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I remember the shop in market place very well. Jimmy Milne's. As mentioned you had so much choice. I used to visit the cafe on the right hand side and have tea and soup. The young lass I went out with at the time worked in the office there. Really nice lass and She eventually went and joined the police force. I imagine She would have done very well as an intelligent lass and could write in short hand which would have been helpful. It is rather sad all these places closed but it is the same all over. Time stands still for no one. Thanks for the memories. Regards. Jim

Coach Road is shown in blue on the attached 1897 map of Bedlington East End. The road is still there leading to Spring view and the last houses were demolished in the early 1950’s. The East End Church of England school was only about 250 yards from Coach Road so is fair to assume that this is the school in the photo. The school (shown in yellow on the map) was closed in the early 1900’s and the site is now part of Hollymount Square.

Kings Coronation 2023

April 2025

16th March 2025

You aren't too far off the mark, as both building's roofs could well have been constructed by the same contractor (maybe Bill Scott Engineering?), and they are pretty close to one another. It's the Millne Bike Factory behind the former Turk's Head Hotel in the Market Place (later to become Coop - Millne House, before recent demolition). Looks like the snow collapsed the roof. Date some winter in the 1930s I'd guess, but it could be the early 1940s as they were still making bikes for the Army, as well as Bailey Bridge parts up until around 1945. The roof would have been demolished by the Coop when they rebuilt the rear of the Millne department store. After WWII, the building became The Terrier Plate Works, thought there was still some remaining evidence of bike manufacture there in the early 1950s.

Hi Canny Lass!..many thanks for your kind reassurance and good advice..it is much appreciated!..aye,my Sister is ten years younger than me,and she has had Glaucoma since she was a lot younger..and has had Cataracts removed,and she is still enjoying reasonably good vision,but she has never driven..with me ,and others like me,having to stop driving is like cutting my legs off!!..but I'll get by!! The medical team at the RVI are magnificent!..aye,aam on two sets of eyedrops morning and night..have to see the team in eight weeks time..I do 't drink coffee,and not much tea ....and I aam a teetotaller ,so hopefully things will stay stable!! I thought my laptop screen was fading,cos my pit pics are ,or appear ti be,fading..but's it's me gaan bliind ye bugga!!.. Cheers folks,luvly ti hear from ye's again!! Bill.xx

@HIGH PIT WILMA Glaucoma is a serious illness, HPW, but it doesn’t necessarily have to lead to complete sight loss. You’ll probably need eye drops for the rest of your life and while they can’t cure the Glaucoma or restore what sight you’ve already lost they can prevent further loss of vision so keep using your drops and doing what the doctor tells you! We also have glaucoma in the family and were recommended to avoid caffeine which can increase the pressure in the eye. Avoid, or at least decrease, your intake of: coffee, tea and chocolate. (Tea has only half the amount of caffeine compared to coffee). Take real good care of yourself!

Laura Fawcett, my grandma, the small girl in the front row, was born at the house in April 1900. She would be approx 3-1/2 yrs old in this photo. "... altho' my mother said Laura was born at the waterworks house, it doesn't match with the census (1901 census has them at Pioneer Terrace and Thompson still working at the Bedlington pit as a Colliery Engineerman)"

My great grandpa, Bedlington native, Thompson Fawcett (1873-1953) was the Engineer at Humford Mill for many years. He always wore a trilby and had a bushy white moustache (he may the suited gentleman on the right in the photo above). They lived at the mill in the house on the left with the bay window (the 1911 census lists Thompson, his wife Margaret and daughter Laura. Thompson is listed as Stationary Engineerman). Earlier (1901 census) he worked at the pit until he was injured in a pit incident. By 1904 he was working at the Waterworks as he hosted the wedding reception for Sam Mortimer and Isabella Swann at the house at the waterworks 26 Sept, 1904. (I will post a picture if I can find it.) When the waterworks shut (or possibly earlier) he and his wife moved to Hepscott where he tended some pit ponds.

My Gt Grandmother and Gt Grandfather had a building business. His name was James Johnson Mole and he married Catherine Easton. I often wondered if the cottages were any connection to her.. They lived in Gibson house in I think Rothesay Terrace. Their son Robert who was my Grandfather built a lot of houses in Stead Lane and you will still find manhole covers saying JJMole on the pavement in Bedlington. I was born at 9 Stead Lane, which my grandfather built and the house Pearmans next door as well and I remember very clearly the shop which I was sent to get messages for my Grandmother Alice Mole nee Green. In 1944 my Dad came home from the war and being a cockney we had to come doon sooth which broke my heart as I loved Bedlington. Alas, there is nobody I know now, either they moved away or died but my heart is still a Geordie and I can still speak the language fluently. We played with David and Arthur Fenwick, Olive Tipple, Tony Savilly who was called by us Tony is a billy because we could pronounce his surname, his Mum married an Italian and lived in the house right next to the shop. We played lots of games on Stead Lane, no traffic then, went to pledge doon the river Blyth, a children’s paradise The memories come flooding back. KATHLEEN NOTT - Maidstone Kent

Don't panic! Keep on clarting!

Unfortunately CL I am at the stage where I don't want to start learning, and paying a monthly charge for, some new 'photshop' software . I enjoy the world moving forward and advancements in all fields progressing and making the working day easier for the professionals but I'm in my little world using the Microsoft Digital Image Pro 10 (MDI) software that I clarted with for many months finding out what I could achieve. When I first bought a new Desktop with Windows 7 I did export the MDI software from the vista PC and import it on the Windows 7 PC but the software wouldn't load so I have kept the old PC going for the last 5 years. I have, three weeks ago, replaced my Windows 11 Desktop PC (that one daughter said wasn't 'fit for purpose' ) for a new PC with i5 16GB processor and if I was into gaming I would have gone for the i7 with 32GB RAM but I am not into gaming, just clarting

It's a man thing. Trust me, I'm a woman!

Thanks for that little gem, @James! I thought that I'd researched my old school (Nedderton village) well but I never knew that it was once a church school.

My half brother Colin Jordan. Who died suddenly at home earlier this year. He'd often nip up and drive around the areas he grew up in; North Ridge, Netherton colliery, Steadlands Square, Clement Avenue etc.

Bowers Garage is visible in this photo of The Neuk. For those of us who lived at the "bottom end" (Hollymount, Millfield) and worked at the Doctor Pit, the quickest route to work was through The Neuk and into the railway siding of the pit, located just behind Bowers Garage. In mining terminology, each end of a longwall face was known as a "neuk," meaning a dead end. Similarly, if you entered The Neuk from the marketplace, you would find no through road—hence the name The Neuk.

Bower was my grandad , I was a kid and lived near the yard

Awarded to Malcolm Robinson for his volunteer work in the West Bedlington community and his online postings on this group and Facebook keeping the community up to date with councill business that was, and wasn't, happening in the area.

Piper Award certificated presented to the volunteers.

Anonymous guest post:

@loopylou at the moment just 5 names - 4 positive and 1 '?'. Any updates I will let you know.

@loopylou I have a sister in law whoworked there in the lat 1960's I will see if I can get her to have a look at it and possibly identify anyone in the photo. Don't hold your breath

@loopylou Don't recognise anyone in the photo. Don't think I have ever seen any stats etc on the number of people and different trades there were at Welwyn. I must have passed the place a hundred times in the early 1960's but I can't remember ever having been anywhere on the Welwyn grounds. Normaly as school kids in the early 1960's we explored everywhere we could - but not the Welwyn

December 2024 - photo from Simon Williams.

Yes, I think that's Elaine. But this isn't actually Laird's House front garden. It's the house to the East of Laird's House, the large front room of which was originally the Laird's House (40 Front Street East) kitchen. Elaine's father worked for the BUDC and was I think the first tenant on 40A after it was separated from Laird's House sometime in the late 1950s. The numbering system became a little confused there due to the dividing (and subdividing) of the properties over the years. I think fractions were involved somewhere as well as letters - I used to be able to explain this in detail! The plaque on the wall (above the pram hood) is probably that of Ian Henderson: the dentist who came to Bedlington around that time. That building later became the Post Office. At some far earlier point, this building was given the name Longstone. If you look beyond the hedge, you can see that at this point the two shopfronts hadn't been fitted to the single story building there. The nearest one of those became Rediffusion after it was a dress shop. Beyond that, you can see Todd's wet fish shop (the first taller building), where Mrs Todd still had an open window displaying her fish. Next one down on the other side of the arch was Allsop's (sp?) the barbers. I think you can even spy the windows of the BUDC offices where the Miner's Picknick brass band contest judges used to sit, and onward...!

I have this photo, my class is central in this section of what is a very long photo

Sorry, this is in bits and pieces ... As Mr Boll Sr. was schoolmaster at the village school throughout his career then I think it's fair to assume that this is him (standing at the back) in the photo from 1902. He bears a bit of a resemblance to the man standing centre back (with moustache) in the group photo.

Sorry, half of my post disappeared because I took too long editing (I must learn how to add photos throughout the text!) To continue where I left off... He was born in 1862 and seems to have done very well for himself. By the age of 18 he was a "pupil teacher' in West Hartford where the family then lived due to his father's work. Ten years later the family is living in Nedderton Village where William Henry Junior is schoolmaster at the school and his father is again working in one of the Netherton mines. His home is then "School House, Netherton Village". The year is 1891 and that "School House" may well have been within the school itself. By 1901 William Henry is a "Certified Elementary Schoolmaster" and he remains at School House throughout his career. He was certainly still there in 1929 and still working. In 1911 the building in which he lived is described as a "Council School and private house" which is why I think the accommodation may have been in the school building. It is not until 1920 that School House appears on any maps I've seen and that's the brick-built house immediately to the right of the old school building (marked red on the map below). I've also arrowed the previously mentioned Rowanbrae in blue. It's at this address William Henry Sr, lives until at least his retirement. Prior to it's appearance on this map the land to the east of the school was without buildings.

@James update to the names and info. Jean McDonnell (nee henderson) has named No 15 as Freda Allen and No 32 as Doris (not Dorothy) Armstrong - Jean says she was on the trip but not in the photo. Joan Davison (nee Muckle of Lilly Avenue) has named her as No 19 and says it was 1956.

I'm Raymond Ball. I'm actually number 16 and my twin brother, Trevor is 17. 5 is Trevor Jones and 13 is Dennis Hall.

A bit late,but just catched up heor..the year luks a bit mair accurate..but the number and some name still dinna add up!!

Thankyou - photo added to the album.

Of course. I am glad to have found such a gem of a photo to add to your collection.

A family member remembered some names. 22 is Lewis Dixon 23 is Billy Mullen She thinks 5 is Ken Witson and that 10 is Frank Simpson instead.

The information attached is from a St. Cuthbert's church history booklet.

No, only Coach Road leading to Bells Place, Hi Carly! I don't think this is St Cuthberts (the village school). I agree that the brickwork is similar but windows are very different. St Cuthberts had windows with 16 panes of glass - 2 rows of 4 in the upper half and the same in the lower half. Your photo shows only what I think are windows with 4 large panes - 2 up, 2 down. I think there are two other possible schools: Whitley Memorial School in Vulcan Place. It was there from at least 1856 and only a couple of hundred yards from Coach Lane. WM had some 4 pane windows as you can see in this photo of the football team taken in 1920 and the brickwork bears a striking resemblance: This type of window was very common in East End of Bedlington in the earlier dwellings and you can see them above in the photo of Bell's Place. The other possibility is the private (Presbyterian) School that Eggy mentions above. Unfortunately, we have no phototos of that school.

I think the school may well be the Village School, as looking at a photograph from more recent times (before demolition) the brickwork does seem to match.

@carly I'll see if i can find Coach Row on any of the old maps and if I can find it it should give us a clue to what school they went to.

@carly - we don't have any school photos from the 'late 1800s' and I can't find a photo with brickwork that completely matches the brickwork in your photo. I have only ever found three schools that were in the area in the 1800's. They are :- 1. The Village school, opened 1874, on Church Lane Bedlington (flats now built on the land) 2. Bedlington station Colliery school. Don't know when it was built but it is identified on on and 1859 OS map. This area used to be named Sleekburn but changed it's name to Bedlington Station after the Bedlington railway station was built in Sleekburn. 3. On an 1896 OS map a school is identified in Bell's Place in Bedlington. Unfortunately no image of this school have ever been posed on any of the local groups. This is a compilation of your photo + Bedlington Village School photo + Bedlington Station Colliery school photo :- This is the only reference, 1896 map, to the school in Bell's Place + a Goole Street view of the area now - Bedlington's East End area :- I would guess you are researching your family. Do you have any info on where they lived in Bedlington?

@carly - I keep a copy of all the school photos where the names have been added so I will have a scan through them all and see if I can find a photo with a similar background. I will let you know weather I find a match or not but I don't recognize it.

correction:- not Mrs Brown-it was Mrs Burns

re-above picture of 1950's Bedlington Station Junior school teachers: as a pupil there at that time(up to 1952)i hope the following info will be of help- Miss Muter taught the infants(along with Mrs Brown) and was affectionately known as 'Little Miss Muter' (top row at the right) Miss Muter taught 1st Year Juniors-affectionately known as 'Big Miss Muter'(bottom row right) NB: they were sisters Top Row: left -is not Miss Pringle(i don't know who she is)...... Miss Pringle is bottom row extreme right.(she would later become Mrs DiCasio)

I'ts just I like to credit the person(s) who have named anyone in the photos otherwise people might think I knew everyone who ever went to school in Bedlington

Hi there.its of Choppington main street near Tait's shop

Most of us will be watching the coronation on Saturday at home, but in 1953, when the Queen’s coronation took place very few families in Bedlington had a tv. Lots of people from the “bottom end’ of Bedlington were at least able to watch the coronation through The Rediffusion shop window. This was a company that sold and rented tv’s and radios and is now a dental practice. The photos are from one of Evan Martin’s books and the 3 girls in the front are, left to right Maureen Brown, Joan Gray (dress with white collar) and Brenda Smith. Behind Joan is her brother Bob Gray.

This scan looks like the inside of Tyred and Exhausted's garage going off the steel construction and the glass panels in the roof. Does anyone know different?

Formerly The Turk's Head public house now abandoned.

Divvent ye dare!

I think that Mr Bebbington should be added to that list HPW.