54
I CUTHEROEADVERTlSERSi TIMES
www.clitheroeadvortiser.co.uk Thursday,July3,2014
Thursday,July3,2014
www.clitheroaadvortiser.co.uk CUTHEROEADVERTISER&TIMES I VALLEYFEATURE P r o p e r t y : H o m e s o f D i s t i n c t i o n L iv e s o f t h e m i l l g i r ls r e v e a le d i n FEATURE
by Julie Ma g e e
julie.magee@
jpress.co.uk Twitter: @clithadvertiser
the book will appeal to a - wide range of people,” added Tracy.
“1 feel so honoured that .
by Clitheroejournalist Tracy Johnson.
A HAREW00D AVENUE,SIM0NST0NE
LOVELY DORMER BUNGALOW £237,500
Abeautifuldetachedthree- in the kitchen, with co-ordi- ding areas and borders, paved bedroom dormer bungalow nated tiled splashbacks, tile walkways and patio areas. To in the quaint and sought-
after village of Simonstone gral double grill oven in a high with high fir borders and a is on the market for £237,000.
effect vinyl flooring, an inte- the rear is an enclosed garden unit with separate ceramic wooden built shed.
gas burner hob and extrac- To the front, there is a gen- For sale with Keenans estate tor fan, a stainless steel sink erous driveway with space for
( agents, thepropertyhasbeen with drainer and mixer taps, several cars leading to the sin- ' Well-maintained throughout There is also plumbing gle garage with power supply andboastsspectacularpano- for dishwasher and a hard- and water point, ramicviews.
£ Brimming with potential, ityroom.
wood door to the useful util- This well-maintained home with neutral decor
internally the house com- A built-in larder cup- throughout comes under prises a ground-floor e'n- board, along with plumbing council tax band E and ben- trance hallway leading off to for washing machine and a efits from no chain delay, two reception rooms, a din- tumble dryer can be found in ing kitchen, three bedrooms the utility room.
It is ideally located for commuters. Therefore, any-
(two of which are doubles), a Upstairs, there are three one looking to move to the Si- bathroom with separate WC good-sized bedrooms and the monstone area, should view and a nice garden with plenty landing has access to the loft, this fantastic dormer bun- of parking at the front.
a smoke alarm point and fit- galow. A gas fireplace with mar- ted storage into eaves.
<-ble surround and base can be Bedrooms one and two, found in the first reception both of which are doubles,
9 room and views over the Rib- benefitfromfittedwardrobes ble Valley and Hyndburn can and central heating radiators be’enjoyed from this room. under the sill. The good-sized room also Bedroom three also boasts has a solid oak single-glazed fitted wardrobes and offers
,* double doors leading to the views over the Ribble Valley second reception room.
and Hyndburn. Thereareamixtureoftra- Outside, the property has
ditional wall and base units beautiful wrap-around gar- with white wash wooden dens being mainly laid to + fronts and marble effect tops lawn with well-stocked bed-
■ website: www. keenans-estateagents.
co.uk/
FACTFILE
■ Agent: Keenans, 4 Wellgate, Clitheroe
■ Telephone: 01200 422824
Entitled The Mill Girls,
the book is Miss Johnson’s first and took around six months for the freelance journalist to research and write. • Tracy (39), of Hayhurst Street, told the Clitheroe
Advertiser: “I started the research for the book in Sep tember last year. “I sent out requests in
the local press and media for women who had worked in the mills to get in touch and also visited old people’s homes as far afield as Helm- shore in order to get the va riety of different viewpoints and stories that I needed. Initially, 1 spoke to around 10 different women and after hearing their stories con centrated my interviews on four.”
The book describes the
personal experiences of Audrey Waddington, who grew up in Read, but now lives in Clitheroe, Marjo rie Wilkinson from Chat- burn, Maureen Wilson from Blackburn, but now lives in Lytham St Annes and Doris Porter from Oldham, who now lives in Hurst Green. It features stories about life in Clitheroe, Chatburn, Burnley, Read, Oldham and Blackburn. The first quarter of the •
book is dedicated to 86-year- old Doris’ story and gives an honest, warts and all ac count of how hard life really was back then and how life still had to go on even when tragedy struck. Author Tracy really captures not only- what life was like foryoung women in the mills, but also what everyday struggles they faced in the midst of the Sec ond World War. The second quarter of the
book tells the story of hard working Audrey, now 85, who at the age of 15 started work at Friendship Mill in Read. Tracy helps Audrey recount how working at the mill was a means to an end for Audrey who, like many
bookabout the lifeoffourwo- men who used to work in the mills around East
Lancashire has been penned
the women I interviewed al lowed me to get a glimpse of what life was like for them back then - from their ex periences of living through the Second World War, their personal tragedies and achievements, to their work ing life in the mills. They not only shared their stories of hard ship, but also their memories of the fun times. Some of the things they told me you really cannot imag ine ever happening today and 1 found all four women totally inspirational in their own ways.” The Mill Girls, published
by Ebury Press and priced £6-99, is available from today (Thursday) from Amazon, Waterstones, Bertrams and Gardeners. It’s ISBN number is 978-0-09-195828-2 • For a chance to win
others back then, was ex pected to help support her familyfinancially.Wealso ) learn of Audrey’s true pas sion in life - baking - and how she managed to fulfil a long-held dream of becom ing an apprentice at baker- house, also in Read. The third quarter tells
thestoryofdedicatedMar- .
jorie, now 94, who started work at Stonebridge Manu facturing Company Ltd, a cotton mill in Chatburn in August 1934. There are many references to life in the Rib ble Valley at that time which many local residents will find fascinating. The last quarter of the book is dedicated to Mau-
■ reen, now 77, who tells of the hardship of life grow ing up in Blackburn, which although she describes as a “daily battle", she adds was always happy. Through the eyes of these
four northern mill girls, readers are offered a fasci nating glimpse into the lives of ordinary women who ral lied together, nattered over the beamers and, despite the difficult conditions, weaved, packed and laughed to keep the cotton mills spinning. Tracy, who trained as
a journalist in Liverpool before working on several local and national publica tions including the Clithe roe Advertiser plus real life magazines Love It!, Closer,
T R A C Y J O H N S O N - I h 'The/
personal connections with Tracy as her own grandma Greta Johnson (nee Speak) worked as a weaver • at Holmes Mill from 1919 for 20 years. “She looked after
five looms,” ex-
' plained Tracy, “but 20 years later had to give up the mill due to ill health.” Tracy added
that she had re gretted not asking her grandma more1 about her time in the mill, but through talking to Audrey, Mar jorie, Maureen
LOOK, more! and Real
People, said the nature of the book had struck a familiar and personal chord. When Tracy was grow
ing up, from the 15 mills that once traded there was only one that had survived - Hol mes Mill, owned by weaving company James Thornber Ltd. This mill turned out to be quite a presence in Tracy’s life for many years as it stood right opposite St James’ CE Primary School, on Greena- cre Street, Clitheroe, where she was taught: This mill had further
' and Doris, she had learnt what it would have been like for her grandma and she
appreciates now how “damn hard” it was. Former Ribblesdale High
School pupil Tracy, who has an honours degree in English and Women’s Culture from Northumbria University, spent seven years working
on magazines in London be fore deciding to move back home to Clitheroe and work as a freelancejournalist. Tracy said that although
“challenging” and “stressful” she had really enjoyed writ ing the book. “Everybody has some con nection to the mills so 1 think
Doris Porter, on the right, is pictured with her family, (s).
one of five copies of The Mills Girls, answer the fol lowing question: What is the last mill in Clitheroe called that stands opposite St James’ CE Primary School? Please send your answer, I
55
Audrey Waddington is pictured on the left with one of her collieagues at Longsworth Mill, Whalley. (s)
name, address and con tact phone number to: The Mill Girls competition, The Clitheroe Advertiser and Times, 3a King Street, Clit heroe, Lancs, BB7 2EW.
Marjorie Wilkinson on retiring from Stonebridge Manufacturing Company Ltd, acotton mill in Chatburn. (s)
1
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59