This is a new feature on our website – a page devoted to Memories.  So we are now looking to anyone who has ever lived in Cheslyn Hay to recall some of their memories - whether happy, sad or just poignant.  And whether times were better in the more austere years of during the war and just afterwards – or would you prefer life as it is today.  And would you begrudge your grandchildren all their computer related toys in this high tech age?
So please dig into your memory banks and share those priceless memories with us all.
To start the page off we have this delightful passage from Kath Reeves who now lives in Stoke.
Please email memories to:trevor.cheslynhayhistory@talktalk.net

A Walk down memory Lane By Kath Reeves, nee Brough

After visiting the local History Society at the village hall in Pinfold Lane, Cheslyn Hay, I decided to walk down the High Street as I was slowly walking, along came memories of my childhood, when I lived in the High Street came flooding into my mind. Once again as I was looking around I remember Mrs. Hicken she had a chip shop, she would serve me and my friends she would give me & my friends a small paper bag. Inside it were a few chips and sometimes a tiny piece of fish in batter she only charged us a penny each.
Below the chip shop were little cottages. My Aunty Alice and her husband lived in one of them next door to them in the last cottage lived Mr and Mrs Baker. Mrs. Baker on the same side as the fish shop. Mr and Mrs Bakers cottage was on the High Street Mrs Baker was a very deaf lady but she would come over the road and knock on my families back door. We lived at the back of the Chemist she would ask me if I would go shopping for her. I went into different small shops in the High Street then gave her the basket with as much food she was able to receive with her food coupons.
Mr Ferraday worked in the Chemist he used to take peoples dogs If they were very poorly dogs he would walk the dogs up the entry at the side of the chemist, then he would knock on our back door like lots of other people he would ask my Dad Tom Brough to help him. When the poor little dogs were dead my Dad would bury them in our back garden I used to think of the poor little dogs all the time, because each time they had been put to rest our garden over the years would be filled with all kinds of poppies. Also at the top of our chimney purple wild flowers were growing my young brother Tom Brough two years younger than me would say to me look up to the chimney Kath and see the flowers swaying around.
Before our family lived at 32 High Street we lived in Low Street as I walked down Cross Street to enter into Low Street my mind filled once again in my childhood years. Memories started flowing around I pictured my little cottage home, number 42 Low Street where me and my brother Tom were born our Mother Mary Ann Brough nee Wedge was a wonderful mother. As I looked along the Low Street I was once more playing with my two friends Viviane Davies and Christine Wilcox also lots of other girls and boys in the same street.
Christine also Viviane and me were the same ages about seven or eight years old when we were children one morning in the winter time, The three of us were going to school in Pinfold Lane the three of us walked together from our homes. The rain was pouring down we did not have an umbrella we all rushed along the High Street on the left hand side until we came to the big houses at the top of that street. There was a big long entry in between two of the houses it also had a small roof. The three of us ran along the entry we were stamping our feet because they were cold and our shoes were very wet we were watching the rain flooding the paths and the road when the rain started to get a bit lighter falling down we ran out of the entry to the school..
One day Christine and Viviane along with me and other children went down the Boards it was the fields only a slight distance from our homes in Low Street, I was wearing a long black dress that belonged to my Grandmother Sarah, my Dads Mother. I climbed up a small hill in the fields then sang and danced to entertain every one. There was a horse in the field and some of the boys were running after it they got in trouble with Mrs. Jellyman she was the owner of the horse. She was a busy lady she used to have the horse driving a cart for her she used to sell lots of vegetables and brush sticks she made them herself.

MY CHRISTMAS MEMORY

Many years I have kept in mind this wonderful memory when I was a young child aged ten in 1943.  World War Two was heavy and blazing with armed conflict across the world.  On some of the street walls in Cheslyn Hay I remember seeing war posters advertising for men and women to join the war.  At the bottom of each poster was a message ‘JOIN THE ARMY’,'DIG FOR VICTORY’, ‘KEEP ON SAVING’, ’SALUTE THE SOLDIER’,'BUY VICTORY BONDS’ and a poster showing a pretty lady with ’JOIN THE WOMENS LAND ARMY’ underneath.
Mum and Dad read magazines known as ‘WOMAN’ and ‘WOMANS OWN’ priced 3d as well as a small booklet ‘LILLIPUT’ costing 6d and 9d with flying aeroplanes on the cover.  Dad played records like ‘THEY CANT BLACK OUT THE MOON’ by Ambrose and his Orchestra and ‘MEET ME IN THE BLACKOUT SWEETHEART’ sung by Max Miller.
It was nearly Christmas and the weather was very cold and frosty.  One morning I went to the Pinfold Lane School and all the shops in the High Street had decorated their windows.  The people who worked in the shops had made the paper streamers of all different colours and draped them across the windows from top to bottom together with strips of glttering tinsel.
As I passed each shop the atmosphere felt mystic and I sang Christmas carols as I walked to the top of the High Street.  On the left hand side was Hassalls, who sold toys and I stopped outside to look in at the window.  I pressed my face against the glass and at the back of the window I saw a toy that melted mt heart.  It was a black doll in a black and green little boy’s suit with a matching hat made from soft material and his face looked so kindly at me that I stood staring at him until my feet were frozen.
All through the school lessons I kept thinking about this little black doll and after school I ran down the High Street up through the entry into my home and Mum said to me ‘You look excited Kathy. What has happened?’
I told her about the doll in Hassall’s shop and I pleaded for it with my Mum for my Christmas present.
The next day and every day getting closer to Christmas I would look in the shop window at that doll until it was Christmas Eve morning.  The school was closed now and I was running errands for my Mum.  I had money and grocery coupons for Mr Perks shop and bread coupons for Stantons cake shop , but when I had finished the shopping I ran up to Hassalls to take a look at the black doll. There was no sign of it. I went into the shop and asked the lady where it was.  ‘I’ve sold it Kathy’ she said and I felt drained and I cried all the way home.
Then on Christmas morning I got out of bed thinking ‘I don’t even want any presents’ and slowly went downstairs into the kitchen.  Mum said ‘Happy Christmas and here’s a present for you’.
It was wrapped in brown paper which I carefully prised open.  There looking up at me was the little black doll’s china face.  I shouted a  loud ‘Thank You’ to Mum who told me that I had to give him a name.
I sat on a chair by the table cuddling my doll when a warm memory came into my mind.  I used to enjoy picking blackberries in the fields during the summer and one boy in particular always helped me.  I looked at Mum and said ‘I’ll call my little black doll Lenny’

A Walk down memory Lane By Kath Reeves, nee Brough

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