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Wahey! Exactly as a remembered it! Costain Mining laid this temporary road and built the two bailey bridges, this one and the river crossing one, to take coal from the opencast mine at Acorn Bank, overland to Bebside Colliery, after public complaints about coal laden lorries speeding down Bedlington, otherwise quiet, main street, one of which knocked my faithful little dog down and killed him, having nearly hit me as we crossed the road. Tulip owned the fleet of old banger lorries, and they used ti belch out black smoke screens all the way up the road, after having climbed Bedlington Bank, empty, on the way back to the Opencast site, where the Golf Course is now, but this was around 1956. The 30-ton Euclids trucks, and also 42-ton Coal Haulers, used to make the bridges bounce e up and down as if they were made of elastic! Thanks for posting Alan! Made me happy ti see it again! Cheers Bill.

@HIGH PIT WILMA - and the other Bailey bridge that went across the river Blyth.

@HIGH PIT WILMA & @lilbill15Closer view of the Bailey Bridge :-

Just caught up,better late than never! Jimmy Nichol was the biggest lad in the class then,it seems,and by 1960,he was the biggest Coalfiller at Choppington High Pit,and his looks have never changed! He was a commanding figure among the men,I saw him a few years ago at Amble boot sale,this may have been 50 years after the High Pit closed in 1965,and he was STILL a big canny fella ,very sociable,and easy to get on with!! Some folk nivvor change! When a moved to West Terrace in Stakeford,in 1970,me Nybors a couple of doors alang,were the Yeouart Family. Mr and Mrs Yeouart had a Family of Nine,if a remember correctly,and Mr Yeouart,and his Sons,were aal in the Ashington Male Voice Choir. On a Saturday night,they used to come home from the Roughton Club,owa the road,tanked up,put tha arms aroond each other's shoulders,in a circle,and launch into song,Acapella,Barbershop style,and they Harmonised beautifully ! A was ,and still am,a teetotaller,and a used ti stand just inside me yard gate,and watch them,and listen in awe,as a musician mesel',at the skill of aal these tipsy big fellas,singing with such tone and feeling,and exactly on pitch...for being a wee bit owa the top wi the beer!! Aa was only 24 yrs aad at the time,and they aal seemed like aad men,but in reality,with life's perspective,they might have only been in their late 30's or 40's !!

Picnic Day,in the mid-late 1950's,possibly very early 1960's,the Bailey Bridge over the road down Bedlington Bank was supported by two sets of pillars constructed from concrete drainage pipe sections filled with re-enforcing rods and solid concrete infills. The pillars were about three or four feet in diameter,and us kids watched the crews building these bridges [the river one also..on Greenheart wood Trestles..]. You can see Hunter's Farm house ,it's actually on the left side of the road,but perspective makes it look like it is on the right!..the field in the foreground,is Hunter's field,taken from the near top of Bedlington Bank. The Rostrum in the picnic field can just be seen over the built-up opencast road,and the white pillar under the bridge is what I have just described. The main road is out of sight ,and is to the right of the pic,and winds down to go under the Bailey bridge and over the river Blyth.

Just browsing came across this photo. I'm on it, here's a list of names starting back row left to right. 1 Billy Middleton. 2 John Crawford (me). 3 Jacky Coils. 4 John Revely. 5 Jimmy Nichol. 6 Jimmy Crisp. 7 Burnett Brown. 8 Jack McNair. 9 Brian Besford. 10. Rowland Watson. Middle Row left to right. 11 Brian Jenkinson. 12 Peter Aries. 13 Fenick Yeowart. 14 John Green. 15 Eta Johnson. 16 Ivy Bolton or Bowden (not sure surname). 17 Thelma Cracket. 18 Jim Turnbull. 19 Jimmy Neal. 20 Billy Emery. Front row left to right 21 Betty Cavendish. 22 Sylvia ? Jobson. 23 Audrey ?. 24 Una Rough. 25 Margaret Watson. 26 Sylvia Carr. 27 Ann Simm. 28 Ann Saint. 29 Leah Middleton. 30 Maureen Robson.