Alan Edgar (Eggy1948)

Welcome to the group @Kevin stafford The stories in the links to the Journal & Newspost Leader that Malcolm posted in 2013 are nolonger available. Were you involved in the fire?

Commeny from Malcolm's FB page :-

Bedlington’s Family Festival 2025 ospSrnodteAug:1c3771a19m28t51f8 62m1lm097i3rfp 1a9h242ggf5t · VE Day 80 Celebration – FREE ENTRY! Join us on Friday 9th May 2025 at West Bedlington Community Centre for a fantastic day of remembrance, fun, and 1940s nostalgia as we mark 80 years since VE Day! What’s happening? • Wartime 2-Course Meal • Live Entertainment featuring: • The War Time Sweethearts • Wartime Quiz • The Fantastic Beatlemania • Dress Up & Win: Come as a Land Girl, Factory Worker, 40s Sweetheart, or in Forces attire – best-dressed wins a prize! SHOWTIMES: • Day Show (Seniors): 1 PM – 4 PM • Evening Show (Families): 6 PM – 10 PM FREE ENTRY (Sponsored by West Bedlington Town Council) To book, call: Charmain – 07792 422086 Christine – 07591 621238 Let’s come together and celebrate this special anniversary in style – Union Jacks, wartime tunes, and all the spirit of the 1940s! Don’t miss it! #VEDay80 #WestBedlington #1940sParty #CommunityEvent #FreeEntry See less All reactions: 11

Welcome to the group @Vickkie Blake.

https://www.business-live.co.uk/enterprise/north-east-suppliers-sought-landmark-31436618?utm_source=inyourarea.co.uk&utm_medium=iya-app&fbclid=IwY2xjawJvDTVleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHi0eMNsqaviNgK8kv51ZUAfbenEM89HvLP9PpsVVC2_QRj7JVD0l6uyDhVy6_aem_mO_PBkDQX402OCn54xVsOA

https://www.eastbedlingtonparishcouncil.gov.uk/garden...

@loopylou I would suggest 1st select the Discussion tab then 2nd enter the one word ie. Puddlers in the search facility. That will return you 3 pages = 65 entries for where Puddlers is mentioned on this site. There is nothing definite on this site about The Puddlers Arms and The Bank Top Hotel to suggest that the pub changed it's name but it does, because of the space available in the small strip of land, seem more likely to be what happened. I know @Canny lass has looked at the area and in the past she found that as well as the Puddlers houses next to River View there was also another row of houses on the opposite side of the pub called Puddlers that later became part of Glassey terrace with the name Puddlers. If you do search fot Puddlers then yoy will see what I have said above explained in more detail and the fact that Puddlers lives again = some old airey houses in Tosson Close were rebuilt as Puddlers Drive. There is a Facebook group Bygone bedlington (I am a member) and you will find similar info on that group but again nothing concrete and within that group I have never seen any member delve into census records etc and post info within the group. The admin of the group is a retired gemtelman John Kyyzanowski who may have info but I can't be sure. John used to work at the Northumberland Archives site at Woodhorn Colliery. His main passion is collecting old postcards of Bedlington. I will have a delve around (as long as I remember and get back to you. Don't think there is any info on the Puddlers from Ireland that were brought accross to work on the Bedlington Iron Works in the Furnace area. Puddlers Row is said to have beem built for those workers. I'll have a scan of the Evan Martin booklet :-

@loopylou I agree with you on the cottage numbers for River View👍. You have really put a lot of work into delving into your family's past

Then and Now

@loopylou & @Canny lass the only old photo I have seen that includes Craggs Buildings is the 1930s one in one of Evan Martin's books on Bedlington :- And I think Craggs buildings are the ones I have marked with a red star in this copy :-

Not that my memory is brilliant these days but I do recall Joe Rooney mentioning the fire when he posted a comment about his older broter :-

@loopylou if you have been using the saerch facility on this group then there are a couple of points that we eventually stumbled on.If you put a phrse in the search box eg - Bank Top Hotel - then the system returns you every comment that includes the word Bank or Top or Hotel. If you add quotation marks - "Bank Top Hotel" then you only get comments with the full phrase 'Bank Top Hotel' If you enter a phrase within a category, eg. History Hollow, then the system only searches that category. If you select the 'Discussion' tab and then search then the system searches all the categories.

@_pauls do you follow Malcolm Robinson on this group and Facebook? This is a link to his Facebook page :- https://www.facebook.com/p/Malcolm-Robinson-Bedlington-West-Ward-100057586923534/?locale=en_GB

I joined the group in 2013 and I remember coming accross his comments on the housing and the families that lived at the Bank Top in the 1940's :-

@Canny lass if I am on the right wave length was Joe Rooney, ex Banktop moved to Australia, a member of this group and he posted lots of info in History Hollow on the area and the families around the Banktop?

@loopylouusing the info from @Canny lass this is a then and now of the area.

So at the top left this is Gatehouse/Doctors Row ? :- And I joined two photos together (using the railway line asa guidline) to show the area east of the Furnace bridge and will Old Gate Row be the row on the right hand photo ie the row closest to the house that looks as if it is being demolished?