Going Public in 2012

As more information comes in, people ask what I am going to do with the fascinating information that is coming to light. 'You should write a book' being the most common idea.

Book, website , Kindle or publish on demand are all in the distant future, but a small exhibition at Selby Road Open Gardens 26th & 27th May 2012 - 2-6pm and at the Diamond Jubilee Street Party will be possible.

In case you are reading this and live or have lived on Selby Road and are still shy about contacting me I thought I would try and reassure you. The following information fits onto an A4 sheet. Similar sheets for each family will follow the same template and can be easily displayed.

I have been privileged to have been told some great personal histories and have much more information to work through. However the next stage is to create the simple A4 introduction sheets like the one below. If you can help create a sheet like this, I would be grateful. If you have any more stories or even brief memories about the people who lived in our houses PLEASE do get in contact.

Sample A4 sheet.
  83 Selby Road                                                                                         Richard Foster
 1954-1980

Father: Walter John Foster : born 1909  d.1970

He had always been interested in photography and lectured on aerial photography while serving in the RAF. He became Chief Overseer of the Photo-processing Dept.of the Nottingham Evening Post and the Guardian Journal. He was a colleague of Frank Baker at No.78 Selby.

Mother. Ethel Marion Foster [nee Parker]: born 1907 Leics. d.2003

Before her marriage she worked as a shorthand typist for the Chief Accountant of the Leicestershire Evening Mail.  She kept house for her family which included her parents who were living with them at No.83.

After 1970 she worker as a  'Find the Ball' or 'Spot the Ball' competition checker for the Nottingham Evening Post.

Son: Richard:  born 1948 Chesterfield   was 5 years old on arrival at house. The move brought him into the catchment area of Jesse Gray Primary School. 

Sharing the house: Mr Thomas and Mrs Hattie Parker, seen with Richard aged 2.

Sledges on Selby Road -past & present

From past resident: John Wrigley-[No.49]
Distant memories tend to play many tricks but I seem to recall that winters, generally, had several days[if not weeks] of snow- sometimes to a depth of many inches or several feet in 1947. Sledges would be taken out of garages, the runners polished and those with painted names 'touched up'-mine was of fairly solid construction and called "Bacchus".

The very young were encouraged to start sledging on a modest slope between Sherborne Road [opposite the original no.9 Sherborne] and a gap leading into Musters Crescent.    Later we progressed to a longer path between Malvern Road  [opposite Haileybury Rd] and Sherborne Rd [ending with a hump adjacent to a vegetable patch cultivated by Mr Quine of No.9] Then to another path between Malvern Road [to the west side of the two or three free standing detached houses and almost opposite the ARP post at the junction of Malvern and Musters Roads] down to yet another hump at the junction of Sherborne and Musters Road and thence down the rough road surface of Musters Road [assuming no vehicles in sight!]

The ultimate slopes were on Musters Road, either from the hill just north of Spinney Wood, through the gap in the hedge, dropping onto Musters Road, crossing Boundary Road, down the rough road slopes with allotments on the west side,perhaps as far as Malvern Road with an extra shove- but a long drag back for subsequent runs.

Or on Selby Road [from the Malvern Road pillar box to anywhere between No.43 or 31-there was a greater possibility of traffic on this road than at the top of Musters Road.
One of the joys of sledging was to be provided, at someones home with a cup of Bovril!
Much of 1947 was not ideal for sledging because of the depth of snow.[see Winter pictures on earlier blog]

John Wrigley as a boy, living at No. 49 Selby

Distant sledges on Selby Road , February 2012, note: the lime trees have been lopped
By Tony Waltham

From past resident: Betty Sales nee Baker [No. 78]
We had a brilliant sledge and when it was snowing and impacted we sledged down past no. 48 -where it levels out. In that kind of weather the milkman's horse could not get up the hill, and stayed at the bottom while the milkman brought the milk up.

From past resident: Rosemary Child nee Gibbs [No.116]
In the winter during the week my sister Helena and I would sledge on an empty plot on Malvern Road. At weekends we would take Father up the Spinney and sledge all together there.Selby Road was an unmade road above Sherborne.

One day only: view at bottom of Selby Road towards junction with Devonshire Road.

View uphill from outside No 11.

Photos by Tony Waltham