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Trent Vale

Trent Vale maps

Historic maps of Trent Vale and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis.   View all Trent Vale maps

Trent Vale photos

We have no photos of Trent Vale, although we do have photos of these nearby places:

Trentham| Newcastle| Hanley| Blurton| Wolstanton| Longton| Porthill| Normacot| Burslem| Weston Coyney| Swynnerton| Caverswall| Madeley| Goldenhill| Stockton Brook| Oulton| Brown Edge| Endon

Trent Vale area books

Displaying 1 of 4 books about Trent Vale and the local area.   View all books for this area

Memories of Trent Vale

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Staffordshire memories

Trentham Railway

Toy Railway c1955
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In the 1960's I was a ticket conductor on this train. Jack Goldstone was the driver and we took people from the gardens to the pool. Today there's no way I would be allowed to work on the railway because of health and safety concerns. We had to stand on a running board by the side of the carriages hang on with one hand and take money and issue tickets with the other while the train reached speeds of 20 - 30mph. Some times conductors fell off and Jack had to stop while we picked all the money that had been scattered over the tracks and by the lake. Luckilly no one was seriously hurt!

Happy Days

Toy Railway c1955
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Memories of using the miniature railway to get to the open air swimming pool. Summer holidays were spent with either my brothers or my friends, exploring Trentham Gardens and Park, and swimming in the open air swimming pool. Little did we know how lucky we were to live so near to Trentham Gardens that we could use it as our playground. You could only get to the swimming pool either by foot or by this railway, which took you from nearby the lake to the gates of the swimming pool. The railway ran alongside the lake, through woodland. Amazing memories.

Memories of Hot Summer Days

Park Swimming Pool c1955
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My friends and I used to swim in this pool in the summer holidays. My friend's mum used to work for Trentham Gardens and so we used to have free access to the gardens in the summer school holidays. We used to take the miniature train from the lake to the pool and spend all day there. We bought ice creams from the shops above the pool. Looking back I can see that the pool is art deco in style, but when I was young I didn't consider the architecture, I just enjoyed playing in the pool. Oh, happy days!

Critchlows Corner

The Old Road c1955
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The building in view was a Post Office and General Stores, the area was known as "Critchlows Corner" after the name of the family that owned the shop. The post office was the only one in the area. At the age of 10 I would cycle to the Post Office to collect our familys child benefit.
The bridge in the background was used by railway engines taking coal from Hem Heath Colliery to Florence Colliery. The trains travelled slowly and on many occasions I have "caught" the train to Longton Park as the line passed it.
Sadly the shop no longer exists and the gardens in which it stood are now a small housing estate. The rail line is no longer used due to pit closures.

Them Were The Days

The Old Road c1955
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I remember going to Critchelows corner shop to get my sweets before I went to school, I also remember walking across the fields with my brother to get to Blurton Road Chemist because that was the only one in Blurton at the time to get my mums prescription, we used to buy a liquorice root stick to eat on the way back we always went back via the brook so we could jump it Happy Days!!!!

My Memory

The Old Road c1955
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I remember I was about 10 and Critchilows Corner was a derelict building at this point, probably in 2000, and we used to try get in to see what it was like inside. I moved away but do visit the area from time to time and it's a housing esate now, seems a shame.

I Went to That School

The Smiths Arms And School c1955
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I went to that school. I went to the nursery and stayed there right up until the year 2000 and then moved away to Scotland. It was a great school.

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