Contributor Leaderboard

Hi. The photograph was of the first football team at Barrington school. When we played away games, mostly at Ashington, we had to walk to Choppington Station to catch the bus. Another story from Barrington is that when my father took me and my brother to see Newcastle play we caught the bus at Choppington Stn as usual, went upstairs for a good seat and guess who was sitting there - Jackie Milburn on his way to play in front of 80,000. He had been working in the mines on the Saturday morning; needless to say I got his autograph,that day Charlie Wayman scored a hat-trick and Len Shackleton scored the other.

My mother tells me the fish and chip was once owned by the Wilsons and then by the Hunters, One of the Wilsons I think it would be Kitty married in to the Rice family who had the fish and chip shop at Scotland gate. Some of the other shops on the bank she tells me one sold feed for hens etc and another one was ran by Davy Moody before he started with his wagons in the coal and haulier trade. She says he also delivered using a large basket and she can remember he sold cakes. I am also told that the Pioneer boot repair people also had a repair factory/shop next to the Lord Clyde pub. And going up the bank towards Scotland Gate one of the houses was a Doctors surgery. I myself can remember in the sixties a shop selling car tyres on the bank same side as the railway tavern pub. As for Scotland gate front street I can remember most of the shops Hendersons the post office, Brian and Joyce ward newsagent, the star picture house long gone, then the Travellers rest known as Wallys then around the corner next to the institute was the COOP, groceries downstairs shoes and clothes upstairs.Back on the front street was one of two fish and chip shops called Hedleys, then you had Blackburns sweet shop , next the butchers then the fruit and veg shop I cant remember the names ,then a clothes shop called hatchet and then Rices fish and chip shop then another pub long gone that I cant remember the name of then the Garage. Over the road was Taits ice cream shop Robsons stores then some sort of Chapel next was Taylors the bakers a Doctors surgery the Kings arms pub Scotland gate club.