My Heart Home

A Memory of Dartmouth.

I have loads of memories - I moved here with my family in 1956 (aged 8) - I just read about the changing huts out at the Castle - what a lot of fun was had in them!! A big memory for me was of the Blacksmiths (the Middletons) - I spent as much time as possible down there - my mother used to ring them to tell me when to come home for meals!! I was totally fascinated at their amazing skill in turning rods of steel into glorious pieces of art - and then of course there was the horse shoeing - their kindness and patience - the smell of the burning hooves - I loved that world. - they were all a very special breed of people - Mayors were often chosen from their family!! Then of course there were the ferries. I remember having a "pash" on one of the ferrymen on the passenger ferry and would spend far too long going back and forth just chatting and feeling special - in retrospect, he was a bit of a Casanova!! And I mustn't leave out the lower ferry - on which I spent many hours travelling over and back - being allowed to open and close the gates, it made me feel very important!! The Lower Ferry was run by the same family for very many years - sadly I can't remember their names - but like the Middletons, they were stalwarts of the Dartmouth community. Just as you came off the ferry on the Dartmouth side there was The Buttery (hope I've remembered that name right) anyway, it was my job to go down each Saturday to get the special pot of cream they made up for my father that they knew he loved (he was away working all week and this was his special "naughtiness" at weekends). Then of course there was my treat to go to the Sailing Club with him on a Saturday morning - but even more special was when he'd very occasionally take me over the river to The Royal Yacht Club!! He always spent a lot longer there so I was allowed to take my 'swimmers' and play on the beach with some of the other children who were similarly being 'looked after' by their fathers. Then of course there was the sailing - dingies in races every Saturday, and much bigger vessels - beautiful yachts out into Start Bay - and when I was older I used to "ferry" yachts for very rich owners who had left them in Dartmouth but wanted them back in their own harbours - Plymouth, Southampton etc - what excitement sailing at night in the channel (very scary memories of a particularly foggy night!!)
Working in the kiosk for Mr King at the Castle during the tourist season, and helping out in the Battery doing Cream Teas. Going to St Petrox for Sunday Evening service during the summer - and in fact getting married there in 1970, beautiful, romantic and amazingly memorable. I mustn't forget the cinema - a wonderful institution!! And very importantly THE REGATTA!! What excitement,gaiety and fun - not forgetting the FAIR - the Big Wheel outside the Police Station, the Dodgems, the Waltzers and all the exciting side shows. When I was a little older there was the evening entertainment - Leon's Bistro - oh what amazing, wonderful meals were had there, and my local, favourite pub, The Dartmouth Arms where I had my first pint!! And not forgetting my years connected with the College - living opposite it, before the road was put through, I was able to walk across the field to "Hawk" (have I remembered the name correctly) it was separate from the rest of the College and I spent very many happy evenings there - Water Polo was a new sport I learnt to appreciate! And from that obviously followed the Passing Out Parades and THE END OF TERM BALL.
Then there were family trips to the 'proper' beaches of Blackpool - long before it became 'posh' - and Slapton - we always wanted to go down to the 'other end' where it was said there were 'nudists'!!!! Wonderful long walks out to Castle Cove and beyond to the other two (whose names I've forgotten), up and down Jawbones - wow was that steep - down to Mill Creek, over to Kingswear and out to the Castle - so many places that I believe no longer exist, at least not in the way I remember them!! I know that Castle Cove has become very "safe" now - no changing huts and proper steps down etc etc!! Sadly I was only able to spend 9 years in Dartmouth - at 17 I went up to London to work and never returned (except for memory trips) but Dartmouth is definitely and has always been my "HEART HOME" - THANKYOU for this website and enabling me to revive memories I never knew I had!! Sadly the last time I came down I found that my home and garden had been "converted" into at least 5 homes (those were the ones I could see!) and of course the College had that enormous road running through it - I will come back again, your various videos look amazing - and after all, the Boat Float is still there!!! What amazing fun has been had in there!!
Sorry, I haven't mentioned the Butterwalk - Fosse Street - the Market etc etc. A very beautiful place to have lived - I was very lucky and will look forward to another trip down memory lane.