Alan Edgar (Eggy1948)

I spent a lot on time in detention = Tuesday was the normal 1/2 to 1 hour detention and occasionally on a Friday for a 2 hour stint. It wasn't that I was a trouble maker it was just I was always late for school and if you were late three times in a week then you got detention. As my mam used to drag me out of bed to get down to Patrick's newsagents for 07:30 every day to do my morning paper round when I got back home I used to fall asleep, getting ready for school, SITTING on my bed. For the last two years of my school life I spent almost every Tuesday in detention. I even remember the one week I was at school, on time, every morning. I was the fifth form class rep and one of the duties of the form reps was to read a passage from the bible for two mornings in assembly. So on the Monday we had to turn up before 09:00 for rehearsal and then be there before 09:00 for the two readings on Tuesday & Wednesday. So I completed those three morning and therefore couldn't have been late three times that week. However on the following Monday when the names of those for detention on the Tuesday were read out my name was there. off I went to see the deputy head, Mrs (or Miss) Smith to correct the error. She said something like - Edgar it seems a shame to blemish your record, you are part of the detention fixtures, I must have just added your name automatically and I think you should just attend. She smiled, patted me on the head and my two year record remained intact.

The 'whole school' image was copied and pasted together from 5 separate photos. There are two many people on each photo (70+) to add numbers and names. These are the five photos :- 

Images from Cliff Ehala.

Kath Simpson commented :- Punishment from the prefects for any little misdemeanours. Words from the book were written in columns. The columns - written in exercise books with pages folded into four - were ‘marked’ by the prefects and a mistake was a rewrite. If you acquired twenty columns in a week led to detention. 

Bedlington grammar school at the start of the bad weather in the winter of 1946 -1947. The kids would have enjoyed this but the adults didn't :- Beginning on 21 January 1947, the UK experienced several cold spells that brought large drifts of snow to the country, blocking roads and railways, which caused problems transporting coal to the electric power stations. Many had to shut down, forcing severe restrictions to cut power consumption, including restricting domestic electricity to nineteen hours per day and cutting some industrial supplies completely. In addition, radio broadcasts were limited, television services were suspended, some magazines were ordered to stop publishing, and newspapers were reduced in size. These measures, on top of the low temperatures, badly affected public morale and the Minister of Fuel and Power, Emanuel Shinwell, became a scapegoat; he received death threats and had to be placed under police guard. Towards the end of February, there were also fears of a food shortage as supplies were cut off and vegetables were frozen into the ground.

Mistake on a surname - Should be HAMILTON not HAMILTOM

Ernie Armstrong has named number 4 :-

The photo from the school gates was taken by Eileen Brooks on the 16th June 2016. 

The new school, Bedlingtonshire Community High School, would be ready for all the pupils to move into at the start of the 2016-17 year. Before the old school was to be demolished at the end of the 2015-16 year the old pupils that could be informed via letter or Social media were invited for a last look around the school on Thursday evening, 16th June 2016.

The photo with text from Evan Martin's book - The People's History - Bedlington Remembered.

Newspaper cuttings from John Krzyzanowski - facebook group Bygone Bedlington

The same image, with some info, from Evan Martin's book - The Archive Photographs Series - Bedlingtonshire.

The image with this additional info was also included in another Evan Martin book -  The Shire of Bedlington in old picture postcards.

Photos posted on various Social Media groups but without any info. Can't remember any competitions during the years,  late 1950's to early 1960's, when my brothers and I would attend almost every weekend in the summer months = 3d to stay in the baths for the full 8 hours it was open.

This photo shows some of the spectators that were there for a competition.

Extract from a newspaper cutting showing the spectator seating steps down one side of the swimming baths.

When the Ewart Hill - Acorn Bank opencast sites were in operation there were some inner tyre tubes from the Euclid trucks that were used on the sites.  Brilliant for playing with in the pool but if you wanted to dive from the side of the swimming baths through the center of the inner tube you had to make sure the tyre valve was was pointing down into the water otherwise it could be dangerous☺️☺️☺️ 

In a book by Stephen B Martin - Sleekburn (The Station) there is this image stating the Y.M.C.A opened in 1886.

1954 photo from Evan Martin's book - The People's History, Bedlingtonshire Remembered.

The water behind the 'deep end' of the pool was the Filter Pool.

The Waterworks - Pumping Station was converted to the open air swimming baths in c1926. This photo from the @johndawsonjune1955 collection is thought to be from the 1930's.

Info and photo posted by @James in the History Hollow section under the 'Coal Mining' topic:- According to Stephen Martin’s book on Bedlington, the steam driven pump station was commissioned in 1876 and pumped filtered water to the reservoir behind the Red Lion and operated for 50 years. 

16 hours ago, Canny lass said:

The Megalithic Portal doesn't make any sense to me. How can "Jim Swanns early 18th century diaries" possibly suggest that the cross was built in the late  18th century "1792". He must have written his diary BEFORE the cross was built!

I did notice that but as I am not a member of the Megalithic.co.uk Portal, and I didn't want to join, I couldn't point out the error in the text but thought it was worth a mention just to show that others, outside of Bedlington, know of the town.🙂 

Northumberland County Council article on the cross and the repair of 2010 costing £6,000. 

Restoration work on the cross carried out in 1970.

Newspaper article post by John Krzyzanowski - Bygone Bedlington Facebook group. I've copied the article so it's easier to read. 

Photo, c1906, from Evan Martin's book - The Archive Photographs Series - Bedlingtonshire. 

The Market Cross. Some call it The Nail. Said to have been moved to it's current site in 1782 but there is o entry in the Bedlington 'Timeline'.

Info on the Megalithic Portal :-

No entry in the 'Historical Timeline of Bedlington' on this site :-

Info from @johndawsonjune1955

35 minutes ago, Canny lass said:

While I was wandering around the 'station' in my research on Puddlers Row/Glassey terrace I noticed this:

 

Could it have belonged to the public house ? The Percy Arms

First time I've seen a map of the area with the words 'Bowling Green' on.

As what appears to be the boundary line for the YMCA  covers the Bowling Green area I would say it belonged to the YMCA, but I can't prove it.

No 36 updated.

Stay Safe photo from Simon Williams - May 2020

20 hours ago, Jr6468 said:

 However, it came as a shock to see the old railway tavern gone completely. We spent some lovely times together in the disq as it was known. 

@Jr6468 Can't remember if it was demolished in 2016 but this photo was posted on Facebook - 27th July 2016 by  Vic Thompson.