Parents - George Henry Thorpe & Alice Beatrice Thorpe (nee Boreham)

(Alice later remarried Charles Potts)

Hilda Kathleen Thorpe

Born on 23rd January 1904 in Doncaster

Died

She married Stanley George Pitts on xxx at xxx

They had one son - Rex Stanley Pitts born in 1930

Hilda had one sister:

• Eva Mary Thorpe

Hilda Kathleen Thorpe was born in Doncaster on 23rd January 1904

to George Henry Thorpe & Alice Beatrice Thorpe (nee Boreham)

More about her parents and ancestors can be found on other pages

Hilda's Baptism was on May 29th 1904 at Tydd St Mary Church)

During her life Hilda lived at

• Tydd St Mary

• Little London in 1930

• 50 Hannam Boulevard by 1950

• 19 Seven Road

I don't actually remember whether she worked, although I have a vague recollection that she may have worked on the land at some time during her life.

She suffered quite badly with arthritis, which particularly affected her hands.

Grandma and Grandad lived at 50 Hannam Boulevard

My overriding of Grandma was her knitting, and 'winding wool'. I remember going into town to a wool shop in Station Street where she would buy yarns of wool. I had the job of holding the yarns out with my arms whilst she wound the wool into balls. She then knitted all kinds of garments for us - scarves, woolly hats and jumpers. She also taught me to knit - although I wasn't much good at it - and always kept dropping stitches. She also taught me French Knitting - with a cotton reel with 4 nails in the top. The end product was a long thin knitted tube which could be curled around and sewn into a teapot mat. I quite enjoyed doing that when I was at their house.

They had an open fire to heat the house and always kept a supply of 'spills' for lighting the fire. Wherever I at their house I would make lots of spills - by twisting pieces of newspaper - and she kept them in a pot near the fire.

Grandma and Grandad would take me on bike rides when I was old enough to ride a bike, and we would go along country lanes as far as Woolram Wygate and Two Plank Bridge. Grandad would point out various types of flowers along the wayside and in the dykes.

Grandma had a china cabinet in the front room - and everything rattled when people walked across the old wooden floors. She would let me take out the ornaments and 'play' with them. Amazingly I don't remember any getting broken.

The only other room downstairs was the kitchen - or scullery as she called it. I remember having to clamber up on a chair to put a shilling in the gas meter - situated high above the cupboard! The toilet was outside in the conservatory, next to the coal shed. I always remember being a bit scared of the spiders in there ...

Grandma and I used to pick the raspberries from the garden, and she would make raspberry vinegar by the bottle full. I remember her pantry was always full of these bottles, and sometimes she would ask me take one round to next door to where Colin Fisher lived at number 52.

At Christmas all of our relations would come to Grange Drive for Christmas dinner, and then on Boxing Day we would go to Hannam Boulevard.

I have very happy memories of Stan and Hilda and really loved spending time at their house. They always found plenty for me to do and I was never bored !