Alan Edgar (Eggy1948)

On April 13th 2014 @Malcolm Robinson posted a topic - Last Miners Picnic 1989 :- In the Official Programme is a list, starting at 1866 through to 1989, of where the picnic was held. A photo of the 1937 picnic was posted on the Facebook sixtownships group and the comments eventually got around to - when was the first picnic? Was it 1866 at Polly's Folly, as stated in the 1989 programme? Extract from the Evening Chronicle story :- The event at Woodhorn Museum will mark The 150th anniversary of the historic Picnic. Thousands of people from across the region and beyond are expected to flock to the UK’s former mining capital, Ashington, for a day of music and celebration. The first Picnic was staged at Blyth Links way back in 1864. It quickly became a traditional yearly political rally and family day out. https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/lifestyle/nostalgia/northumberland-miners-picnic-celebrates-150-7235569 Owen Hunter Commented :- The first picnic was reported by the Morpeth Herald in September 1864. Here's the newspaper cutting: 10th September 1864.

If you ask ARCH :- https://www.archnorthumberland.co.uk/ https://www.archnorthumberland.co.uk/about https://www.archnorthumberland.co.uk/arch-invest/key-towns If you read The Chronicle :- https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/two-arch-directors-suspended-review-13440709 https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/arch-blunder-leaves-northumberland-county-14120662 https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/peter-mcintyre-arch-chief-executive-14167145

@Les Dixon - I've added your photo, with some names, into the Gallery>Historic Bedlington> Bedlington Station Secondary Modern School album.

My typing speed has now decrease 45 years per line so I have asked the misses, at least 45 wpm to correct! Thank you CL - when we get some names the new posting will have the correct year on it

I'll post it on the Bedlington Remembered Facebook group Les and update you when anyone is identified. The school album on this site is in the Gallery - Historic Bedlington - Page 2 - Bedlington Station Secondary Modern School :-

Champion

We were posting at the same time @Airlie Bird . I will put the Google Street View vehicle in the garage for now. I enjoyed the searching around my home town and rediscovered some memories. Hope you enjoy your trip up north.

I'll have to fill up me Google Street View vehicle and do some more driving

As it was chucking it doon yesterday I Google street view loads of estates, looking for semis with 1) a shared chimney stack 2) canaopies over the front door where there might have been metal supporting poles, painted brown, in an earlier life 3) drain pipes on the front of each semi 4) two sets of Bedroom windows and lastly 5) a similar roof to the house in the top of Airlie's photo. My best guess is Link Avenue, just off Netherton Lane but can't find anyone on the Bedlington Facebook groups to confirm it. Google street view of Link Avenue with a bit of Airlies ,in the corner , to compare :- And these are some of the houses off the Bedlingon council estates that I had a look at :-

@Airlie Bird - I posted the photo your photo on the Bedlington Facebook groups to see if any of the 'more mature' members could identify the street and estate it was taken on. The response was good, but often just pure guess work! Of the council estates and street mentioned = The Oval - Roslin Terrace, Kelso Gardens, Tomlea Avenue, Waverley Avenue, Fontburn, Wood Lane, Poplar Grove, Dene View, Grange Park,The Hartlands, Westlea, Bishops Meadow, North Ridge, Link Avenue & Meadowdale (to name a few) - the area that seemed most likely, but not proven, was the streets off Netherton Lane = Link Avenue & Measowdale. These two streets were the closest fit (but naturally altered over the past 50 years) where we could find council houses with a shared chimney stack; two sets of bedroom windows on the front, the brown metal poles supporting the front door canopy and drainpipes down the front of the house. If any of the above names jogs your memory then please let me know and I will update the Bedlington groups and keep the pensioners happy

Sods law - but good in this case, I think. There is a photo taken from the Dr Pit Head Gear, possibly posted by @Rigger on the Facebook sixtownships site, and it is commented that it is Telephone Row in the photo :-

@Airlie Bird - The maps that I look at online, National Library of Scotland, have all the areas divided into segments and the only one that shows all the old pit rows plus the Doctor Pit is the 1896 map. There are a couple of photos, that have been posted on the Bedlington Facebook sites, of Telephone Row residents but they only show the subject outside their own door - never seen a full street view of the row. There are photos, from @John Fox (foxy) that show Doctor Terrace standing in 1989 and a couple of the demolition of Doctor Terrace at a later date - I don't know the year it was demolished and I have always assumed that Telephone Row - Cross Row & New South Row were demolished years before Doctor Terrace & Shiney Row but I have no proof. A 2017 Google aerial shot of the area with 'APPROX' outline for where the pit & rows used to be

This is how I would post the photo on the Bedlington remembered site Les, with a number assigned to each person, and anyone identified I would add the names to the photo and 'repost' the photo with the names. Have you seen the class photos in the Gallery, page 2, under the 'Bedlington Station Secondary Modern School' album? There are two other class photos from 1950 in the album.

@Les Dixon - I can't name anyone in the photo but the members of the Bedlington remembered Facebook group might be able to. Ok if I post your photo on that site and ask for names?

Maureen Quait - Bedlington remembered Facebook group has asked if anyone can help her identify anyone that is with her granda, John Maddigan, in these two photos. She posted the photos along with another comment about her granda = '...........thinking today of my Grandad, John Maddigan (2nd from right) who always planted his potatoes on Good Friday. Was this a North Eastern tradition, or one that he inherited from his Irish family?' Another comment Maureen made was :- 'The only one that I recognise is the man 2nd from the left, who I believe was called harry, and may have lodged with my friend's family, the Halls, in Haig Road. The photo would have been taken in the 1950's'

Cheers Andy - you would expect them to jump at the chance, for free - I will see if I can persuade the 'Admin', via Facebook site, to join and use the Events

@Andy Millne - has anyone from the East Bedlington Community Centre ever contacted you about advertising their events on this site? I am not involved with the Community Centre but have occasionally added their events in the Events section on this site when their adds have 'popped-up' on Facebook. Would it benefit both parties if the y used this site to advertise?