Linda Ashton was born in 1949 at Worsbrough Bridge. Her parents were
from Barnsley. In this interview, Linda describes her home and family life. Her
father was a coal miner before working as a porter at Mount Vernon Hospital.
Linda describes her social life around church and playing with friends within
the area. She had a lovely childhood and remembers her mother taking them on
day trips and visits to stately homes. They didn't have much, but her mother
always managed to save for them. Linda talks about her working life positively.
She first worked at the burling and mending factory in Thomas Street when she
left school in 1963 at the age of 14. She then moved on to do hand sewing work
at West Street, but had to stop at the age of 25 due to poor health. Linda
talks about the changes she has seen in Worsbrough. She points out the loss of
'neighbourliness' and the 'closeness' in the area. She describes the Co-op shop
as 'magical'. Her family was the first in the street to get a telephone. She
ends the interview by mentioning about the first moon landing and the jubilee.
KH: There we go then.
So it’s the 20th July 2018. This is an interview with Kate Harper
and…
LA: Linda Ashton.
KH: … at Worsbrough library for the
Worsbrough Oral History Week. Erm, would you start please by just telling us
roughly how old you are? You don’t have to tell us exactly.
LA: I
don’t mind. I will be 69 in August.
KH: Thank
you. And were you born in Worsbrough?
LA: Yes, I
were born in 33 Henry Street, Worsbrough Bridge.
KH: Eh, what sort of house was it? What was it like?
LA: Terrace house.
KH: Yeah. Had you got … indoor
plumbing and electric or…?
LA: Not until… I was… how old would I be? About 12.
We had the the council came and modernised all the houses in the street, all at
once. And, we had a bathroom built on, on the outside. And at the time we had a
toilet at the bottom of the garden, well yard really. And because the door fell
off, me dad had to go down to the council and say “Can you hurry up and have
this toilet put in.” So they did, they hurried up. But it was really funny
because a knock came on the door, this little boy came and he said “Mrs Tasker,
they’re bringing you a toilet.” [KH laugh] And all the children were following this
council man down, the street with this toilet on his shoulder. So he put it in,
in the bathroom but we didn’t have a door on, we had to put a curtain on until
they got round to finishing the bathroom. So that were quite amusing really [KH
and LA laughter].
KH: Ah, that’s lovely.
LA: And the next-door neighbour had an organ
and the workman used to play the organ eh and go round with a cap, anybody that
were listening …. [laugh]. It was such fun. And then one day we were washing up
in the kitchen and the boy next door said “Linda, I can see you through the
wall.” Because they’d knocked all the plaster off so they could see straight into
our kitchen [KH gasp]. But we had so much fun. We really did, it were fantastic
time [KH and LA laugh]. So yeah, so we did have a toilet at the bottom of the
yard.
KH: Yeah. Where did your dad
work?
LA: Me dad worked, to start with,
he worked in the pit.
KH: At-at Barrow?
LA: Eh no he
didn’t. He worked at Mitchells Main.
KH: Oh alright. Yeah
LA: Hmm, yeah he worked… and Darfield Main and
then he had to retire through ill health. So he finished his working life at eh
eh Mount Vernon Hospital, as a porter.
KH: All right, yeah yeah.
LA: Hmm. Me mum didn’t work.
KH : That I’ll- that were going to
be my next question.
LA: ‘Cause they
never did. Well…
KH: Very few did.
LA: Very few did in our street
anyway, you know they didn’t work…
KH: Yeah, yeah. Are they from- were they from
Worsbrough originally as well all your families?
LA: Yes. Me mum was. Me mum were born down
Charles Street, the other side of the road from Henry Street. And me dad were
born in Stairfoot.
KH: Right, right. Do you remember
your grandparents? Were they still alive?
LA: Yes. Me grand- me grandma lived in Charles
Street, in the house where mum were born.
KH: Yeah.
LA: Eh and she didn’t die while she
was 82.
KH: Ah, that’s good. Yeah.
LA: So… although she did decide
to become old lady at 40.
KH: Oh, did she?
[KH and LA laugh]
LA: Oh, yes… oh yeah she did. And so people had
to run round- I suppose though in those days they were elderly in their 50s.
Weren’t they? And not like now, is it?
So
of course, me mum had to go and do all her housework and me aunty used to go
down. But yeah, she gave up at 40 she wanted looking after [KH: Goodness me]. Mind
she did have about… how many children did she have? Oh about 16.
KH: Did- she would have been worn
out then wouldn’t she?
LA: She was, she was actually. Yeah. They
didn’t all live. But eh… ‘cause I can remember me mum saying, erm following her
walking up, cutting you know towards the church with her little coffin and that’s
what they used to do apparently, you know then. But eh yeah, I had a lovely,
lovely childhood in Worsbrough. It were really good.
KH: Yeah, what sort of things … did you do in
your pastim- in your spare times? You know what you…
LA: Well I used to belong to the church on, down
the main road you know the eh Wesleyan Reform Chapel.
KH: Oh, right. Yeah
LA: I went there from being three.
KH: Yeah.
LA: And then I taught at the Sunday
school. And erm … yeah we used to have eh
you know sort of clubs for children and things like that so…
KH: Yeah.
LA: …I went there until they pulled
it down actually.
KH: Hmm, what year was that? Do
you remember?
LA: I can’t remember, Kate. Erm no, I can’t
remember. I’m not good at remembering dates.
LA: But yeah, it were a sad time when that had
to be knocked down but… subsidence.
KH: Oh right.
LA: Yeah so we
had to pull it down.
[00:05:00]
LA: But eh yeah and I had a lot of friends. I used-
I went to the eh school, the church school, you know, on the top road there. What
it used to be a window centre but it’s been pulled down now ain’t it?
KH: Yeah, across from Saint Thomas’.
LA: Yeah, that’s the one yeah.
KH: Hmm, hmm.
LA: And we used to walk there and back. No cars
[laugh]. I had to walk.
KH: Whatever the weather.
LA: Yeah, that’s right. Erm yeah again it were
a lovely eh a lovely school. Erm but first of all, I went to the primary school,
of course, on the main road. That is the dance centre now.
KH: Oh
right. Yeah.
LA: Yeah, I could
remember that. Could remember in the winter when they used to put the milk
bottles beside the radiator.
KH: [gasp] Oh!
LA: It was horrible and I would give any- I
would give my milk away to anybody [KH and LA laugh]
KH: And it had gone warm.
LA: It was horrible. Yeah, but again we had a
happy time. I can remember getting the beds out on a Friday afternoon, and eh
while- we had to go to sleep. Well every day actually. We all had a little
blanket. I never went to sleep b’cause I didn’t like to sleep in the day. I
just thought it was a waste of time [KH laugh]. But that meant that we used to
have a swing on a Friday, in the top class and I never got a swing. I think it
were because I never went to sleep [LA and KH laugh]. And then, when we were in
the top class we had to listen to the little ones reading.
KH: Oh, right.
LA: For the teachers. Yes.
KH: Yeah.
LH: ‘Cause I could read when I went to school ‘cause
me mum made sure that we could all read when we went. And eh yes so we used to listen
to them read.
KH: Yeah.
LA: And eh it were a lovely time actually. It were
really nice. Except I remember starting school when I were five, I didn’t like
it. So I think I’d only been there a week and at dinner time I came home. And I
said I weren’t going back anymore [LA and KH laugh].
LA: Somebody watched me across the road.
KH: Yeah.
LA: I mean in those days it weren’t as busy obviously
as it is now. But yeah so I came home. ‘Cause I wanted to come home. But after
that I once so settled in, I loved it. You know I did. Yeah. I’m- trying to
think the names of the teachers.
KH: I were say were there any particular
teacher that stood out?
LA:
Oh
Mrs Younger. She was lovely. She were the baby teacher, Mrs Younger. She were
really nice. Eh and she were so gentle you know, she were so kind. You know.
LA: And eh I can always remember… can’t
remember the name of the headmistress. She always- they always used to wear
nylon overalls.
KH: Oh.
LA: And eh yeah I could remember that. Erm I can’t
[fly buzzing in background] remember her her name now, But she- the
headmistress was very nice. The middle teacher was Mrs Brown, didn’t like her.
She was very strict; she wasn’t a nice lady. [KH and LA laugh] Nobody liked Mrs
Brown very much.
KH: Yeah. Did you stay for school dinners?
LA: No, I didn’t because I only lived across
the road you see and I came home. And… I did sometimes stay when I was at the
Juniors.
KH: Yeah.
LA: But erm when me dad were out of work a lot,
used to have a lot of accidents and he were, he were out of work and that- then
they got free dinners. But I didn’t like free dinners because we had to sit on what
they called the “brown table”. And everybody knew that you were having free dinners.
KH: Oh right.
LA: So, I didn’t like to stay for school
dinners. I didn’t as a rule, but me mum thought it would be a good idea if I
did. So I did, but I didn’t like it, like a stigma because- I mean it wasn’t, was
it? ‘Cause I meant there are other children that were very, very poor and I
suppose we were poor. Erm well we were- we didn’t have a lot of money at all.
KH: But m- everybody were the same wouldn’t
they….
LA: Everyone were the same but we had a lot of
love. But now I think that makes a lot of difference, you know. And again,
everybody in the street they weren’t well off anyway. And we used to go and
play out at you know these games, they used to play ‘kick-our-cans’, skipping
and marbles and things like that which they don’t seem to play now do they? You know, we had
lots of fun and of course we could roam, you know we used to go down to the
cricket field, down the bottom of Worsbrough. Stay there all day and just come
back at teatime. No watches, you know we just went and again we felt safe, and
eh it were just a happy time. We weren’t ever on us own you know I had three
sisters, older than me. So and I had a lot of friends. And it were a lovely,
lovely time. It was… yeah, really nice. So…
KH: Did-
as you got older did you go to youth clubs or dances or pictures or?
LA: No
I didn’t because we were involved with church mainly, really.
KH: So
that took a lot of time?
LH: So that took
a lot of time. Yes, yes it did.
[00:10:00]
LH: Erm so we were in a group, you see. And we
used to go to the- this man and woman used to go to church, Mr and Mrs Rose. They-
we used to go to their house a lot for the youth- we had a youth club but went
there and we used to there go after church on a Sunday.
KH: Right.
LA: So I never
really got into dances or anything like that you know, not that I thought there
anything wrong with them, but it just weren’t my thing you know. We just didn’t
do it so… but again, we had a lot of fun you know, ‘cause I think you do when you’ve
a group of friends, dun’t you think of you’d a lovely time, yeah you do.
KH: So
you- where did you work when you first left school?
LA: I started
work in Thomas Street, at the burling and mending factory. And it used to be
the old club, working men’s club. We were upstairs and again that was an
experience because we had… because it was a a beer cellar, we had blacklocks
and they used to- we used the clo- the cloth was very, very long, metres and
metres long and very wide and we used to have to fold them up on the tables when
we came home because if we didn’t there have might be blacklocks in among when
we came the next morning [laugh].
KH:
Ah right.
LA:
Yeah and then when that closed, we went
on to West Street which is now… it used to be the bike shop last thing. Yeah, so
we we I worked there yeah. And eh it was all hand sewing you know and eh yeah that
were really good time but sadly I had to leave I only ‘bout there 12 years. I
had to finish work at 25 because I started being ill. So…
KH: Right.
LA:
…
I couldn’t work after that. But it was a very good job and- again, we had a
good crowd you know. We had some experiences there, it was really funny.
KH: Yeah.
LA:
And there were a lady called erm… I
can’t remember her name now. She used to do the dinners and erm she used to
come round you know getting what you wanted for your dinner and things- oh Mrs
Clarkson they called her. And eh she used to put everything in one pot and I remember
one day this girl brought some Heinz beans and she said “I want those Heinz
beans”. She said “Alright I will put them on top” [LA laugh]. So… she mixed
them up with everything else [KH laugh]. But erm yeah again we used to walk
then, I used to come home for lunch, had half an hour and I used to come home every
day. But then me mum and dad weren’t well so we used to come home and check on
them you know so to see if they were alright. So… yeah so actually that were my
working life, I only worked while I were 20 but I started when I were 14. I-I
were 14 in the August and I started straight away s-school. So that were my
working life, but it was a happy one.
KH:
Yeah. Do you remember outings, any
special outings or holidays or club trips or…?
LA:
Oh yes. Oh yes, I can remember going
down and getting on the train at the bottom you know where the track used to be.
And eh we used get eh… they used to give us a little envelope with some money
in. And me mum always managed to save for us to go away. She used to pay into a
a club scheme, so much a week. And then we used to eh used to go away to
Scarborough. And I were always away for my birthday and we used j- every year
she managed but she scrimped and she saved and she went out without a lot for
us you know. There only two of us then at that time. So yes we went away and
she used to take us to all the stately homes. In fact, the other day I were
cleaning the loft out and I found the books what she used to buy, every time
she went she bought a book. And eh yeah we used to go to the stately homes. And
we used to have day trips, used to go to eh Cawthorne a lot. ‘Cause we catch the-
caught the bus you see and Newmillerdam. We used to go, eh yeah she made sure
we went somewhere. She was eh… didn’t cost a lot or we just used to pack a
picnic up and go down to playing field. You know we had lots of outings. She
were very good like that me mum. She always made sure that we were you know we had
a good time. Wouldn’t a lot of money, but we had a lot of love and she took us
places. It was lovely, really was. Yeah.
KH:
Yeah.
What about Christmases there anything special about Christmas? Do you remember?
LA:
Oh yeah we always had a lovely Christmas. We
didn’t have a lot but what we had was special. You know and she always made it
special for us. We always had a stocking, we always had the obligatory tangerine
and the shiny coin in the toes [LA laugh] so you know….
KH: Ah that’s
lovely.
LA: … she used to knit so if we got a doll, it
wasn’t a new doll but she always used to knit us new clothes for the doll. And
we used to have a new doll thing every year. And eh she used to buy things
second hand and and do them up. You know. Erm me dad wasn’t very handy so he
didn’t… [KH and LA laugh] he weren’t a handy man. But she used to you know make
the best of what we got. Eh but yeah she used to make it very special and
birthdays were special as well even though I we’re away. We always made it
special, always had a party, always used to made a cake. So yes so I were very very
fortunate really in my childhood. Erm it were- it were a lovely time. Yeah,
yeah.
KH:
Yeah. What’s changed most about
Worsbrough do you think over years?
LA: I think the ‘neighbourliness’, it’s just
not there anymore.
KH: Everybody said that.
LA: It’s
not. I mean when we were in Henry Street, everybody were there for one another.
They always used to come to me mum if they wanted anything.
And… but whatever, you know, they were always there. Erm
they were a lot poorer than us in that street. And I could remember one year, I
got this beautiful dolls pram and there were a a family across and there’s- he
had had a really bad accident at work and their children did not have much at Christmas.
So me mum says to me I want you to give that pram to your- to that little girl
across the road. She were very social minded me mum. You know and eh of course
I didn’t want to do it did I, but I did it and she knitted clothes and even
then, erm when I gave that pram away they were so pleased, they just didn’t have
anything. We didn’t have a lot but they didn’t have anything. And that’s what
it was like, we just shared, you know and if somebody didn’t have something
they needed it, well that were fine. Me dad used to have coal delivered when he
were at pit. He used to give it away or somebody could come and say “Can we have
some coal?” and he used to give them some coal. We shared but these days it is
not there anymore is it? You know erm people are sort of tied up with themselves
and they work too much don’t they you know. They’re never there but that is the
sad thing that’s gone, is the ‘closeness’ and the ‘neighbourliness’ and I think
that’s why so many elderly people now are so lonely. It wouldn’t be heard of
then [clears throat] for an elderly person to be lonely.
KH: No.
LA: Because
somebody would watch out for them. And that’s what it were like.
KH: Yeah.
Yeah. Eh what about the actual erm village itself you know like the-the new
estates being built and- or things that have disappeared, buildings that have
disappeared…
LA: Oh
yeah there’s so much gone. I mean down the main road really erm the Police Station
went and erm the shops at the bottom they they more or less all there in fact
the shops are still there but they’ve changed so much. Erm but there were a lot
more grocers shops of course, I mean they’ve all gone now which again is a sad
thing ‘cause I think corner shops are a good thing but eh they’ve all
disappeared.
KH: Yeah.
LA: And
there’s nothing left really what were there when I were younger. Erm same shops
but so different now to what they were you know. Erm butcher shop at the bottom,
I mean I can remember going there for me mum and the Co-op that was magical
‘cause we go there and erm we used to go in and you know they used to roll
potatoes down a shoot to bag up and of course when I were little I was scared and
eh when it were thundering me mum used to say “Oh it’s only potatoes rolling
down the shoot at Co-op” [LA and KH laugh] … when I was scared of thunder. And
you know they used to cut all the butter in pats and weigh up like that. And eh
I can still remember me mum’s divy (dividend) number
KH: Most
people can.
LA: Yeah
and I don’t know why because I mean I find it hard to remember telephone
numbers now but it’s just imprinted on your mind you know. You used to go and
tell her the number and erm I used to be fascinated with the shop assistant
‘cause he used to add it up in their head [KH said “oh yeah”]. Amazing you know
they used to move things and just [tap table] I couldn’t- how they did it. Erm
and again you know and there were- went in the butcher’s and there were sawdust
on the floor and things like that you know and eh… yeah but things have
changed, changed so much it’s hardly recognisable really I don’t suppose now?
KH: No,
no.
LA: Because
there’s a new estate up where William Street used to be of course that’s been
built you know. Erm so yeah there’s so many different things that’s that’s happened.
[00:20:06]
KH: Hmm.
Yeah. Do you remember people starting to get cars and televisions and…?
LA: Oh,
we were the first in the street to get a telephone.
KH: Were
you?
LA: We
were yes. Only because me mum were ill [KH laugh]. And the Social Services had
it put in for us because we worked and they said they got to be in contact with
somebody and so erm yeah we had the first and we were on a party line. And the
elderly lady that who were- u- who used to share with she used to sometimes leave
the phone off the hook so we had to go and knock on her door and say “Will you put
the phone on because we couldn’t use our phone” [LA and KH laugh]. So we were
the ‘go to’ for the telephone in the street. So we were like a telephone
exchange [LA and KH laugh] so… and I can’t remember anybody in our street that
had a car eh when I were younger when I were little. Can’t remember at all. So
eh…
KH: And
you can’t move for ‘em now, can you?
LA: Oh
no, no you can’t park anywhere can you?
KH: No,
no.
LA: No but eh and I can remember going to the
allotments, which have gone now.
KH: Hmm.
Where were they?
LA: They
were round the back as you went erm how can I say now… where the playing field
is now as you go up the cutting, it were round back of there.
KH: Ah, right.
LA: And
I used to go up me friend’s erm dad had an allotment so we used to go up there,
but they’ve gone now as far as I know. So eh yeah, but things have changed a
lot so it’s only while you‘ve been talking that you think about it int’it you
know brings things back. Yeah so eh…
KH: Yeah.
Do you remember any sort of national events, big events that impacted you know
obviously you weren’t… eh you’ll not remember Coronation wouldn’t you….
LA: Oh no no, I can’t remember that.
KH : Eh what about say landing on moon or… that
sort of thing?
LA: Oh yes, I can remember watching that.
KH: Yeah.
LA: Yes.
Erm it were a very very exciting that. Me mum she were… very erm forward
thinking me mum she were really into history and stuff you know, and she just
really wanted to be there when that happened you know. So she made sure that we
were there and we saw that you know. So I don’t know if I were have been
bothered or not [LA and KH laugh]. But we all wanted to be together when it
happened. So yeah we- yeah it- yeah remember that. But apart from that really,
I can remember seeing photographs of the Coronation in fact I’ve got one at
home I think. Erm they had a party in the club where we went to work, in Thomas
Street yeah but eh I were too, I weren’t there then so but I can remember that.
But eh other things I can’t really remember- oh I remember the Jubilee ‘cause
we just moved into the new house after they knocked houses down.
KH: Right,
yeah.
LA: And
we went to live on Oakdale then, where I am now and I remember the Jubilee. Yeah
because erm me and my next-door neighbour put some bunting up. We hadn’t been
there very long. And eh yeah so erm we did that. But sadly, we’d moved into
that house and me mum only lived there a year before she died and she loved the
house. ‘Cause we got it special for ‘em so they could have a room downstairs as
a bedroom you see. Erm but yes she had a heart attack and she died so… that
were sad.
KH: Oh
dear. Yeah, yeah.
LA: But
eh yes we were fortunate to move into a nice house after we’d lived there it were
very inconvenient for them really. But it was very very good time… it was.
Yeah.
KH: That’s
lovely, thank you very much Linda. I will just finish that now unless there is anything
you want to add.
LA: I don’t think so. Have I rambled on too
much?
KH: No…
(End
of interview)
[00.24.02]