Surname
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Burns
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Forename
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Bob
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Date of recording
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June 2008
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Year of birth
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1926
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Place of Birth
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Aldeburgh
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Occupation
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Retired
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Fathers occupation
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Grocer
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Present Address
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Aldeburgh
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Location Interview
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Aldeburgh
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Interviewer
Summary |
Colin Fletcher
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Duration
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139 Mins
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This recording consists of 17 tracks.
Track 1. Introduction. Track 2. Born in 1926 and lived at 272 High Street above a sweet shop. Describes first memories of childhood when he used to creep down the stairs very early in the morning and take 1 penny (1d) chocolate bars from under the counter, and remembers being caught out. Also remembers trying to take buns out of the pantry and being shouted at by his mother. Describes his childhood as jolly times. Describes the council houses being built near Fort Green in 1934. Describes how when the fair came to the Green before the council houses were built, the young boys would find the Roll a penny stalls and mark where they were and after the fair had left town would return and look amongst the grass for lost pennies. Describes how he was the oldest son of the family and had two brothers, Barry and Binger. Mentioned that he did not know much about his family as his mother had been adopted by the mayor from a home in Kent and was brought to Aldeburgh and his father came from Hertfordshire with his grandmother who left his father with the Hodgkins and then ' went off' with a soldier never to be seen again. Describes his mother working for Mrs. Lewer as a scivvy and later as a shop assistant in Lays shop. Describes the house at 272 High Street, the first thing you see on entering were the stairs up to the bedrooms and you would look straight through to the back door leading to the back yard. Describes how his mother died of T.B. after contracting it from Mrs. Lay. Describes how she used to put camphorated oil on brown paper and lay it on her chest, but of course it was not a cure. Describes the house as belonging to the Lays and how the roof leaked and they had to put buckets under to catch the water when it rained. Describes how he did not think it was a hard life,just normal. Describes how his mother and father slept in one corner of the bedroom and the boys slept in another corner of the same room,the second bedroom being the living room. Describes how all meals were taken in the living room, and there was no electricity. Describes how they did move to the back street, (possibly King Street) and they had gas lamps and describes the popping sound as they were lit. Track 3. Describes how they eventually moved to one of the council houses at the bottom of High Street, by Orford Cottages and had their own bedrooms, and running water. Describes a copper in the kitchen that heated the water and made it possible to have hot baths. Describes the kitchen as having a cooker/fireplace, like a range, which was fuelled by coal. Describes how his mother did the washing and scrubbing and by hand and eventually they had a mangle which was a great help. Described that it was hard graft and life was made much easier when they managed to get a Hotpoint washing machine with mangle on top, it was wonderful. Describes how they now have an automatic washing machine that they have had for the past 25 years, and he has done most the repairs himself and kept it going. Describes getting puzzles, crayons and coloured pencils for Christmas and also receiving a stocking with a banana and an orange inside. Describes how they did not have many toys. Describes how Christmas dinner was not always turkey but mostly cockerel. Describes how he had a better relationship with his mother than his father and how he lost two of the most wonderful women, his mother and his wife. He describes his father as being slightly bitter due to the fact that he had been dumped by his mother. Describes playing by the Martello Tower and catching rats in the moat, also playing on the beach. Describes how he did not like swimming, only having swum possibly three times at school. Describes the bathing huts on the beach being owned by Collis and Cable and were used by the holiday makers mainly, and sometimes by the girls from Belstead School. Also remembers two rafts on the sea, also owned by Collis and Cable but you had to pay to use them. Also remembers small paddle boats. Describes spending a lot of time playing at Slaughden and getting friendly with Reuben Woods. Describes how they had blue boat which they called the 'blue dingy' and spent a lot of time going up and down the river. Track 4. Describes how they used to collect winkles from the Brick Dock jetty and the sea wall. Describes the remains of the houses at Slaughden. Also describes going ' mud paddling' where they had to roll up their trousers as far as they could and go paddling in the mud. Describes how he has been able to find out about the three boats that were built at Slaughden in 1588. Describes them as the Marigold, the Victor and the Gypsy. Describes how they were originally built as fishing boats and later became war ships for the Armada. Describes a model of the Marigold which used to be at the Three Mariners Inn at Slaughden but was eventually moved to Mr. Basham's shop in the High Street. Remembers looking at it through the side window. Describes how the model was given to the Duke of Kent, by Mr Basham when he came to Aldeburgh to name a new lifeboat and how Ronald Ashford has tried to locate the model and have it returned to Aldeburgh but has been unable to trace it, although he has sent numerous letters. Describes going to Slaughden and taking the floor boards from one of the derelict houses, taking them home and using them for firewood. Also remembers helping pull the window frames out of another of the derelict house. Describes how the Hazard was finally pulled down after the second world war. Describes there being several sheds along there where local men worked on repairing boats, Bill Cable, Jumbo Ward, Ronnie Ashford's father and Jerry Woods. Describes 272 High Street, as having a cellar, which they did not know about. Track 5. Several of the houses along there also had cellars. Describes how they discovered the cellar, people accidentally dropping their coins on the floor, and how his father and uncle Herbert took the floor boards up and found some stairs leading down to a small room under the shop. Describes how his father dug up some red tiles and discovered a tunnel which went under the road to The Black Horse but had caved in half way possibly due to heavy traffic going along the road. Describes how this tunnel was used to smuggle goods in as it was easy access from the beach to the house and then underground to the Black Horse. Describes Mrs. Pettit's laundry, there also being six fishing boats between the laundry and sea wall. Describes how the sea used to come right up to the laundry. Describes the stables behind the laundry and remembers going with Mr.Ling on horse to Leiston and Theberton with great baskets of clean laundry. Remembers how Mrs. Pettit always insisted he sit down properly on horse (or cart possibly) and remembers having chips from Leiston on the way back. Describes the washing lines at the laundry full of clean white sheets and remembers the poles being taken down when the fair came. Describes briefly the trouble with the path and the ' new building' on Fort Green. Describes the High Street, Sears, who also had a cafe, Smiths the bakers and a delicatessen on the side, Fishers, Eades and opposite another bread shop, Jefferies on the corner a greengrocer who had a garden at the top of Church Walk, Miss Farthing, a sweet shop, Wisbeys a grocer, there were two butchers, Ernie and Allan Aldridge. Fisher the boot people on the corner by the little steps. Track 6. Continues to describe High Street, Lloyds Bank, Wards Garage, (here he said that he had been told by Lennie that Wards used to be in Oakley Square before going to the High Street), there was no chemist but Timothy Whites and eventually Bessie Hepburn had chemist where it is now. Describes getting a job as a delivery boy for Fishers, the grocers and having a basket tied to the front of his bike to make the deliveries. Remembers one lady arriving in her car for a box of aspirin and asking for the boy to deliver it to her house. Describes his first bicycle and making it up from scrap retrieved from the local scrap yards, there being quite a few. First bringing home the frame and then searching for the wheels. Describes how local people use to visit the dumps and make use of some of the items. Track 7. Describes there being about six fishing boats between laundry and wall, Herbert Lays, Ernie Adams from the Black Horse, Cadies, Wally Tibbenham, Barry Strowger. Describes how the rest of the boats were by the esplanade at the other end and describes how a lot of fish were caught, approx. 150 bushels per boat on a good day. Describes how sometimes where there was a large swell and the boats tipped slightly the fish fell onto the beach and could be picked up. Describes how he remembers his mother buying raffia bags with two handles which they would fill with sprats they had recovered and then take them to the railway station and send then on to relatives in London the next day. Describes how some fishermen would smoke their fish, sprats and herring by hanging them up in disused toilets in their backyards, lighting a small fire and adding oak to the fire. Describes David Poole smoking eels. Describes threading up the sprats through their gills and hanging them up behind the Black Horse public house. Remembers that there were sometimes cod as well. Describes how the beach crew of the lifeboat were given tickets (brass coins) when they helped launch the lifeboat and could only redeem them for money if they were there to help the lifeboat back. Describes how Mr. Rayner, the cinema manager, heard a loud bang and did not know what it was at first and was told the lifeboat was launching so decided to go and have a look. Describes how Mr Rayner said he was carried along with a huge crowd and wondered where they were going and realised the men were fighting for tickets to launch the lifeboat. Describes the capstan that was on the beach to help bring the lifeboat ashore and the townsfolk used to turn up and help turn it. Describes Stocks fair which came to Aldeburgh and how everything came by trailer and steam engines. Track 8. Describes some of the rides, the dodgems and his favourite the cakewalk. Describes how George Meadows had a caravan near the coastguard cottages on Fort Green. Describes how when the fair came no washing was done because the lines had been taken down. Describes how many people visited the fair and they came to Aldeburgh not in cars but on the train and by bus. Describes the circus which came to Aldeburgh in Joys meadow. Describes how the circus walked into town down the hill by the church, and remembers elephants and horses and how everyone came out to watch. Describes how he got a free ticket to the circus by helping put the tent up. Describes seeing the ' fat lady' and a giant rat (which was probably a coypu). Remembers the wall of death with the riders on their bikes revving up outside. Remembers a man they called Mr. Rhubarb who had an old fashioned caravan with steps up to it. Describes how he used to get the train to Ipswich sometimes and occasionally visit relations at Tilbury and Grays. Describes going to the cinema to watch Tarzan. Track 9. Describes the 1938 flood. Remembers going to the cinema with Eric Ling and Big Eric and people coming in to say there was a flood. Remembers his father coming in and telling him to ' stay in your seat, we shall be back, do not move' Describes father coming back and going outside and realised what had happened, the High Street and Back Street (King Street) was flooded. The film they had seen was Summer in ….... Describes how his mother would punish him and his brother when they did not behave themselves. Describes his time at Aldeburgh primary school as not being a very enjoyable time, he was rather a loner and did not seem to mix very well. Describes how he liked gardening at school, the gardens being on top of the air raid shelters. Describes the worst teacher as being Miss Marsh who would grab hold and pull his tummy, also mentioned that she had a bad smell about her. Describes a time when Miss Marsh, who did not like him very much, took the class out but locked him in the classroom. Describes how his mother found out and complained to Mr. Witham, the much loved headmaster everyone called 'Pop' Witham who was very angry and Miss Marsh got into a lot of trouble. Remembers a few teachers, Jack Poole, Jo Simonds, Mrs.King and Mrs. Cooper. Track 11 Describes learning to write in sand trays when he was a boy. Describes how he was at school when the war broke out. Living at 272. Describes his mother listening to the radio and running outside to say that the "country was at war and for them not to go away". Describes the sinking of the Magdapur and seeing the ship in laying in halves. Describes how it now laying off Sizewell, the sea tides having moved her. Describes how two or three other ships stood by with the lifeboat. Describes the crew, all Alaskan coming ashore, and were covered in oil. There being about 70 Alaskans plus crew on the lifeboat. Describes that there may have been a mine or a magnetic mine that sunk the ship. Describes how the crew were taken to the Jubilee Hall, and then on to the Cottage Hospital in the High Street. Describes how the local were very good to the crew and gave them food. Describes how the Alaskans seemed small. Describes how he believed the Magdapur was the first British ship to be sunk in home waters during the war. Describes the planes,hurricanes and spitfire fighters that flew out of Martlesham. Describes the 'yanks' who were based at Leiston flying Mustang fighter planes. Also describes fortress planes flying out of Parham, and remembers seeing them limp home after raids with pieces missing, gave an example of wings half hanging off. Describes an occasion when they were at home and heard bombers coming over from the South, standing at the front door saying "here they come". Describes how the plane came back round and must have seen Crespigney House standing out like a sore thumb and decided to go for it. Describes how the bombs missed and fell on the Chapel in Hartington Road (the 'Tin Heaven'). Describes there being lots of corrugated iron, mashed board and books everywhere. Track 12. Describes walking Brian (Binger), his younger brother, in his pram up the High Street with his mother and Mrs Strowger to do some shopping and when they were half way across the road, by the Black Horse, they saw three planes coming in off the sea and saw the bombs dropping. Describes how they all rushed home and hid under the stairs. The bombs fell in the fields. Describes when Hill Farm Dairy, (now solicitor's office) was bombed, and he had hidden behind a wall, under a boiler, a silly place really! Describes not hearing the bomb falling but hearing the blast, which actually kills you, and seeing lots of dust stifling the air. Describes climbing over the rubble. No-one was killed. Describes May Fryer hiding the fridge. This was the same day the post office in the High Street was bombed. Describes being evacuated to Warsop, near Worksop. Describes how you were not made to go and some children stayed in Aldeburgh. Describes going by train with the teachers from school, carrying a bag his mother had made him (she being a dressmaker) and a cardboard box with a few of his belongings. Describes how on arriving in Warsop, there was a coach to take them to a hall in the middle of town. Describes how he stayed with a Mr. and Mrs. Clifford who were very nice people. Describes that he moved on to another couples (Boggis) when Mrs. Clifford became pregnant and did not have room for him. Describes how they mixed quite well with the local children who he felt were quite 'hard', their families being miners etc. Describes the school as being very strict and the use of the cane was quite usual. Mentions if you took your pen from one class to another without the nib you were for it. Remembers the school as being called Burns Lane School. Describes how he was walking home one day and there was a young lad shovelling a mound of coal that had been left by the front gate, the young lad was Pixie Ward (Brian Ward of Aldeburgh). Track 13 . Describes how Pixie had been given the job to shovel the coal in the coal shed. Describes the second family he stayed with as being older but very nice. Describes how he really did not like being an evacuee but had to stick at it. Mentions the attempted invasion of the east coast but did not know much about it, except that there were a lot of police about, and the troops had to report in as did the home guard. Describes how Ron Ashford had kept records and was most probably on the right track and his (Ron Ashford's) account is probably quite accurate, but no-one will know the truth until the records are released. Describes Aldeburgh during the war, the troops staying in the big houses if they were empty, at the Brudenell and down at Gun Lodge. Describes the naval gun that was on the sea wall, having an 18" recoil and being pointed out to see. Describes how they were not allowed on to the beach, but the fishermen were allowed out. Describes how he was called up and joined the army but saw no action as the war was coming to an end. Describes how he joined the 602 Company in Northern Ireland, and was very lucky as the previous detachment had been called to go to Europe but his detachment stayed as the war was ending. Track 14 Describes how he was in the Royal Army Service Corp as a driver which he very much liked as he had his own wagon and tools and knew what there was to to the next day, one of the jobs being to pick up stores and take them to the numerous prisoner of war camps in Northern Ireland. Describes how you had to be careful around the pow's, there being lots of notices saying 'Please drivers do not leave your vehicles'. Describes how when he was reading a newspaper and pow's came over and one of them would translate the headlines to the others. Describes how the pow's would try and take petrol from the vehicles to fill their lighters up. Describes getting his call up papers when he was 17 ½ and reporting to the hut in Kings Road, Leiston, where he signed on. Describes how he would have liked to join the merchant service and travel the world but was put in the army. Describes training for 6 weeks at Norwich, then going to Derbyshire where he learned to drive and then going to N. Ireland. Describes how one night when he was stationed at Bangor Castle they heard a lot of commotion and noise coming up from town, and on making enquiries realised that the war had come to an end and everyone was celebrating. Describes how he came home on leave and had to report back to Cardiff and then went on to France, Switzerland and Italy and finally was demobbed taking a Class B Release. Track 15. Describes how he came home in his demob suit, he was about 20. Describes how he met his wife while on leave, she was working as with many other ladies at the brick works. Reades used to farm the fields and the ladies used to work in the fields. Remembers seeing this young girl sewing sacks,mending holes in potato sacks and asked her out to the cinema at Leiston. Describes how the young girl's mother wanted to know why she was wearing 'all that paraphanalia and was told that she had a date with a soldier. Describes how the mother was not too keen even though the soldiers was a local boy. Describes how he courted her and wrote to her regularly. Describes the day he came home after being demobbed and kissing his young girlfriend. Describes how they got married and had four children, three boys and a girl. Describes the joy of his fourth child being girl and how happy his father was as he had always wanted a grandaughter. Track 16. Describes how he gave up smoking one day realising that it wasn't doing him any good, throwing the cigarette into the fire and never having another one. Describes how his wife did not give up smoking and sadly developed emphysema and eventually died. Thought that smoking was a 'wicked thing'. Describes how he had a fair life,and had enjoyed his experiences in the army. Describes how he used to like Aldeburgh but does not any more. The High Street being like a builders yards. Describes how Aldeburgh has lost its character, and the people have changed, ' not so friendly. Describes how he now has grandchildren and great grandchildren and has a nice life. Describes how his parents pension was only 10/- and how he felt he has benefited from this labour government. Track 17 Describes his life now, and is satisfied. Describes living above the shop when he was a boy and making the family laugh by playing the tune "give yourself a pat on the back" and he used to bury his head in the pillow on the back of the sofa, didn't understand why that made everyone laugh. Describes one day when Herbert Lay came upstairs and put a very polished box on the table and turned the knob and music came out. The first tune he remembers is ' We are the Ovaltinies happy boys and girls' from Radio Luxemburg. 9 |