property when we were... Read more

MY MOTHER'S MEMORIES, Olive Stanley

My mother has many memories of Thornley as a pupil at Thornley Colliery Primary School, and other village life, her name was OLIVE STANLEY. She lived at Colinwood Street, No1, with her mother Ethel Tonkin and step father Eligha Tonkin and step brother and sisters. She is 88 years old. Her memory of being a pupil at school was winning a district award for penmanship (copperplate writing). Her writing today is still of a high standard. Edward Stanley

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