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My Life Diary’s.

Preview: the Early Year’s

These are my Diary’s of my recollections of my ordinary life, but I like to think they may be

of benefit to my Children and grandchildren.

My parents were married on 26/12/46. I was born 3^rd day of July 1947. In a small terraced house in

Craven St. In the district of Hulme, Manchester, Lancashire. My parents were married just after the 2^nd world war.

My mother is called Harriet, maiden name Igo, and came from a large family of 6 girls and 3 boys. Here is a picture of me has a baby with my mother.

My father is called Tom Hillier he had no background because his stepparents John and Sarah fostered him.

I only remember certain things which will not be in order:

I remember waking my parents up one Christmas morning, with a drum. I recall the music at night, coming from the pubs.

The big event of my life then was the coronation of Elizabeth to Queen. We had all the streets decked with bunting, and crowns painted on the walls. I remember going with lots of people to watch the coronation on a Television, which was in a shop. This was a historic moment for us, because television had only just been invented.

I recall my first brother Brian, sitting on the steps of our house with me, we both had a coronation mug and Brian broke his.

I think in the early days, we had my mother’s mother living with us. I do not remember her, but my father told me that just after she died, my parents heard a knock on the door, when my father answered it there was no one there, but a figure in the distance.

Bonfire nights were big occasions, everybody went to the local fire. The fun for the bigger lads like me, was pinching other lad’s bongy (bonfire) wood.

I can remember the name of my first school; it was St Wilfred’s catholic junior.

My memories of junior school are very limited:

My recollections are;

I recall we sat on long wooden benches for our dinner. One day the bench was lifted up and came down with one of the

legs on my big toe. I was not treated for it, and it is still swollen today.

2. We were once playing some silly game where we were crawling about on our hands and knees and I

accidentally put my hand on a wasp and it stung me.

3. Having to go to sleep in little canvas beds.

4. In my last year another school coming to our school at playtime and causing a snow fight

The kids used to love the special days when the men went on their days out. We would all go to the pub they

were going from and wait for them to throw us coppers. (Half pennies and pennies)

I vaguely recall going on a trip to the seaside. We played I. spy and I had my parents guessing on the letter U, which I

said was all in the Charra (coach) they had to give in, and were annoyed for me to give them the answer of Umans.(Humans). .

My dad once took me on his bike, I sat on the crossbar he kept saying keep your feet away from the front wheel, but I

eventually put my feet in the wheel and we came a cropper. We I was not that bad but my dad came out the worse for ware.

In the year of 1955. We moved into a downstairs flat, in Brooklands estate, Wythenshaw.

These estates were concept of re-housing people from slum and old areas to large open country areas far away from the city and friends. This was to change the old traditional communities and society completely. The flats were on Warmley Rd and called Elizabeth Yarwood house. I grew up here till I was a teenager.

They were good times. I went to St Aiden’s catholic junior school. We used to walk it there and back, about 3 miles eac

way. Buses were a luxury.

The first and best friend I had was a lad of my age his name was Hughie Delarghey. He only had a Father who was a retired teacher. He had lost his Mother, and had a sister Mary, who was the oldest and another younger sister. We were both brought up strict Catholics. Another School pal was Eddie Madden who I lost touch with after I left St Columba’s. At school they indoctrinated us with the catholic faith, every morning at school we had to learn the catechism. Hughie more strict than me, he be came a alter boy, and he taught me Latin of mass, and the lords prayer which I knew then off by heart. We were good mates and all the stuff lads did. The funniest thing I remember was: One night we slept out in a tent, and my mother gave me a key so I could come in the house if things went wrong. In the early hours I woke up with something cold and moving about in my sock, which I took off and through out of the tent, in the morning I picked up my sock and found the problem inside my sock was the key my mother gave me. Hughie’s father died, so he had to move to a uncles a long way away.

NOTE. I regret fully, never saw Hughie again. Many years later about 1990 I wondered

how to get in touch with him, but did not. Just after this my mother told me he had died and he lived just near me in Droylsden. He had become a teacher. I now work with Eddie Madden.

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