Hard Times But Happy Days

A Memory of Harpurhey.

We lived on Park View facing the library and Queens Park which had its own museum and everything a victorian park could offer two young brothers yearning for adventures. We would ride our guiders all over that park, and enjoy the corporation pop fountain near the front gate on Queens Road. We would lark about in the abandoned Sydney Smith's gramophone shop near to the hippodrome, we would pelt over to Lankeys or Barneys tip. We both attended Alfred Street School; I can only remember a Mr Broom and Mr Drinkwater . Best friends were; Graham Pool from Baywood St and Robert Flemming from Peduzzi St (he attended St Malachis School). Best memories; bonfire nights on our croft, big bags of chips from the UCP next to the Milan pub on Rochdale Road, we would walk over to "bucket o clough"or get a 'puffing billy' to Heaton Park. Endless hot summers and winters that guaranteed snow for sledges made from the tin from the front of our hearth. We would play hide and seek for hours in the old graveyard behind the park. We loved the park museum but before 'the man' would let us in he would check our hands were clean, and if we were wearing holsters with cap guns these would have to be hung in the office - made me feel quite the cowboy! Happy days for two little rascals. I'm sure my kids don't believe me.