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Doreen was born in Village Lane, Mumbles on 3rd October 1923, their second child.

Part One - Village Lane (off Mumbles Road)

This commences on the left at the Antelope Hotel, landlord Mr Greene - one daughter Jimmy Sybil - what her real name was I don't know. She went to the convent school (Western Lane) St Anne's now. I never knew anything about her mother. On the right was Mr Thomas the Dairy - Edna said it used to be a furniture shop. Carry on up the lane - first left, Rock Hill (known as Donkey Row), living up here Mr and Mrs Armour, elder daughter (didn't know her name), then there was George and then Peggy (who died quite young).. I didn't know anyone else living on the left-hand side. These houses overlooked the back of the Antelope Hotel.

On the right-hand side, the first house was Mrs Amelia Brock, who was one of the American Jones' family (about 12 of them) she had Graham and Jackie. Then Mrs Shadwick, I think she was Jean Budge's Grandmother - she had one son. On the same side lived 2 brothers named Michael, one known as Holy Joe together with one sister, I can't remember anyone else who lived there.

The lane started at number 3. What happened to 1 and 2 I don't know. We always called them the empty houses, even though there weren't ever any ruins left there.

Let's continue our peregrinations up Village Lane, starting at number 3 on the left hand side, Mr Bob Gammon and his wife Alice, and seven sons, Edie, Syd, Pondo, Bobby, Stanley, Ronnie and Guy

Edna always told us that when the binmen came to collect the rubbish, they would stand outside number 3 and sing "Alice where art thou".

Next door to the Gammons were the Jones family (another of the American Jones') Tom and Ada (she was Mama’s friend). Their children were Betty, Rene, Minnie, Muriel, Maureen (Tommy died young) Clifford, Alan and Tudy, a lovely family. Next door was Mr Ernie Smith who lived on his own. He was very well known because of his knowledge of the whereabouts of all the best crab holes (and wouldn't show anyone else where they were). He would boil the crabs as soon as he came home and give us all the legs. Edna and I spent hours trying to get the meat out (sitting on his doorstep-probably filthy dirty). It was also known that while crabbing he found a body of someone who had drowned. He was awarded one shilling on telling the police where it was. Edna said that they then took the body down to the Mermaid, which in those days was the mortuary.

Then on to number 6, Mrs Cottle, her 3 sons Tommy, Charlie and Jimmy, and 2 daughters, Rosie and Dora. At one time Charlie worked on the coal lorry with my father Albert, known to me as Dada (the lorry was owned by Mr Billy Howells). Rosie got married and from Miss Cottle became Mrs Kettle. Her younger son, John, was Bert's best friend all through school and her older son Lep was in Joe's form in Dynevor School. Dora went out cleaning and her pet phrase was "I don't owe anyone anything. I always pay all my depps" (not debts), which was in fact very true. One of my memories of Dora was when fell down one day and gashed my forehead. She came running out, saw all the blood, and said I'm going to stop that for you now. I'll give you a piece of bread and butter and jam, not bread and butter, or bread and jam, but both, what a luxury and it worked. Another thing that Edna told me about Dora was Auntie Ethel crochet a dress for Edna in pink and one for me in white. We had to show them off to Mrs Cottle and the next thing I came out crying my eyes out, Edna told me that Dora had said she didn't like my dress because she could see my knickers through it ??

Next came the Harris family, Mama, Dada, Edna, Doreen, Win and Bert and Gran. We also always had a dog Rex. It was only a one-up one-down cottage, where and how we all slept I'll never know. Mama put curtains or sheets around each bed. The toilet was out the back and we shared the tap (cold water) outside the back door with the Cottles-happy days!!

I remember every night Dada would call into Chrissie Skinner's (Mrs Jollife) and get a lb of hard boils it was payday and Mama shared them out one by one. also remember that Mr Porter, the rent man, came every Friday night to collect the rent, 7 shillings a week.

I think we were the only children in the lane who went to the Board School. All the others went to the church school. There were no school dinners. I think we must have had sandwiches-what I do remember is dragging Winnie to school. Edna one side and the other side. She, screaming her head off, not wanting to go to school. A future Teacher!! We always used to pray for Dada to come along in the lorry he never did!!!

I'm now attaching a short account that Edna wrote about our love of books and was exhibited in Oystermouth Library.

The Children Who Loved Books > by Edna Davies (née Harris) and Doreen Peregrine (née Harris), on behalf of the Harris family

! was 14, and in Swansea High School for girls when the new Oystermouth Library was opened in 1935. It made such a difference to have so many books available, when they had been, for me, a very rare commodity.

Prior to the opening of the library, books were very difficult to come by, if you had a very limited income. It was a time of great depression; few people in Mumbles were in a position to spend money on books. Even though there were a few private lending libraries in the village, they were not for the benefit of children.

All my family of eight children began their education in what was known in Mumbles as 'The Board School'. The alternative school was 'The Church School' now demolished.

We were taught well in the Board School and were all avid readers and good at spelling

Saturday afternoon was also greatly enjoyed with a trip to the Regent Cinema, or we usually called it, 'The New Cinema'. think it was 'tuppence' a show.

We now come to the Webborn’s (I don't ever remember a Mr) but I do remember a Mikey, who he was don't know, then there was Jesse (male), Ina, Kathleen, Tommy, and Georgie. They also had 2 Grandchildren living

Additional information re previous page (no.7 Village Lane the Webborn family)

Jack was the oldest he moved to Birmingham. Beatrice was the oldest daughter and mother of Chris and Betty. Beatrice died in childbirth with Betty and her mother (Maud) went up to London and brought the children, Chris and Betty, back to Mumbles where they grew up with their grandmother.

After his Army service Chris married and settled in Scotland, where he lived for the rest of his life with his wife and 5 children.

I've been informed by Mike Harvey, Ena's son, that Mikey went to the War with Ena's dad. Although both survived and came home, Ena's dad had been gassed and lived only a short time afterwards.. .

there, Chris and Betty Butterfield. think they belonged to Kathleen. Then came Mr and Mrs Passmore. George, Willy, Rosie, Jesse (female) Daio, Mary and Jackie, Edna remembers that Daio was a Japanese prisoner of war (I didn't know that). Dada made us a tent of old sacks. We used to take it up the hill, Daio, Mary and Jackie would be with us. Daio was the boss. We had to gather blackberries. He would stew them in an old saucepan (maggots as well) and share them out. He would then take the tent down and take us all down to the prom and make us all go in the sea to wash off all the blackberry juice. told him couldn't swim. He said he would soon teach me. had to get on his back, and he swam out with me to the piles (not there any longer) he left me there and said now swim back. did the best dog paddle that anyone had ever seen (Happy memories!!!).

We now come to Mr and Mrs Kift, Eileen, and Donald, we didn't know there was another son. Edna discovered this from the Historical Society apparently, there had been another son very much older, who had been killed in the First World War, but there had never been any mention about him from anyone, but he must have been very much older than both Eileen and Donald. Next door to the Kift's we come to Mrs Hoskins, two sons and one daughter - all very much older than us. I am not sure whether Nellie was a sister or a daughter. She lived further up the lane. She had a son, Brynley, who spent many years in Cefn Coed Hospital, I think he was the result of a wartime romance, but I do remember that all the years I visited Cefn Coed so did she - she never missed a visit.

Next, we have Mr and Mrs Brace-three sons and one daughter. They were all much older than us. Gordon was one son and Daisy was the daughter. They all had children, who were the same age as us. Mr Brace was never seen without his bowler hat. I think he was a foreman working for the Corporation. One of the sons owned a few horses and used to take them down to Caswell Bay for children to have rides and I think he charged 3d a ride. The Braces also opened a small café down in Caswell.

Next to them was Mrs Thomas, one son Torrie, and one daughter, Kathleen (who only had one eye). Mrs Thomas was the Post Office cleaner and also cleaned all the telephone boxes (helped by Kathleen). Next we have Mr and Mrs Phillips and one daughter. She moved out of the lane at a very young age (Village Lane wasn't quite good enough for her). She eventually had one daughter - Ann Pym, a stunning looking girl, who married someone who owned a greengrocer/fruiterer's shop at the top of High Street-I think she did very well for herself.

Next, we come to Mrs Nightingale - she had one son. I never saw him with anyone other than his mother. No friends !! And I can't remember anything of his schooling. Wherever they went it was just the two of them. It always seemed to be that they were a cut above the lane - I can see her now, she always wore a hat with the brim turned up all round. I often wondered how she coped when war broke out - he, who had never left his mother's side was called up and was captured by the Japanese and spent a few years in a Japanese prison camp. He was the last person I would have expected to survive - but he did. I think they eventually moved away.

Next to them was a man I didn't ever know his name he was very badly scarred his head, face, eyes. Everyone said he was a pilot from the First World War, how true that was I don't know.

We didn't know very much about the top half of the lane - we hardly ever went up there.

There was a Mrs Llewellyn who lived on her own and next door to her were two brothers, Charlie and Tom Davies. We thought they were two old men looking back they were probably about 50 and I think they were survivors of one of the previous lifeboat disasters.

We have now reached the top of the lane where there was another entrance to a few more cottages. The one at the end was occupied by Mr and Mrs. Kent (he always wore pince nez reading glasses) and their three daughters, Hilda, Kathleen and Lilian. There was quite an upset when Kathleen married Mr Reed, a manager of the Tivoli Cinema (she wasn't good enough!!).

Then there was Mrs Lewis, a daughter Bronnie, and four brothers. Glyn, Trevor and two older ones. Next to them was the Ace family, Tom, Doris, Phyllis, and Hilda. I think when he got married Tom moved to Dickslade - he was a big lifeboat man.

The last house was occupied by Phillip Ace and his mother, and I don't know whether he was connected to the other Aces, but he looked after his mother for very many years. I think he worked for the Corporation as a road sweeper.

Part Two - From 7, Village Lane to 8, Walters Crescent.

It was inevitable - it had to happen - a move - Mama Dada - 4 children) and Gran, one bedroom.

It's a funny thing- neither Edna nor I can remember moving, but Edna has hit the nail on the head, what did we have to move?? Two beds, kitchen table, four chairs and us. Dada probably put them on the back of the coal lorry and Charlie Cottle probably carried them in for him- neither can we remember ever saying goodbye to Gran she probably went directly to Nottingham. She never came to Walters Crescent. Looking back now, she must have been devastated. She worshipped the four of us, particularly Bert, the only boy and the baby (probably about 12 months old). She certainly didn't want to leave us. When Mama and Dada were out, she took over. She had a thing about drying our hair after a bath (took hours!). I remember Mama and Dada went to the cinema to see the first "Talkie" Sonny Boy with Al Jolson and Renie Jones. Told me, I saw your mother crying in the pictures. She was quite right it was a sob story, and the main song was "Climb upon my knee Sonny Boy". I don't know whether Gran knew any more of the words, but she always had Bertie on her lap and sang it to him over and over again (he was probably about 18 months old!).

What a difference - three bedrooms, a parlour, kitchen, scullery, tap of our own indoors even though it was cold water, a luxury. Another thing I remember, we always used the back door-up five steps in the front, past a small garden with a lovely fuchsia bush that stayed there the whole time we lived there and into the back yard and then into the scullery. The toilet was in the back yard with a shed next to it. I can't remember how we coped with the move. One thing I do remember was we now came home at lunchtime, no more sandwiches and long walks, I think the one it affected most was Mama, she still went back to meet her friend Ada Jones and would meet her to sit either under the big tree in the park or at the end of the concrete-so that the Harris family and the Jones family could all go in the water at the Piles it took Mama a long time to stop going back. That is one thing we were going to miss was crossing the railway line to get to the beach.

One thing always surprised me, there were very few accidents on the line. The only one I remember was when "Auntie Minnie" was knocked over by the train-he wasn't even hurt-why? Because he was drunk as a cool. Dada said that if he had been sober, he would have been killed, he rolled with the train.

Johnny Hoskins, who had a cobblers shop, next door to The Antelope, took great delight in telling Dada, your kids were on the line again. How he thought we were going to get across otherwise I'll never know, but when Mr Frank Dunkin was the driver he would always slow down and wave to us. Even though we had moved out of the area, anything exciting, we were there, after any carnival they had dancing on the green by floodlight. They had competitions and I think it was Winnie and Ethel entered the waltz for the under 16s and, believe it or not, they won first prize - a bar of chocolate between them!! It was as if they had won the cup. In those days they always had an annual regatta and yachts came from everywhere to enter the race. In those days the Bristol Chanel Yacht Club was the place - very upper class, they also had water sports-swimming - a greasy pole and sandcastles, grotto's etc. Who nearly always won the grotto competition? Edna - no wonder- she had five slaves fetching and carrying for her sand, seaweed, coloured pebbles, and thousands of oyster shells. She always gave them titles and think it was her perfect writing that gave her the prize (what it was I don't know) Edna says it was money. As time went by, we stopped going back and made the Castle Field our playground - and by this time Mama had got herself a few cleaning jobs so looking after the four little ones fell on us. I always said we were brought up on stale cakes (Mama cleaned Whites -then the cake shop) and rotten fruit (she also cleaned Davies the fruiterer).

I think we had now left our old life in Village Lane and started a new one in Walters Crescent which was a street consisting of 10 houses branching off Newton Road (or Castleton as we knew it). At the end of the Crescent was the Pines End of Varleys the chemist. didn't know this but Edna said that where Varleys is now there used to be a bank (I don't remember this) and when the bank closed down, Mr Varley took over the whole premises. Today you can see the division in the middle of the chemist where the bank and the chemist met.

The chemist was owned by Mr Edwin Varley - a very religious Plymouth Brethren his wife was Norwegian and was a sister to Mr Werner Sivertsen's father a local Councillor, who later on became Lord Mayor of Swansea. Mr and Mrs Varley had four children, Irene, a pharmacist, who helped run the pharmacy, Sybil, who ran the house, and then the twins Edna and John. Next door to the chemist shop there was some vacant land, Mr Varley bought this and built a chapel of his own there (Plymouth Brethren) still well supported to this day. As children we went to Sunday School there (they had the best summer outings always to Pennard) and to Wednesday evening Band of Hope (best magic lanterns). 

When war was declared John Varley joined the RAF much to his father's disgust, went to Canada to train and came back as a Flying Officer (it caused quite a rift in the family) particularly as he brought a WRAF home as his wife!!

Back to the Crescent in No. 1 lived Mr and Mrs Isaac. They seemed quite old when we arrived there (they were probably around 50). They had one daughter Doreen, who when she got married, moved up to Castle Street. I can also remember a brother and sister spending quite a lot of time at No. 1. "I don't know whether they were relations or were fostered. Bert and Eve Moore they were a lot older than us. Bert was a leading scout master and had thousands of badges sewn on his shirt. We now move next door to No.2, Mr and Mrs Meach, Idris, John and Elizabeth. I can't remember which school they went to, but do remember that Idris was an errand boy for Greenslades the grocer things turned out very sadly for them. I can't remember what date it happened, probably the late 1930s, there was an outbreak of Polio, all the schools were closed down, and I can remember the medical officer for health checking on all the visits Idris had made during his deliveries. Unfortunately, Idris died. I can remember quite a few of the children who had polio, but luckily got over it. Dada made us go up the Castle Field to play and insisted that we kept to ourselves and not to play with anyone else and when we got home, he made us all take a dose of snuff - it's a wonder we didn't all become addict.

Next door to the Meaches lived Mrs Cobey Thomas with her boyfriend (partner toy boy who knows!)? She was a very eccentric lady and was still living in the 1920s flapper style, long cigarette holder etc. Her boyfriend about 20 years younger than her was a jobbing gardener - what a change!!!

Next door to them at No. 4, another Mr and Mrs Harris, with one daughter Beryl. I can't remember too much about them. I think they moved on. Whether the Hoskins family moved in there don't know. There was Mr and Mrs Hoskins, Doreen the same age as me and Olive the same age as Winnie. Another thing Edna told me that she always got tied up with Johnny Hoskins and the Railway line. Johnny used to sit in the shelter at the end of the part with all the old fishermen, and one day as she was crossing the line to go to the beach, she caught her foot in the line and fell over. One of the old fishermen came across to pick her up and said "ne'er thee mind maid thee hasn't hurt theeself now get on with thee" old Mumbles dialect (according to Edna) thee and thou, not you and me.

We now come to No. 5, Mrs Madeley, one son Ted, one daughter Marjorie Ted worked for the Parks Department looking after the bowling green etc and I think that Marjorie worked down The Osborne, they too were quite a bit older than us. I never heard any mention of Mr Madeley.

We now come to No. 6, Mr and Mrs Palmer, John, Ivor, Molly and Alan again all older than us, we were the youngest family in the Crescent - no other young children living there. John and Ivor got married and moved on Molly was a post lady for years - very smart - dyed her hair black until the day she died!! Alan was an electrician. They were a great friend of Auntie Ethel's and when Auntie Ethel went for 2 weeks respite holiday to Porthcawl, Molly went as her carer.

Next door to the Palmers at No. 7 were Mr and Mrs. Taylor, one son again, much older than us - none of us was very fond of Mrs Taylor. I don't think that she liked the idea of a gang of children arriving next door to her.

Now we come to the most important house in the Crescent, No. 8 (the Harris abode) since we had moved up from the lane a lot of things had changed, Dada no longer worked for Billy Howells. He had finished the coal business and just took any job that came along - despite months of sickness, Mama had started more cleaning jobs - she had besides White and Harry Davies Gertie John (newsagent), Dolly Smale (confectioner) we loved this one: because half her wages was in sweets and chocolate, cleaning for Mrs Cummings (she lived in a flat over Wallace the shoe shop) and any others she could get. One bad memory I've got was when Dada was offered a job as a night watchman - if you refused a job you got no dole money - I can remember it to this day - it was in Sketty, Dada cycled up to Sketty (with his chest!!) and Mama and I put the children to bed and sat up until 6am waiting for him to come home result - Dada in bed for weeks with pneumonia. It was this time that Edna will never forget she has told me time and time again how she'll never forget Clifford Bale. Dada was so ill he was too weak to walk, when Clifford heard this he knew if you didn't sign on the dole (in Devon Tea) you wouldn't get any money. Clifford was also a coal man he brought his lorry up to the house, practically carried Dada down, and took him to sign on. Edna said that when they arrived at the office where the queues were waiting to be paid, they all moved out of the way so that Clifford could take Dada up the front. Edna said it was because they all thought so highly of Dada those few shillings save Mama's life for the next week!!

I can also remember that if ever there was any form filling to be done - Edna was always there. She said she was Dada's secretary. I said it then and I will say it forever, Edna was Dada's best friend. She was the one he took on walks on a Sunday morning, he loved talking to her (they were on the same level). I can always remember Rene Ace (the butcher's daughter) telling me that she had seen Edna out with her college boyfriend. I said she hasn't got a boyfriend. Rene said I saw them - he had a green and white scarf on- but he's much too old for her. I suddenly realised and told Rene she was with my father who was wearing Edna's High school scarf - great joke. I can also remember Edna telling me Dada used to take her for walks over to the golf links and showed her the mushrooms growing before her eyes.

Dada was having good and bad times-more bad than good.

One day a letter arrived from Nottingham, from Gran, she wanted to come for a week's holiday and to bring her Granddaughter, our cousin Joan Webber with her, Dada was thrilled to show her our new abode, a bedroom of her own, for a week she arrived, tears all round, but none of us took to our cousin, a tall, skinny girl, who wasn't very impressed with any of us. We did our best to entertain her, took her up the Castle Field (she didn't like the ruins), we took her down the beach (water was too cold), we tried. I think the only place Gran went to was Village Lane, for old times' sake. We weren't too sorry when the week was up. We know that Gran didn't really want to go back. think it was a couple of years later that Dada had a letter from Nottingham (his sister Maggie) saying Gran had had a fall and she thought he had better get up there. Gran had fallen in the snow and had broken her hip and had pneumonia, she didn't last very long after that. Dada came back devastated, all he said she kept saying to me, Alb take me back home, take me back home. It took him a long time to get over that we couldn't sit together because it was so full.

 So many things seemed to happen in the Crescent, but with eight of us, one would get over it, and another one would start up. remember having a big scare with Bertie, he was about 6, always had a bad chest, but this time we had to have the Doctor Dendy, things looked bad for a long time, but he came through it and don't think he had any chest trouble after that. When he was getting better, we took him out in his pushchair, he was too weak to walk, and he met one of the children in his class Geoff Banford from West Cross, he asked Bert when he was coming back to school, Bert looked at him and said "I've left" a future Headmaster!!!

By this time, we had more or less stopped going down to Village Lane, and Mama seemed to be more friendly with Mrs Davies (Aunt Minnie's wife) same number of children as us. My job was to go up to Castle Street every Friday to get a bag of fish- they sold it from the house. I'd knock the door and the first thing would say was is your father in- if I'd get yes didn't mind, he'd only charge me 6d for a full bag, but if it was no, Mrs Davies would charge me 1/- (what a friend!).

Another thing that Edna told me about was that Dada came home one day and said fill a bucket with coal and take it up to 'Auntie Minnie's - they've got no fire - i don't know who went up with Edna (I don't know where I was) but Edna always remembers - that when she arrived up at Castle Street (worn out) she was taken into their kitchen where Dorothy Davies was doing her ironing (a pair of white gloves).

I think we will leave No. 8 for the time being and go on to No. 9, Mr and Mrs Phillips, one son Frank and one daughter Madeline. I think Frank was a carpenter. What Madeline did never knew except that she was a dyed blonde who no one ever saw her without her makeup on. I can't remember her working to this day. I used to do most of their shopping for them, something every day, but on Saturday, potatoes and bread regularly. This was the best day. She always gave me 3pence. I always gave this to Mama and she would give me a penny back-riches!!! They were a very nice family and we all got on well with them.

Now to the last house in the Crescent where Mrs Glasbrook lived, a very elderly widow always dressed in black, who seemed to spend all her time sweeping her front steps (never saw her without her sweeping brush). I think that she was quite lonely had no close relatives - one distant niece only visited her once in a while. She became very friendly with Marna, and can always remember her asking Mama if she could come in every Friday night, bath night, to help dry her hair, of course Mama said yes - how long to bath us lot ?? Bath in front of the fire, Mama kept topping the bath up, as each one got out, with a kettle of hot water. Happy days!!

Another thing that Mrs Glasbrook asked Mama was to send Bertie into her on New Year's Day- a male had to be the first to enter her house (for luck). I can always remember him coming back well rewarded.

That was all the houses in the Crescent, and the other side of the road were the long back gardens of the houses/shops in Newton Road, the first one which was opposite us was I think Beynons the plumbers. This was divided into 2, the first part used for storage by Beynons and the 2nd part was a long yard and workshop used by Mr Grimshaw, a monumental mason, Dada used to spend hours talking to Mr Grimshaw sitting on the wall in the sun - we always seemed to have lovely summers. What the dust must have done to Dada I'll never know - no masks in those days.

Mr Grimshaw lived in Rotherslade Road. I think he was Keith Rosser's Grandfather, a lovely old man who think talked more than he worked-lovely company for Dada. Edna always remembers the day that she heard that she had passed the scholarship, she and her best friend, Pikey (Doreen Wright) ran home to give them the good news. Dada was sitting on the wall with Mr Grimshaw and when they both said, "we've passed the scholarship" Mr Grimshaw said "you clever girls - you've passed the scholarship" and gave Edna a shilling- untold wealth. Edna said she'd never seen a shilling before!!

Now let's go back to No. 8, a lot had happened from the time we left Village Lane the family had doubled, Eileen (Lena), Ethel, Leslie and David all arrived. Bertie no longer the only boy with five sisters 2 more boys arrived, 5 girls and 3 boys. I can always remember the day that David was born, Dada said to me "go upstairs to see your mother". went up and I'll never forget it, Mama said "look at what I had for my birthday - her birthday was 31 May and David was born 1 June. had the honour of being the first to nurse him some honour-I can see his black hair now. He didn't have it for long. It changed colour in days.

Obviously, lots of things must have happened with 8 of us growing up-too many to remember. I think Dada was more out of work than in work sickness and unemployment.

I know that Mama then got yet another cleaning job. She used to walk down to Southend to clean for Harry Libby, a local Councillor. She came home one day and said she had to get tea for a special guest (Harry Libby was a bachelor). She said he was a tall thin gentleman who was so nice to her and thanked her for his tea (it was Sir Edmond Hilary) she was very impressed.

I can't remember the date, but do know that the war had started so Gran Windsor wanted to come back from London and as they owned No. 8 Walters Crescent, obviously wanted their house back. Mama had a few offers of renting one in Chapel Street, one in Newton and then Harry Libby told her about Brooklyn Terrace - Dada said yes immediately - Edna told me years later that Dada was not very happy in Walters Crescent. I didn't know that.

Again, I can't remember moving, 5 bedrooms and a bathroom-what luxury.

So goodbye to Walters Crescent and another life begins at Brooklyn Terrace.

Addition:

Original tenant of 7 Village Lane (paternal) Grandmother Gran Harris.

Village Lane from 1921-1929/30. 

Dada - Bell Ringer in St Paul's before 1914-18. Played cricket for Sketty.

Also, played rugby and lost his front teeth at Neath!. 

Two stamps short!!

You have a very persistent daughter (accused them of "stealing" the little he'd paid into the stamps scheme when they paid that back to my father saw that they'd turned down any chance of the new NHS era pension (1947/8). Nightwatchman, Driving a Lorry, some jobs to try to get some money. Taken in the back of a coal lorry with hot water bottle and blankets in terrible pain with pleurisy, to the Municipal /Corporation Health offices? Opposite the "Bible College" on left going up.

Part Three - From 8 Walters Crescent To 5 Brooklyn Terrace, Newton

War had now been declared and Gran had decided to move back from London and wanted to live in her own house in Walters Crescent. We were lucky enough to have some good connections (through Mama's popularity and hard work, to have the choice of one or two houses. I think it was Dada's choice and thus we moved up to Brooklyn Terrace. What a good choice that proved to be. A three storied house, five bedrooms, bathroom, front room, middle room, kitchen scullery, long front garden and long steep back garden.

Shangri-la, we didn't know what had hit us - two minutes away a lovely park. Cricket, soccer, rugby, children's play park, what more could we want. A terrace of ten houses at the bottom of Newton Hill overlooking the park. I don't think any of us had ever been up there before and didn't know where Newton was. Well we arrived Mama, Dada, eight children, prams, bikes, furniture. I always remember Mrs Parry telling me that all the neighbours didn't know what had hit them. Apparently Brooklyn Terrace had always been quite a high class Terrace in its time, but things changed when the older residents had died out.

The walk continues at the first house (from Newton Road). 

This was separate from the other houses-detached - with a very big garden. We found out eventually that this was a small private school college "Westfa" with about 10-15 pupils. It was owned and run by Mr and Mrs Oliver. Mrs Oliver's sister Miss Morgan, also lived with them and spent all her time arguing with them, heard by everyone who walked up Newton Road. Their final argument came to an end when Miss Morgan walked out and took up residence in their garden shed, which was situated on their front lawn and she slept there until the day that they moved out to Newton.

On the other side of Newton Road, overlooking Westfa school, was a lovely old house with beautiful gardens, owned by Mr and Mrs Billings - they eventually sold it and the old story emerges - knocked down and replaced by a block of flats-money tells a story. From what I can remember the house number started at 4. I think that the intention was to infill the lawns of Westfa school with two or three houses, but it failed to materialise, and the homes then started at number 4. Who lived there I don't know. We come to number 5, the first one I remember there (this must have been at the beginning of the war) was Mr and Mrs Zeilor and daughter Stephanie, they had the upstairs nat. He was a Jewish business man owning a day cleaning business and then in the downstairs flat was Dr and Mrs Gordon and daughter Iza, how long they were there don't know. Mama got quite friendly with Mrs Zeilor and gave her all our clothing coupons. Edna remembers having all her smart left over clothes (much too small for me but I did have all her shoes).

 We now come to No. 6, Mr and Miss Salisbury. He was an elderly bachelor and she was an elderly spinster. They both worked on the LMS Railway. I think he had a very good job. He was the only person in the Terrace who had a car, which he kept in his garage at the top of his back garden. It was a vintage model and every morning when he tried to start it, nothing happened. He proceeded to kick every tyre and believe it or not - it started. They had a sister who had a hay and corn merchants' business in Newport. Becky and her husband used to visit them every month and the three of them (not Miss Salisbury) were drunk for the whole weekend (according to Mrs Parry).

 Now No. 7, Mr and Mrs Parry, Mr Parry was one of a very old Newton family and Mrs Parry had come over from Devon to go into service in Mumbles. They eventually got married and Mrs Parry was the cook at the Langland Bay Golf Club, and for a short time was a cook for Roger Beck, a wealthy Quaker, who is buried in Oystermouth cemetery and whose grave faces the opposite direction to all the other graves (I don't know why). When they gave up working at the golf club, they moved to Brooklyn Terrace and added to their income by taking in paying guests (everyone else had lodgers - not Mrs Parry). The one I remember was Miss Jeffries, who was the retired matron of a Carmarthenshire Mental Nursing Home. She walked with the help of a walking stick and had a very bad limp. Apparently, she was kicked by one of her patients. I think she was there for quite a long time, and Mrs Parry treated her as one of the gentry. Ethel used to do some shopping for her, and also had to go down to the library to change her books. Often when Ethel brought.the book back to Miss Jeffries she would often say "I've read this one" and send Ethel back to get another one. That didn't go down very well with Ethel. Mr and Mrs Parry had one son Dennis. Mr Parry was a big member of Paraclete Chapel and would often take Dennis with him. As a result, Dennis got quite friendly with the Minister's nephew who used to come down to Newton on holiday. This friend grew up to be Swansea's famous poet, Dylan Thomas. Unfortunately, Dennis was taken ill and died at a very young age. Mrs Parry particularly was very bitter about this until the day she died.

 Number 8 is where we arrived in the early days of the war. Edna didn't spend much time with us as she went straight up to the Swansea Training College and was a boarder there. I think we were nearly all in school. I was in the Tech, Winnie was in De la Beche, Bertie was in the Grammar School and I think that Lena, Ethel and Leslie were all in the Board School. David hadn't started school. Mama got another cleaning job and worked for the Swansea Town Clerk too; a client who lived in Newton and she used to take David with her. Dada was better on and off and was able to work for short periods, but never for very long, but he was much happier in Brooklyn Terrace.

Now to Number 9 where three sisters lived. Miss Andrews, Mrs Price and Mrs Jennings together, with Mrs Jennings' son Harold. Miss Andrews and Harold were both music teachers and did all their piano teaching in their front room. I think that the sisters came from quite a well to do family. I think their family were from Llanelli and owned Swansea's David Evans Store. We now move further down the Terrace where another large family lived, Mr and Mrs Bob Edwards and 7 children, the boys were about the same age as Leslie and David and all got quite friendly.

 Then in the last house lived an elderly couple, Mr and Mrs Roberts, with their son and two daughters, Alice, Doris and Ken. Their daughter Alice had married a widower with one son, he was the same age as Edna - Gordon who joined the Air Force but was killed on active service, I think he was a rear gunner in the Air Force. Alice, who was now Mrs Pusie, had one son - Arthur, he again was about the same age as the Edwards boys and Leslie and David.

Dada did manage to work on and off and he is seen in the photo above, second from the right, in the front row. I remember him working in a garage in Sketty and also remember him going to Oxford and he worked there for a short time - he kept trying but his health beat him. thought his next job here was in the Naval Ordnance but Edna said that is where he met and became friendly with a Mr Davies (this turned out to be Morgan's father). Edna said he really looked after Dada - making sure that he always got a seat in the canteen and he always made sure that Dada got on the bus safely to come home. I can remember Mama buying bunches of sweet peas from a gardener in Newton for Dada to give to the nurse in the works because Dada said she always looked out for him. The time eventually came when he wasn't able to work but he was always there for us we never came home to an empty house. He was an expert in making Welsh cakes and at tossing pancakes. Ethel said he tried to teach her how to toss a pancake, but never succeeded. She talks about that to this day. Dada also rigged up a table tennis table in the middle room and he used to challenge us all. One day David walked out on a game he was having and when Mama asked him why he wasn't playing, he said Dada is a cheat, he is playing with his left hand. Dada thought that was hilarious!!

 By this time there were quite a few changes taking place in Brooklyn Terrace. Harold Jennings had been called up for the army. Good job he was a good pianist, he would never have made a soldier, but luckily for him they put in ENSA, which he quite enjoyed. When the war was over, he went in for teaching but didn't make a success of that and then went into the church, which he did enjoy and became Vicar of Knighton, together with three other churches.

Then one day a family of refugees arrived. They were Jews who had escaped from Hitler from Czechoslovakia. Mr and Mrs Neuschul, one small son Peter and Mrs Neuschul's sister, Mimi, and a younger one. I think one was a doctor and the other a nurse. Mimi must have escaped from a concentration camp because she had her number tattooed on her arm. Mr Ernst Neuschul was a well-known Czech artist and before he left, the SS took all his paintings and made a bonfire of them. While they lived in the Terrace, Mrs Neuschul had another baby boy. They were all very friendly and Peter's best friend was Ethel. We then had another refugee family arrive. They came from the bombed-out area in London. They also were Jews, Mr and Mrs Silver and one son Joey, but they also had two foster sons, Teddy and Martin Teasdale. We in Swansea were also having a bad time with the bombing and Townhill and Mayhill were getting the brunt of it, so Dada told Mr Davies and family to come to stay with us. He told Mama it was one way of paying him back when he was so good to Dada. So Mr and Mrs Davies, Doris and Jean, all arrived one Saturday morning. think Doris was working, but Edna said that Jean went to school down here and loved it.

Things now started to change, evacuees returned home, houses in the Terrace changing hands and Mama achieving her lifelong ambition (I didn't know this). Edna told me that Mama had always wanted to have a shop, and this she did. No more cleaning jobs, she rented a room in a house next door to the Board school and then opened her shop. Can you imagine it? 

She took over a paper round covering Langland, Rotherslade and various other streets around that area. It was a very hard area to cover, and the four younger ones were each given a round to cover, with Mama having the biggest and worst round. The four of them all went straight to the shop from school, dumped their bags, and then went on to deliver the papers. She also sold cigarettes and other knick knacks, which she stored in the middle room, in the house, so we had to insure that one room. She also put goods for sale (second hand) notices in the windows and it was amazing what she sold for people. She loved that shop, and it became quite a meeting place for many people. Dada used to wait to hear all the local gossip when she came home. remember Jan Davies (Hullin) telling me that when she was a little girl, she spent a lot of time being comforted by Mama, that family had a very unhappy childhood and she told me that Mama was more than a mother to her.

Another thing remember was that Mama had for years neglected her teeth and suffered with terrible toothache. No dentist, as she couldn't afford it, and one day she arrived home with a scarf covering her mouth. Dada thought she had a cold, but nearly died of shock when she took the scarf down- she didn't have a tooth in her head. The pain must have been driving her mad, the dentist was only a few doors down from the shop. Mr Lewis, a very nice, kind man. He asked her which tooth she wanted out and she said all of them, just imagine it was the best thing she had ever done and she could eat better without them than with those bad teeth. The only thing she couldn't handle was an apple. If ever we went out for a meal, no-one ever saw her take her teeth out, talk about a sleight of hand, but one of the worst things I remember is that she didn't arrive home at her usual time, Dada sent me out to look for her, when we finally arrived home I thought she had been attacked, but she had fallen coming down Newton Hill, pitch dark, and she had smashed her cheek bone. No doctor and that face troubled her until the day she died. can't remember how long she was in the shop, but things were changing. The four younger ones were now more involved in schoolwork, exams etc. and Mama couldn't possibly do all the rounds, so the time came when she had to close down and by this time Dada was very frail. One thing Edna said (she did all the paperwork) that Mama had certainly not made a loss, and did come out of it with a profit, and if she had had a backing financially, it would have been a little gold mine- that speaks for itself.

Things were changing in the Terrace again - new tenants - National Service - College, and started work, a safe job with Swansea Corporation. The first earner in the family 25 shillings a week. I felt 6ft tall when gave Mama my first earnings. She kept £1 and gave me 5 shillings back to cover my expenses, season ticket etc. As my earnings went up, was able to give Dada pocket money, 10 shillings once a month. I'd put it in his waistcoat pocket on a Friday and Mama would borrow it the following week. I don't think he ever spent it.

I'm now coming to the end of my time in the Terrace but will try to go to the memories of each house. The first house, the old Westfa school was sold and was bought by John Noel from an old Southend family, and he was in school with Bert and became quite a well-known architect. It was empty for some time and one evening it was taken over by a family of squatters. John Noel got all his children together and placed them outside every window and door around the house, half the squatters were inside, the other half lighting fires on the lawn to cook supper. The police could do nothing except stopping any more going in. The squatters eventually gave up and moved out at about 3am -leaving their usual mess. When the house was cleaned up, decorated etc. he decided to let it and the first tenants I remember were Roger and Jill Woollacott and children. We never saw much of Roger, he was working, but.

Jill took over the house, decorated all the downstairs flat, papering, painting, tiling floor and walls and one day a lorry arrived with a load of ready mixed cement-they tipped it on the lawn-out came Jill plus children with buckets, spades, rakes, and started making a driveway up to the house, before the cement dried she finished it that day- no sign of Roger. I don't know how long they stayed there, but the next tenant to arrive were Roger and Pam Blythe and children. They weren't there very long; all remember about them was one night we had a very bad snowstorm and Roger came down and cleared all our path for us - they were quite nice neighbours.

No. 5 was bought by Norman Hunt, a baker and confectioner from Morriston. He let it to his brother and sister-in-law, Reg and Edna Jenkins, he had retired from the Metropolitan Police and came back home to Mumbles with their 2 sons. Soon after they came there Roy won the Australian pools and they then bought the house from Norman Hunt. There was quite a lot of movement in the Terrace and most of the houses were being changed into flats.

We moved into No. 6 and we let the bottom flat. Mama had also moved out of No. 8 and had bought No. 7, which was already in flats. Mama lived upstairs and for a time let the downstairs flat. She had sold No. 8 to Carl and Christine Redmond who had 2 children and got on very well with Mama. We next have Raymond and Pat Harris and 4 children, Raymond proved to be a great asset to the Terrace - he was a wonderful handyman and was always ready to help everyone. We then had Harry and Millie Jeffries and 2 children, Pauline and Brian. Harry was a lifeboat man and always asked Mama to come and call him if she heard the guns go off in the night and then Millie would tell Mama not to call him, she didn't want him going out on the lifeboat. Most times he heard the guns going off himself. No cars bikes or running, but there were always plenty of volunteers ready to man the boat.

We now come to the next house occupied by Mrs Bennett and her 2 daughters. Mr Bennett had been gardener and general handyman for Miss Richards, one of the so-called gentry living in West Cross House, known as Miss Dickie Dick. They lived in a tied cottage and when he died, they had to get out then they came to the Terrace. After Mrs Bennett died, another sister came to live with them with her husband, they had been missionaries

in Bogota for many years but had now retired, as time goes on only two of the sisters were left, who by this time were getting frailer, but so independent, but nearly every time Mrs Easton (the ex-missionary) went down to Mumbles she would fall, refuse the ambulance but she always carried Joe's telephone number with her so that he could go and pick her up. I don't know how many times he was called out to her. But there came a time when they weren't able to cook for themselves, they ordered meals on wheels, but couldn't eat them - too big and unappetising, so Mrs Griffiths (another neighbour) and I used to take dinners down to them. It was very sad at the end. found them practically dead - so rang the doctor and he said they either had to go to hospital or a home it turned out to be Campian Gardens. I contacted Mrs Easton's son- in Scotland (I can't remember what he was called, he was Head of the Church in Scotland) he said he would fly down immediately but arrived 10 minutes too late to see his mother. A week after her funeral, her sister died. It was all for the best in the end.

Now we come to the last house in the Terrace. This again was bought by Norman Hunt. I think he must have been a very kind man because he installed his mother and father in laws in the downstairs flat and an elderly aunt upstairs flat. They all seemed to be very happy there.

There are obviously lots of experiences that I have omitted but there were good times- there were bad times- there were happy times and there were sad times. We were so lucky to have the caring parents that we had. When I think back from a 2-roomed fisherman's cottage to a 5-bedroomed terraced house, all obtained by hard work and many sacrifices, no help from anyone. To this day I am so proud when people say to me "of course I remember little Mrs Harris" - what more praise do you want.

Song of Village Lane

'WE ARE THE VILLAGE LANE BOYS WE NEVER MAKE ANY NOISE
WE ARE INVITED WHEREVER WE GO
WE KNOW OUR MANNERS
WE SPEND OUT TANNERS AS WE GO
MARCHING DOWN VILLAGE LANE
THEN YOU HEAR OLD SOUTHALL SHOUT
PUT THOSE WOODBINES OUT
WE ARE THE VILLAGE LANE BOYS'

# Southall was the local Bobby /policeman

Addendum

I don't know whether it's old age but I'm becoming quite butterfly-minded getting lots of flashbacks, completely out of date, but on the other hand they are all memories. I always remember when I first went out with Joe, every Sunday walking around the cliffs to Pwlldhu. Dada would make sandwiches for us to take (unheard of in Joe's family. Ebenezer Chapel was No. 1 priority) one Sunday I couldn't make out why my haversack was so heavy Dada had put a bottle of beer in for Joe (I was teetotal) I think Joe fell for Dada before he fell for me.

Another thing I remember, Wynne and Pat used to enjoy walking and they used to take Sandy with them, this particular Sunday afternoon a thunderstorm broke out. Sandy disappeared - they hunted high and low for him and about 2 hours later soaked through to the skin they arrived home afraid to tell Dada that they had lost Sandy, when the first thing she saw sitting in front of the fire was Sandy. Wynne said she didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Another thing that always surprised me was how Joe's friends came from every section of the community from the highest to the lowest. An example of this was his Saturday morning meetings in The Waterloo. This was a ritual that couldn't be broken from 11am to 2pm every Saturday, always warmly welcomed by Vince the Italian Landlord. As far as I can remember, these were the regular friends, Gilbert John (I'm not quite sure of his surname) he was quite a tough diamond, a roadsweeper and Joe said he was one of the most knowledgeable men he had ever come across.Norman Lloyd, a carpenter, ex-Merchant navy, a survivor of the Russian  convoys, a big strong individual but as kind and gentle as a lamb. Ivor Jones, a very distinguished gentleman, who seemed to do more listening than talking. He was a tax inspector and had a senior position in the Swanse Office.

Alex Peters who was Joe's mentor, a very fine carpenter and after his wife died, Joe practically adopted him, always finding jobs for him to do, and of course always staying for dinner. John Pritchard joined the group later don't know how. He was a retired newspaper correspondent (I think with Reuters) and was also one of the Kardomah gang-fame indeed.Norman Colle a very gifted individual, he was a craftsman in every way, his hobby was growing bonsai trees - they were always perfect, he could paint, write poetry, don't think there was anything he couldn't do. He also was at Dunkirk and came halfway out in a rowing boat and then transferred to a troopship that brought him back to this country, but he had terrible wartime experiences sent out east, captured by the Japanese in Singapore, was transferred to Japan, was torpedoed by the Yanks, captured again, and sent to a Japanese PO.W. camp, there for 3½ years and still much to Joe's disgust always bought Japanese cars. Pat used to join them occasionally when he had nothing else to do. The leader of this little group was Joseph Peregrine, kind, gentle, caring, who could quote anything from the bible and who knew all the words of all the Sankey hymns, but only in Welsh, influence of Ebenezer Chapel. Very well read and could quote so many passages from Shakespeare plays. Once a year, Vince used to organise a coach trip to all the pubs in Carmarthen, with a slap-up dinner at its end, which he paid for. Needless to say, this was always well attended, and thoroughly enjoyed by all. What they used to talk about, I'll never know, but it certainly wasn't about their wartime experiences. I didn't know anything about Joe's army life until lago and Matthew (great nephews) had to do projects in school about the war, it was only then that knew anything about Joe's terrible experiences. He eventually lold me that as far as he was concerned his worst experience was when they released all the men, women and children from the concentration camps. Joe never got over that. He had nightmares about them until the day he died (no counselling in those days).

Saturday morning it was meeting in The Waterloo. Sunday morning a change of scenery- The Newton Inn - a completely different set of friends and acquaintances. It started off with a few of Joe's friends from Mount Pleasant, the first one was Dick Lewis, who was in the infant school in Mount Pleasant, and then Dynevor and were friends for a lifetime. One cockney gentleman joined them-quite a character, who was so proud to tell them that he started work sweeping the floors in Dagenham and ended up as Managing Director opening the Swansea factory. I only remember him as Frank.

Another occasional visitor was Wynford Vaughan Thomas, who presented Joe with one of his books and wrote in it "from one Terrace Road boy to another" Joe loved that. When Pat heard that he had autographed a book for Joe, he asked him if he would do the same for him, which he did, writing "from one Gower lover to another" Pat was over the moon!!

Looking back, I never remember being hungry. know that neither Mama n Dada were Cordon Bleu cooks, but always good plain food. Every Sunday lovely roast dinner always starting off with a piece of bread dipped in the lovely beef dripping that the meat was being cooked in. I never remember buying fish and chips from the chip shop - we had plenty of fish (if Aunt Minnie was sober).

Mama had a very good appetite and would eat anything you put in front her, but Dada was quite different. A small dainty appetite, one thing that was very partial to was a fried bloater. I can remember being sent over Newton Road to Mr Chambers, fishmonger and greengrocer, to get a bloater for Dada's tea. I think it cost sixpence, but had to have a hard roe, if arri home with a soft roe back had to go to change it. We also had quite a lo rabbit stew (I can't stand rabbit to this day).

Dada was also a dab hand at Welsh cakes, pancakes, suet puddings also started making bread, but that turned out to be too long a job and then started having bread delivered twice a week. Mr Tom Davies from Davies Bakers called with his basket full to deliver bread and to have a with Dada. I know did say I never remember buying fish and chips, bu remember buying faggots and peas. Always on a Friday, one of us went up to Mr Treharne the butchers, at the top of Castleton, with two jugs, one for the faggots, the other for the gravy and walked down the hill very carefully. not to lose a drop. Mr Treharne always filled the jug to overflowing because we were a large family. remember he had four sons, Glyn, Gwyn, Noel and Norman. Norman, who was the youngest, was in Evan Davies' class in the Board School, and he and were monitors together until we left. He went to Dynevor and went to the High School.

Another favourite meal of ours was freshly boiled cockles with bread and butter. Dada made us all a small hand rake- a strip of wood with 6 inch nails nailed into it. I know it was Wynne and me, Edna away, the others were too young. We'd carry our buckets and rakes, walk down to the front and then (the tide had to be out) out to the nets, being warned never to touch any fish that was in the nets, they were rented privately. With our bucket full and the lide coming in back home we came. Mama would soak the cockles in a big in bath out the back and then boil them all in a big saucepan, no standing on ceremony, cockles tipped into a big bowl in the middle of the table and from there on all help yourselves. Nothing in this world ever tasted better than big warm juicy cockles a free meal enjoyed by everyone. Cockling eventually had to finish. Pollution took over and cockling was banned - a sad loss.

Another seafood that we all enjoyed was Laverbread - most people bought it from the cockle woman who had a pitch outside Johnnie's fish shop on a Saturday morning. She would have walked in from Penclawdd carrying one basket under her arm, the other one on her head, she was always there by gam and had sold out by 1pm. Dada suggested that we should go and pick our own Laverbread (black seaweed) we couldn't go down the front - only sand, no rocks, therefore no seaweed, so off we went to Rotherslade. We filled our bags - more sea water than seaweed and wended our weary way home. Tin bath out the back-seaweed had to be washed about half a dozen times to get rid of all the sand, then chopped up and then boiled for about an hour. Dada had the first taste and really approved - we all agreed that it really was tasty, but no more gathering Laverbread, it was much too hard a job. Dada then had another of his brilliant suggestions, he was going to make some stinging nettle pop up to the Castle Field, armed with a pair of scissors, industrial gloves and a bag - filled the bag and back home. Out comes the tin bath, more washing and chopping. don't remember how it was made, but do know that the end object was not to everyone's taste - no more experiments.

All our married life Joe had ups and downs health wise, then came a really bad turn, called the doctor (it was Easter time) he told me to contact him after Easter for the results of the X-rays (Dr John Lewis, Joe's family doctor, not mine) he told him to gargle etc. as he had Tracheitis. I wasn't too happy about this and rang the clinic for Joe's x-ray results-shock after shock-pulmonary TB, one lung very badly damaged, the other also in a bad state. Home to bed, but Joe decided that he would like a run round Gower if he was likely to be grounded for some time- the only one with a car was Bert, who took Joe for an afternoon round all Joe's Gower haunts. Back home to be assessed by TB doctor either Craig y Nos or Sully Hospitals, "Neither" said Joe. "I'm staying here."- panic the doctor gave him an ultimatum, 3 months trial at home, if no better, hospital - he turned out to be the best patient ever. Now living in 3 rooms, change the lounge into bedroom - bed brought down from top story and 3-piece suite taken up. slept on the couch at the top of the house for the next two years who was the organiser for all this- there was only one person - Mama.

Dada had died in the January. Tim was born in February and Mama looked after him so that Edna could go back to work and Joe was taken ill in the March. She took everything on - how would have managed without her I'll never know. After a time, Joe's salary was stopped so had to go to work part-time. Joe told me that the first day I went back was the longest day of his life. It was at this time that realised how close Joe was to Mama, I always said he was closer to her than to his own mother. On the other hand, what a good son he was, visited his mother every week, did all her shopping and aways saw that she was well looked after - he also took all responsibility for his brother Ben and visited him regularly at Cefn Coed. think it was over 25 years and when his sister Bessie was left on her own, he made sure that she was also well taken care of and when she became very ill at the end, he brought her down to live with us, so that she didn't die alone - and she didn't he was with her. After 12 months in bed, Joe was allowed up for 15 minutes, his first walk was into No. 8 to Mama and this he did every day. They each knew all the others secrets.

Time goes on - things change- children grow up - College, Army, new jobs, marriages everything happens and then much to our surprise, Mrs Peake wanted to sell No. 8. Mama had first choice, no money, couldn't get a mortgage, so what happens Joe was a member since childhood of the Rechabites (he'd never stopped paying the annual fee) they willingly offered Mama a mortgage, but she had to have a guarantor. What did Joe do? Gave Mama the deeds of our house, which the Rechabites willingly accepted. Can you imagine the deeds of our house Joe said he had no worries about it. knew that Mama would never let me down and as he said it was the only way he would ever be able to pay her back.

I know that at the back of my mind lie many more memories, good, bad and indifferent, but I'm afraid I shall have to let them lie dormant at the moment. There may come a time when will want to reminisce, we'll wait and see, but all know is that there can't be many people who have been as lucky as I have been - a husband in a million together with a mother who to this day everyone speaks about with love and affection. Neither of them will ever be forgotten, and speak to them both every day.

 What more could I want.

Notes

I can't visualise any houses on the right as you go up, i.e. before Hall bank! Explanation? No. 1 and 2 on left at bottom-empty land never built on?

American Jones's

Mrs Stainton on Mumbles Road (Tom/son cricket)

Amelia Brock (donkey... was a Jones)

Joyce Medwin (mother Marie Jones). [Joyce married Terry Madwin ("Spurs") Tottenham Hotspur].

Tex Llewellyn (mother) Ivy married Bob  [Tex became a Cambridge don]

Evan Jones was an Am. Jones lived next door down from The Orphanage.

Copyright: Doreen Peregrine 2021

THE SHOPS 

Let's have a walk-through Mumbles:

Starting at the bottom of Dunns Lane. 

On the right-hand side was the Methodist Chapel – we always knew it as The Wesleyan Chapel – it was always and still is a very well supported Chapel. When we were children, the Superintendent of the Sunday School was a Mr Phillips, who was badly crippled. He lived in Claremont Villas, as it was not far from the Chapel and was a neighbour of Gran and Grandpa Windsor. At one time he persuaded Mama to send me to the Wesleyan Sunday School – that did not last long. We moved to Walters Crescent, thus the Gospel Hall Sunday School.

On the left-hand side of Dunns Lane, where Davis the Baker is now, was Taylor the Grocer. I always remember it as a long narrow shop, the upstairs, which is now a restaurant, was a storeroom. I think there were about three girls employed there, plus the manager, who always wore a starched apron and was in charge of the till. I remember one of the girls was Josephine Whitaker, from Newton and another was Mrs Oldfield, from West Cross. They both worked there for years and when the shop closed in Mumbles, they both went up to the Taylors shop in Wind Street, Swansea and both worked there for many more years.

We now go next door, to the Christadelphian Church. All I remember about this church was it seemed to be mostly composed of the Webborn and Timothy families, although I do remember that Miss Long, who taught us penmanship in the Board School [Oystermouth Council School, Newton Road] was a very active member there.

We now move next door to Davies the Cobblers. Mr & Mrs Davies and three daughters Heather, Grace and Jane. I think they went to Saint Winifred’s Convent (a cut above the rest of us). Grace surprised everybody in Mumbles, when she married one of the American GIs stationed here during the war. Much against her family’s wishes, she eventually (when the war ended) went off to America! That lasted six months and she came back on her own, as he hadn't turned out to be the wealthy American!

When Mr Davies retired, the business was taken over by his manager Peter, who lived in Park Street and married Heather, who was in charge of the Miners Convalescent Home in Langland (Originally run by the Workingmen’s Club and Institute Union, later known as Club Union). I don’t know how much longer it was a cobblers, but eventually it was taken over by Whitford’s (Pat, who was an Olympic Gymnast, was a school friend of Wins – in De la Beche School), and they opened up as a General and Fancy Goods Shop. Their best customer for years was Mama, who started her Christmas shopping in January and bought eight of everything.  I don’t know how long the Whitford’s were there, but it was then taken over by a lady’s fashion shop, Solo.

We now move on to one of the biggest shops in Mumbles, Thomas the Drapers. There were two entrances – one in and one out – I don’t know why because they were never used. They were quite a busy shop, selling all kinds of drapery, ladies’ fashions, haberdashery and probably lots more. They also had a small outlet on the opposite side of the road. Time moves on and the business declined, eventually being bought by the Co-op, which in those days was not a grocer, but a general store, selling furniture – houseware etc. The furniture department was upstairs. I remember after I was married in 1950, I bought a full tea set there. I think it cost about £10 and I paid, ten shillings a week, by hire purchase, out of my wages (how things change – today children get that much for their weekly pocket money!!)

After a few years things began to change in the Co-op, and business declined, they closed all other departments and traded as a grocery store only – keeping the upstairs as a storeroom and bakery. This worked out very well and the Co-op prospered. I cannot remember how long it traded there, but for reasons only known to themselves, they closed down and opened up a more modern store further down on the other side of the road, which many people did not find as convenient – but needless to say its still going strong and where the Co-op was, there are now a few modern stores. I think they are children’s and ladies fashions (I haven’t visited them yet).

We’ll move on from the Co-op now to next door, it used to be The Nags Head; it has changed its name a few times. Carol Powell says that In 1972 it was the Oyster Catcher Public House, before changing back to The Nag's head in 1995. In June 2012 it was a Costa Coffee House, and in 2020 it became The Dark Horse, Restaurant. I don’t know very much about this pub because I don’t think it was a favourite of Dadas- he never used to go there. They modernised it and it became a very popular coffee house with chairs and tables outside on the pavement.

We’ll now move next door to a very popular fruit & veg shop – ‘The Choice is Yours’ a business run by Mr Dixon and his daughter. When I first went there, Nichole, one of the daughters was running the shop, I think she had only just left school. She is now the mother of Sean, who is in college (where does the time go?)

When we were children, the shop was a grocers, run by Mr Oakley Peachey, whose father Mr Abse Peachey owned that property. Oakley had five children, Maureen, Doreen, Pat, Doug and I am told by Carol Powell that the youngest son may have been  called Herbert. He now lives in Australia, as does his sister Pat, who comes home to Mumbles for a couple of months every year.

I can remember that often on a Sunday mama would run out of flour or sugar and would send me down to Mr Peachy’s shop with strict instructions to go into the garage, next door to the shop and make sure that no-one saw me because we would be in trouble with the Police (Sgt. Jock Crighton) who would be wondering round all the shops, to make sure that they were not open. Isn’t it ironic, when I started work in the Weights & Measures Department, one of my jobs was going round on a Sunday morning looking for any shops I found open.

Attached to Mr Peachey’s shop was a small shed, which turned out to be the stockroom for the garage. It looked like a load of rubbish, but Abse Peachey could put his hand on anything that you asked him for straight away (as long it was in the motoring trade). (Carol also confirmed that at one time the garage was where they kept the carriages and that the Peachey horses were stabled in an area which was on the other side of the Nags Head).

We move along and come to two small cottages; the first one was occupied by Mr and Mrs Venton and I think that they had a son and a daughter. Mr Venton was a cobbler and spent all his time sitting in the front window, how many shoes he mended I'll never know.

The cottage next door was occupied by someone whose name I never knew, apparently, he was a Farrier (a Smith who shoes horses). Where his forge was I can't imagine and It could it could have been at the back of the cottage, because the Corporation kept all their horses there. Maybe there were stables there. I'm not really sure about that last bit of information, it is all hearsay from Maureen Peachy, because I couldn't remember all the details about the two cottages. 

The next thing I remember is that the two cottages became residential and Alma Venton and her family lived in one, but I don't know about the other one. As the time went by, the cottage became vacant and the premises were altered and was taken over and become quite a busy little Antique Shop, still going strong and open for just a few days a week.

We now come to the last business on this section of the Mumbles Road. First of all there is a waste piece of land - I don't think that there was ever any building on it and now we have what always looked like a decrepit old shed, which turned out to be a barbers shop owned by the Ted Priddy, who was also a mobile Barber. Saturday morning was the favourite time for boys’ haircuts and the only thing was, if the men came in, the boys had to go to the end of the queue. This caused quite a bit of aggro - the boys wanted to be up the park for the football and the men wanted to get to the pub before it closed. Needless to say, it was always the men who won. (Despite Ted being teetotal).

We come to the end of this this section of Mumbles Road and to Sanders the greengrocer and fruiterer. One half of his shop is on the Mumbles Road and the other half is on Newton Road.  (Called Sanders Corner by most locals).

The shop was run by old Mr Sanders, his two daughters and his one son Percy. It was a shop I very rarely went into, but I can remember that the floor was old wooden planks that creaked like mad whenever you walked on them, as well as covering your shoes with dust. I think they were in business for quite a few years, but when old Mr Sanders died, the girls got married and moved away. Percy kept it on for a short time, but he then retired, and the shop was then taken over by one of the Collier family (from Newton) and his wife and they opened it as a confectioner and coffee shop which only lasted for a very short time. The premises were then taken over by the White Rose Hotel and was quite a success.

We will now cross the road and get to what is now the Dairy car park. At the top end was the house, shop and dairy belonging to Gwilym Jones. He carried on a very thriving business (John Jones Dairy) and employed a small staff. I always remember two or three girls who worked there and over the years some of them developed TB (quite a common thing where milk was concerned) as milk was not being pasteurised in those days. 

Further down from John Jones Dairy was a big house, I suppose you would call it a mansion. We always called it 'Watkins, The Elms', because the family who lived there, Mr and Mrs Watkins and two daughters, were a very prosperous family of printers, and he had a very thriving business in Green Dragon Lane off Wind Street, Swansea. I remember when I was working, I dealt with him for years. One of the daughters married Mr Ganz and became a very well-known artist. My favourite drawings of hers were of the Welsh miners coming up from the coal pits

When the Watkins family moved out, as the house was now too big for them. It was taken over by the Duke of Beaufort (he owned half of Mumbles) and it was used as his office, looking after all his properties. I remember quite a few girls who worked there and in charge of the office was Mrs Lang (the teacher's sister).

The dairy kept going for many years, but didn't move with the times and never modernised and when Mr. Jones retired the business closed down. I think it must have been at the same time that the Duke of Beaufort also closed his office. The two vacant properties, which I think the corporation bought, were eventually changed into the much-needed present-day Dairy Car Park and where, once a month, they hold a very successful Farmers Market. 

We continue our walk back down into Mumbles. Years ago when we were children when you came down Newton road and crossed the road you went down what we call the Drangway (which was a tunnel going under the railway and later the road) and we would get onto the beach, that was the way we went out together for collecting cockles.

In those days there were shops on both sides of the road and the first shop was a Butchers owned by a Mr. Brayley. It was taken over as a shop and general office (where you paid all your bills and I think it was a tourist office) owned by Mr Harry Libby, a future mayor of Swansea and a good friend of mum's. She worked for him and was at his house that she met Sir Edmund Hillary.

Behind this shop halfway down the Drangway was a very big three storied house and a girl who was in school with me lived there. I think they would have been of French extraction, her name was Josephine Govignon (I don't know how to spell that). We all called her Josie Gee.

We now move next door and we come to a small grocery shop owned by Oakley Peachey's brother. When it was closed down it reopened as a Shoe Repairers. We now come to a bank, but I don't remember which one. What I do remember is that the chief cashier was prosecuted for fraud and was sent to jail for a few years. I know his name and remember him quite well, but I'm not going to record that here.

Next, was Tucker the printer. He sold all kinds of stationery and had a son and two daughters and the girls worked in the shop with him. Their family was hit by a very tragic event, where their son went out around the Lighthouse and passed the Mixen (also called Mixon) Bell in his canoe, along with his friend another Mumbles boy, Sonny Martin, from Devon terrace and neither they nor their canoe were ever seen again. No bodies, No wreckage. Nothing! As as you can imagine both families were very devastated. 

Now we come to Mrs Lewis a confectionery shop and next door was Johnson The Cleaners.  Betty Hansard worked there for years and think, eventually taken over by Miss Kilo as a posh shoe shop. I think all these shops had living accommodation above them, but the only ones I remember living above, in the attics of the Printers, was Mary Thompson, who was married to a Policeman.

All these shops were quite small, but now we come to a bigger one. I remember you had to go up a few steps and then there was one big room with a few desks. This was now owned by Mr Harry Libby who needed a bigger place for his business. There was also a basement attached to these premises, which was turned into quite a big space. I remember we used it as a few times, when we had Jumble Sales to make money for the Rugby Club.

We now carry on to quite a different shop, Matthews the Jeweller, very posh. Mrs Matthews was a very dainty little lady who wore more makeup than a clown. Next we come to Thomas the Draper, an outlet of Thomas & Co. across the road. Many years ago there was a grocers shop next door to Thomas and I can only just remember it. It was Capt. Ward the Grocer, still wearing the old uniform, starched white apron and guardian of the till.

We are now coming to the corner, but I can't remember or I didn't know, what was there before (Carol says it was Jenkins the Ironmonger). I can only remember Forte's being there and remember when they opened, as they gave all the children a free ice cream. I made sure the children all had one, even the two sitting in the pram. The Ice Cream Parlour, as we called it, was very popular meeting place and turned out to be very successful

Going back to Mr Giuseppe Macari, when war was declared he was interned and was on the Isle of Man for quite a few years. It was a terrible time for them. The children were all very young and were really too young to run the business. I don't know who helped them out, but it kept going all through the war and was a very popular meeting place for all the American GIs, who were stationed in Underhill Park, Newton and Caswell, as well as being billeted in private homes throughout the village.  

I think we will now return to Newton Rd. At the bottom was the White Rose, which had taken over the corner shop and had been altered completely, now having a restaurant as well as an outdoor dining area at the back. Lovely if it wasn't raining.

The White Rose Public House had been there for many years and from what my Mama told me, it used. It used to brew its own beer. She knew because as a young girl she worked there, both in the house and in the bar, with Mrs Southall the policeman's wife, who for some reason always called Mama, Lisa. Why, I don't know. 

I think that when they were busy, either Auntie Violet, or Auntie Ethel helped out (I can't see auntie as as a barmaid) It must have been Auntie Violet, because she was the one who told me that the landlord of the White Rose would only have Mama looking after him when he became ill and from what she said, he was ill for a very long time, and Mama looked after him until the day he died

We now come next door, to a very small one room Jewellers shop, Mr. Bert Hughes. I think he also did clock and watch repairs and then we come next door to the fish shop, always very busy especially on Fridays (Catholic day) for fish dinners. This was Reynolds the fish shop and the manager was Mr Reason who lived in Castle Ave. We were certainly not one of his customers, as we had all ours at a cheaper price from 'Auntie Minnie,' Mr Davis, Straight from the trawler (when he was sober).

We now come to the next shop John Rosser the fruiterer. For many years it was John and his mother and when she retired her younger son was taken into the business. Douglas, not nearly as sharp as his brother, but he coped and did all the deliveries. When they retired, the business was taken over by Mr Hall who had a fruiterers shop at Southend. He closed that one down and moved up to Newton road. When he retired it was taken over by the Choice is Yours, which is what it was up to 2020. (Editor: the empty shop has just been put up for rent as it was closed during the pandemic in favour of the other branch around the corner)..

Miss John had a brother, Monty John, Painter and Decorator who lived on the Mumbles Road at Norton, but kept most of his equipment, paints etc. at the back of Miss Johns shop. How long that went on I don't know. When the business finished it was sold. It always stayed at a newsagent and today is still known as Lewis News although the Lewis's sold out some years ago and since the Mumble's Post Office closed down, they have opened a very successful Post Office in Lewis news.(Later, it was W H Smith for a few years).

We now move next door to Charlie Griffin a hay and corn merchant and general grocer. Mr Charlie Griffin together with his son Peter and daughter Margaret ran the shop, together with two assistants. One of these being miss Hilda Phillips who was one of our Sunday school teachers in the Gospel Hall. After his father retired, Peter carried on with the business, for how long I don't really know, but at present it is a charity shop run by the Air Ambulance. 

We now come next door to another grocers shop known as the Welsh Produce run by Mr Hands and his wife and two shop assistants. This business was eventually sold and was bought by Mr and Mrs Bowen. They had two children a boy and a girl Averil who was in school with Lena and I think she and Lena remained in contact for many years.

Now come to another shop that I had never been in owned by a Mr Tucker I think he dealt in music accessories sheets of music records etc. I don't think I ever saw any customer going in there but he must have had some business because he had an assistant miss Pike. Who lived in Norton working for him unless he kept her for company!!!

We now come to the Wallace the Shoe Shop. Looking back this was a shop that hadn't moved with the times, but was always very busy because it was mainly children shoes and plain comfortable shoes for the elderly. I remember when girls ankle boots came into fashion and as a special Christmas present Mama bought a pair for me, paying so much a week. I think it must have been months to pay for them. I certainly fancied myself in them mainly because they were brown not black

In those days most of the shopkeepers lived above the business, but today most of them seemed to be storage rooms. The family who lived above the shoe shop was Mr and Mrs Cummings and children Peter, Jean, Hazel and Valerie. I got to know this family quite well, because Mama did another of her cleaning jobs there and I used to look after the youngest child Hazel for six pence an afternoon. 5 pence from Mama one penny for me. But unfortunately she was a very delicate little girl and died when she was about five years old. I think their daughter Valerie was in school with Ethel and when she got married I think she went either to Canada or Australia. 

I don't know what happened to the rest of family. Next door to them was Mr Rosser the butcher, who was helped by his wife and one assistant Mr Ernie Durke, who worked for them for a lifetime. They had two daughters Joan and Marjorie. Joan was a year ahead of me in the high school and Marjorie was in the same form as Win in De La Beche School and they became friends for many years. 

I can remember when Win was in De La Beche School, she was taken biology and they were dissecting a sheep's head and who turned up with a bag of sheep's eyes. Win she had gone to Mr Rosser and asked him if he could give her some for their biology lesson, which he did. The teacher was delighted, the girls were disgusted. 

There was a very sad end to this business Mrs Rosser collapsed and died and when Mr Rosser found her he had a heart attack. They were both found dead the next morning

We now come to another favourite shop of the Harris family, (because Mama worked there). Mr Bill White, Baker and Confectioner. Again Mama's wages were paid with all the left over cakes. Mr. White was the Baker and his wife was in charge of the shop. Mrs White was helped in the shop by her daughter Doris, who was completely crippled with Arthritis. Every part of her and how she coped I'll never know. Needless to say she was taken over by Mama. She was the daughter of Mrs White's first marriage, then by the second marriage there was a son Graham, who didn't go into the business but trained as an electrician. I remember him doing quite a few jobs for Mama. Talking about being paid in cakes makes me remember the Christmas payments. 

On Christmas Eve we always used to follow the horses head up Newton Rd, when they stopped at all the shops to sing a Carol. 

When we got as far as White's, we got called in and given our Christmas Present, a bag of lovely snowballs, one each to take home. Not to be eaten on the road they were lovely meringues shaped like snowballs, with a piece of holly stuck on top. What luxury!!! 

I think that when my sister Edna Davies was the secretary of Oystermouth Historical Association, Graham White gave her quite a collection of photographs of old Mumbles and probably of the old Bake House. All I know is that she was more than thrilled.

We now can next door to another grocery shop, I think there were about five grocery shops in Newton road, this one was the Maypole, another company shop like Taylor's. The manager was Mr Quirk, who lived above the shop. My memory of the shop was how small it was. I think they employed two girls, one was Barbara Hill from Norton, I don't know who the other one was.

As we continue up Newton Road, we come to a double fronted shop run by Messrs Beynon and Howells. The Beynon’s were plumbers employed a few Mumbles men. I remember Ernie who started with them as a young boy and stayed with them until he retired and the Howells were coal merchants. They are the ones that dad worked for . 

Above the shop lived Mrs Beynon and her two daughters Linda and Ann. Her husband had died at a very young age, but her brother, who worked for Davis the Baker, went to live with her and helped to support them all.

Mr Beynon worked for Councillor Harry Libby and run his business for him for many years. The girls grew up and Anne became a nurse and went to London, and for a long time she worked with the homeless and drug addicts and Linda, being younger, got an office job when she left school. I think she was about sixteen and we used to give her a lift to work everyday, but she found her own way home, because she finished earlier than we did. What a difference - the bakers is now a charity shop, the Maypole became a restaurant, and fancy goods shop and Beynon & Howells became Treasure and eventually a Tesco's Express.

We now come to the last of that section of the road and the last shop is a very small haberdashery shop owned by Mrs Davis, who had a shop at the top of Newton Road and moved down from there because she thought she would be busier at in the middle of Mumbles (she was quite right). Mrs Davis had one assistant Mrs Pressdee related to Pressdee the Baker

I cannot ever remember my older sister Edna coming with us. Maybe she was in college at that time and every week you can guarantee that halfway through the show one of the little ones cried to go home and who was it had to take them home (It was either Leslie, David or Ethel more often Ethel), but Doreen and every week I threatened I wasn't going to take them again, and Dada always said, 'stay and see it again.' 

In those days it was a continuous performance and you could stay until 10:00 PM. I won't tell you how many times I saw the end of a film before I saw the beginning. Next door to the cinema was a small sweet shop, kiosk, which probably belonged to the cinema. 

The Regent cinema which seemed to decline, due to television and many other kinds of entertainment and by 1940 it became the HQ of ’C’ Company of 12th Battalion, Home Guard. After the war it reopened as The Casino Dancehall, which was very popular for many years. It was sold and then completely gutted and rebuilt as a nice little arcade with two small cafes and various other businesses. A new upper floor of the same building, held several discothèques or nightclubs, including: The Showboat, Tiffany’s, Nutz, Stud’s, Howard’s and Bentley’s. This is now a venue for children's playgroups, parties etc. There have been quite a few changes, but on the whole, it has seemed to be quite successful. Next door there was another small kiosk, which is now a cobbler's shop, doing all sorts of leather repairs, batteries for watches and clocks, Together with many other sundries. Lena is one of his best customers, as she started by taking all Auntie Violette’s shoes there and now continues with her own. 

Time goes on and the mind wanders, I realised that I have left out one or two shops, so will go back, to Harry Davis the fruiterer who had one son, who wasn't interested in the business, so when it came for Mr Davis to retire, the shop was sold and was taken over by a very smart and modern shoe shop. I remember buying a pair of shoes there and I must have had a mad moment,as they cost me £12!!! After a few years trading, the owner, who lived in Llanelli, decided he wanted to open a shop in his hometown, so sold his business and moved on. The person who missed him most was a young Spastic girl, Sheila, who I first met when I helped to run the club for the handicapped in Mumbles. She could only hobble around on crutches, completely crippled, not a miserable bone in her body, pretty is a picture and you never heard a word of complaint from her. She used to tell me that her body was a mess, but tapping her forehead she would say, 'but there's nothing wrong up here.'. How right she was, giving the education, she would have gone a long way. Every morning she would hobble down Newton road on her crutches to the shoe shop, and the young man waited for her to arrive, so that he would put her specially adapted shoes on, no carers in those days. I think of all the people that I know she is the one that I admire the most. Today that shoe shop is a very thriving wine shop called cheers.

Next door is a very small shop a Delicatessen, selling all kinds of unusual foods, relative to modern day diets, olives various cheeses, herbs of all kinds and is always very busy.

            We now come to another high-class Gown shop, run by Mrs Marjory Gissing. It's amazing how many classy Gown shops we had and I think Mumbles was quite a wealthy little place. I think she used to change her windows every day and she herself was a very good advert, very tall and smart, I can see her now. I don't think she would be too happy knowing that her shop is now a charity shop, which it is. But before the charity shop, it was Hodges the men's outfitter.  I remember Dorothy Cope (the wife of Di Cope, who ran the DIY shop in the top of Newton Rd) worked there for a lifetime.if you wanted any news go in and see Dorothy.

I remember most people had a Christmas club, and Mama made Leslie start one when he started work at 2/6d a week, every week when he had his wages, Mama waited for his 2/6d. He forgot one week and when Mama reminded him, he said very seriously, mam I'm saving more than I'm earning. Those are the days.

We now come to another butchers, Reese the butcher, Mr and Mrs Reeves, one assistant and one son John, who was not interested in the business, she eventually left home and went to Australia which devastated his parents, who then sold the business and moved on. I don't know where they went. I can't remember who took it over, but funnily enough it is once again a butcher shop.

It's amazing that there were three butchers in Mumbles, two in Newton, two in Southend, one in Queens Road and the same with grocers shops, I have counted about eight. Mumble's must have been quite a thriving little place. I can also count four banks, one of which we know come to, Barclays. I remember when John Jones was made manager, two quite well-known Mumbles people changed their banks (no names) because they did not want him to know their financial state. I wonder if they were fiddling the tax people, who knows?

We now come to the next shop, Mr and Mrs O'Neill, they had a daughter Rhona, who was a year older than me, but unfortunately, she died when she was about fourteen, I think she had TB. She was their only child and of course they were devastated. from what I can remember there was a radio shop and he seemed to do all the repairs in the shop, it was there for quite a long time, and I think it's now another craft shop. Our next shop is a fishmonger and greengrocer, owned by Mr Chambers, his wife, daughter. Mary used to work with him in the shop and he had one assistant, Jean Thomas, from Thistleboon, who worked for him for use. It was a shop that I never liked, it never seemed to be clean, the only time we ever went in there was to buy a Bloater, which had to have a hard Roe, which Dada loved to have fried for his tea. Why a Bloater when we used to have a frail full of fish from Auntie Minnie? none of us liked Bloaters and I even disliked having to go and buy one.

We now come to another bank, Lloyds, what do you think about it four banks in a small place like Mumbles and then next door another chemist, four chemists in Mumbles this was Mr Stratford. I cannot remember anyone working with him, all I know is that Dada got on very well with him, as he did with Mr Moss the other chemist and funnily enough after all these years it is once again a very busy chemist shop.

The next shop I remember is Mr Withey, fruiterer and greengrocer. One son Ron, he did all the deliveries, one of our neighbours in Brooklyn Terrace Millie Jeffries worked there part time for many years and every Saturday night after finishing work she brought Joe a bunch of watercress. she said it was good for his chest, I wish!!! I think this is probably Greg's the Baker and confectioner, A very popular takeaway.

We now come to yet another grocer, owned by Miss Morris and her fiancé. They employed one assistant Margaret Mayrick, who went there straight from school and worked there until she got married and had a family. When miss Morris retired, the shop was taken over by Mr Tom Moss a retired chemist whose daughter Eira As a trained pharmacist in Morriston Hospital. When Mr Moss died, Eira found it too much to run it on her own, so it was closed down.

It eventually opened as an optician, Mr and Mrs Roberts and is still running as a very modern and up to date optician.

We come now to the last shop at the bottom of Newton Road, and iron mongers, also selling all other decorations, sundries, paints, wallpapers etc. Owned by Mr Chanter and run by his three sons ray, Jeff and Haydn.

They eventually all retired and the shop is now a teenagers fashion shop.

The final building is half in Newton road and half in Mumbles Road and for move yours than I care to remember was the HSB Bank (Earlier named Midland Bank). Finally like all banks it was closed down, Greggs which had a small premises in Newton Road, was looking for larger premises in Mumbles and bought the bank building which suited him very much better and when the weather permitted they were able to put tables and chairs outside on the pavement. So I think I will now sit outside Greggs and have a hot drink and one of their famous corn beef pastys.

Addendum

Reading through my memories of old Mumbles make me think that Edna could go further back, she always told me that she could remember all the shops on the right hand side of Newton road being built, and she even said that she'd seen a photo of all the workmen and she even thought that Dada was one of them. I can't remember any of that.

Reading back over my notes, I could not get my head around the fact that Mama cleaned nearly all the shops in Newton Rd. Not only those but also worked up to Caswell Road, taking David who was too young for school and working and cleaning for the Town Clerk For the Borough of Swansea, Mr H. R. Lang Coat, Who lived on his own, his wife lived in London, and wouldn't come back to Caswell after her son was very tragically killed, being crushed by their own car. Therefore Mama had the run of the place. Not only walking to Caswell, she also went to the other extreme and cleaned for Councillor Harry Libby at the end of Southend opposite Verdis. Imagine walking from Brooklyn Terrace to the end of Southend, cleaning the house and coming home to see that dad was OK.

Not only that, she delivered papers to the furthest corner of Newton and Langland, past the golf links in the dark in the winter, a house full of visitors, weekends washing, all the bedding for the next lot of visitors, as well as caring for eight children. As each one passed the scholarship, she made sure that we all had the same uniform as everyone else. In those days they were only supplied by Sidney Heath, the dearest shop in town. No Primark or Tesco in those days, but we were all turned out as good ask the next one

Edna also told me that Mama always told her that she would love to have a little shop of her own. I didn't know that, but thank goodness it happened, and I do know that she loved her years in that shop. When she eventually had to close down, Edna told me that she never lost a penny and had always covered her expenses and made quite a nice little profit.

One thing I do know, she was very proud of her family, but not nearly as proud as her family was of her.

She was one in a million