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I am Bill Walker and would like to contribute to your store of memories. I was referred to your page only a short while ago and could not agree more with your hope that silver surfers will send in their memories.
As I told you in my first e-mail message I am from County Durham and was born in the colliery village of Murton on September 9th 1921. My present address is 18 The Avenue, Murton and, wait for it!!! I was born in No 11 of the same street of 20 terraced houses.
This was the home of my grandparents William and Hannah Shield. Grandad was a ForeOverman at the pit and the house was just at the other side of the road from the pit. His sons also worked there as did my paternal grandfather, Jim Walker, a blacksmith, and his sons.
You can see I was born into working mining families. Apart from nearly five years in the R.A.F. I worked in the colliery office, starting as Junior Clerk in 1937 doing general clerical work. I went on to work as a wages clerk then into cashier's department until 1942 when I was conscripted into the Air Force.
On demob I returned to the same office and restarted as Manager's Confidential Clerk and ended as Administration Officer. Retired at 58 years of age February 1980.
The pit by the way, closed in November 1991 and site was cleared by '93. From my bedroom window I now look out over field and landscaped area where the pit buildings once stood. In the distance is the sea at Seaham Harbour.
Apart from a set-back in health some two years ago I am enjoying retirement and have written quite a bit relating to miners and their families.
So.....where do I begin in The Memory Stakes? I have a series of poems which I have read to local groups, e.g. Womens Institute, social gatherings. These are in local dialect and, in my mind not easy to read, as I try to put the words over as they would have been spoken in the past.
Here is the first of my collection of 'The Life and Times of Geordie'...the story of a coal miner from his 'Orrly Days' (Early Days) to the time he becomes one of the dear departed.
ORRLY DAYS
AAH REMEMBER THINGS FROM ME VORRY ORRLY DAYS
EVEN TIMES AFORE AAH WAZ FIVE
AAH CAN PICTURE ME MAA AN' ME DAA
'N WHEN AAH THINK HOW THE' HED TER CONNIVE
BY GOX AYE ! THEM TIMES WAZ HAARD
WHEN ME DAA WORRKED DOWN THE PIT
EVEN NOW AAH CAN HEAR 'IM SAY
'AAH'VE AN AAWFUL KYAVAL THIS QUAARTER LASS
THE GANNIN'S REALLY BAD
AAH'S FLOGGIN' MESEL FOR VORRY LITTLE PAY.'
HE'D DOFF HIS CLAES BY THE KITCHEN DOOR
'N STRIPPED TIV HIS HOGGERS CRALL IN
T'KNEEL IN FRONT O'THE BIG COAL FIRE
TER WASH IN A BATH MADE O'TIN.
ME MAA HED TER HEV THE HOT WATTER RIDDY
'N SHE HELPED BY SCRUBBIN' HIS BACK
THEN, WHEN HE'D WESHED DUST 'N GRIME FROM HIS BODY
SHE'D EMPTY THE BATH I' THE GUTTER IN THE STREET OUT BACK.
SHE'D NEE NEED TER ASK IF HE WORR HUNGRY
FOR STRITE TER THE TIABBLE HE'D GAN
TER ENJOY CLOUTY PUDDIN' OR GIT BIG PASTY...
ME MAA KNEW HOW TER LUKK EFTER HORR MAN.
MESEL? AAH WENT TER THE VILLAGE SKEUL
UNTIL AAH LEFT WHEN AAH WAZ FOWERTEEN.
COME FOWER O'CLOCK ON THE FRIDAA..SKEUL FINISHED
'N STRITE WAY CHANGED ME LIFE SCENE.
ME DAA TUKK UZ DOWN TER THE OFFISS,
FORE WE WENT HE TELT UZ,'TILL HE AXES YER OUT JUST HADD YER GOBB.'
HE DOFFED HIS CAP TER THE COLLIERY MANAGER
AND BEGGED FORR'M TER GI' UZ A JOB.
THE BOSS LUKKED ARRUZ OWER TOP O'HIS GLASSES
CUDD SEE FERISEL AAH WAZ STRAPPIN'
AND A YOUNG'UN STILL PUTTIN' ON BEEF,
HE GI' A NOD TIV HIS CLAERK
'START HIM ON MONDAY' HE SEZ,
'N ME DAA GI' A SIGH O' RELIEF.
WELL AAHLL NOT GAN INTER THE DETAILS
BUT STRITE WAY AAH WENT UNDERGROUND
AND WHAT A HELL ME DAA HAD WORRKED IN
TER ME REGRET AAH VORRY SEUN FOUND.
Bill Walker, 1991
(Known locally as 'The Bard of Murton' after being dubbed this by a
reporter who interviewed him on the day of the last shift worked at Murton Colliery)
GLOSSARY>
Kyavil Cavil: A word used by pitmen to describe
the system whereby they drew lots to decide
their workplace.
Gannin's bad The conditions in workplace were bad.
Hoggers Short pants.
Tiabble Table.
Skeul School.
Offiss Colliery office building near pit.
Seun Soon.
Syam Same.
Datal Odd jobbing.
Puttin Putting - pushing tub of coal/aided by pit pony
from the coal face to the flat or station whence
it would be taken out-bye(on way to surface)
by power.
Hewin' Hewing coal at the face. In those days by hand
pick.
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