Monday, 27 May 2013

The Toll Gate, Halfpenny Bridge, Stonehouse


A while ago, I was kindly given a series of books called 'Days in Devonport' written by Gerald W. Barker in 1984. Inside one of them is a story told by Marjorie Claxton of an experience crossing Halfpenny Bridge many years ago in 1913. It's a lovely story and I thought that I would reproduce it here so more people can read it:

I remember Devonport, Stonehouse and Plymouth when they were three separate boroughs each thriving independently in their own particular way.
It was a pleasant walk from Devonport to Plymouth via Stonehouse. Transport was mainly by trams, which ran from the terminus in Fore Street, Devonport, down Chapel Street, stopping at Cumberland Gardens to pick up passengers, then on along past the Raglan Barracks on the left and Mt Wise on the right then down over the hill past the Brickfields, crossing Kings Road and on over the Stonehouse Bridge, through the toll gate commonly known as the Halfpenny Gate. Here, one was in Stonehouse where the trams stopped in Edgcumbe Street to pick up folk. The route continued through Union Street passing several theatres and cinemas such as the Grand, the Palace, the Savoy and the Gaiety and on to Derry's Clock, the Plymouth terminus. I remember the fascination of watching the conductor changing the trolley arm over onto the other overhead wire for the return journey. If the conductor happened to be short, this task would be tricky, as the arm was heavy and would swing and spark until it eventually clicked on the wire.




Underneath the Halfpenny Gate bridge was Stonehouse Creek, and at high tide, the stream reached as far as the Military Hospital. Boys from High Street had fine fun challenging one another to ride the logs. These huge logs, chained together, belonged to Fox Elliot the timber merchants and were towed up the creek by boat and left there to season. On the other side of the bridge, underneath it, were several boathouses approached from the Richmond Walk side of Kings Road. My uncle and aunt had a motor boat and used to take me with them on trips to Barn Pool, Cawsand and sometimes to picnic on the Breakwater. I learned to row a boat on Stonehouse Creek, mainly because my boy cousins used to tease me and I wanted to do as well as they.
I remember vividly the day I went to visit my aunt and uncle in Stonehouse. Being a lovely summer day, I felt quite important at being allowed to go alone at eight years of age. My home was at the Mt Wise end of George Street, Devonport, so I walked up through the beautiful Mt Wise Avenue, stopping for a few minutes to watch the naval officers playing cricket, then turned right past the ramparts and the New Cut leading to Richmond Walk, then down over the hill across Kings Road and to the toll gate. On production of a halfpenny, I was allowed through the turnstiles having been issued with a return ticket.
It so happened that my folks were going to visit friends so after about an hour, having had some lemonade and biscuits, I made my way back up over the bridge to the toll gate. Putting my hand in my pocket for my ticket, I was horrified to find that I'd lost it, and as the lady in charge was not the same one that I saw before, she would not let me go through. Strangely enough, the only other people around seemed to pass by in the tram or on bikes or horses and carts, so I was forced to turn back. However, I had an idea and went back, down by the brewery to the slip, hoping that I might see someone in the boathouses, or even find a boat there in which case I could row across, but alas, no people about and no boat. Then I knew the only way I could get home was a long way around, so I went along High Street, along by the Naval Hospital wall, which seemed endless, and turned up into Eldad Hill, to make my own way to Millbridge. Then the bottom simply dropped out of my world, for there at the bottom of the hill facing me was another toll gate. This was just too much. I was panic stricken whereon the floodgates burst and I remember saying, 'Whatever shall I do?' between my sobs. Then a kindly voice said, 'What's the matter? Why are you crying like this?'. Looking up, I had a blurred vision of a young soldier, who dried my tears as I had lost my handkerchief. He had a lovely face, so I blurted out my tale of woe, then he caught hold of my hand, escorted me through the gate and after asking where I lived and if I knew my way home, he gave me a penny and went on his way. I thanked him and ran through Fellows Place, up over Stoke Church Hill and past the Military Hospital. Then I came to a narrow road running between the Albion football ground and the Devonport South Western Station yard and the railway. There had recently been talk of a murder there, so being not only tired, but terrified, I took to my heels as if the very devil himself was after me. Out through the Rectory across Kings Road, on up over the Brickfields, down through Mt Wise Avenue and eventually home.
More tears were shed then from sheer exhaustion and relief being safely back with my mother. I remember the look of sheer amazement on her face, as she held me close while I poured out my story. Softly, she told me that she hoped that I had learned to be more careful as I had lost my handkerchief as well as my ticket. When I gave her the penny, she handed it back to me telling me to keep it as it was dated 1905, the year I was born.
Several years later, I went to join a friendly society, and remember the surprise I had when the gentleman who opened the door, took my name and address, then said, 'Aren't you the young lady who lost her toll gate ticket?'.
Then I remembered his face and after the meeting, he escorted me home, met my mother, and became a close friend of the family. His young friend later became my dear husband for thirty years, during which time my children always knew my soldier friend as uncle. Both soldier and husband have passed on but I remember a lifetime of happiness and friendship brought about by the loss of a halfpenny toll gate ticket. By the way, I still have that 1905 penny!

Thursday, 4 April 2013

Tommy the Elephant



In May 1871, Plymouth was visited by the then Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Alfred Ernest Albert. He had been on a world cruise and arrived in Plymouth Sound on the 19th May of that year. With him he brought a baby elephant which he named Tommy.
The crew of the ship marched down Fore Street in Devonport with Tommy at their head and this is probably the only photo of him that still remains. No-one knows what became of Tommy but perhaps he ended up in one of England's many zoos.
The Prince went on to become Vice-Admiral, Channel Squadron, Commander-in-Chief, Devonport in 1890 and later became Admiral of the Fleet.

Tuesday, 2 April 2013

Bronze Age finds at Warleigh



I regularly take my dog for a walk at Warleigh Woods, near to Tamerton Foliot village, and for several months, there have been lorries travelling back and forth as a solar farm is created nearby.
Apparently the work has now stopped because finds from the Bronze Age have been discovered during all the digging work.
Tamerton Foliot and the Warleigh Estate are steeped in history and also have connections with the Romans.
Many years ago, local historian, Marshall Ware, told me that his interest in history began when he was given a greenstone neolithic axe in 1910 by Mr H Montagu-Evans. Similar axes were found in the 1960s near to the Brown and Sharpe factory site. Marshall's axe was excavated in 1898 by a team of soldiers, headed by a Captain Mullens, by Ernesettle Woods, which pointed to it being one of the earliest settlements in the area.
It will be interesting to discover exactly what has been found at Warleigh and there must be many more relics and much more history that lays yet undiscovered.

Tuesday, 19 February 2013

Dartmoor Through the Year



Amberley have just released my latest book, 'Dartmoor Through the Year' which features full-colour photos of Dartmoor throughout the seasons.
It's available from all good book shops and also from Amazon here:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dartmoor-Through-Year-Derek-Tait/dp/1848683553/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1361307139&sr=1-1

Sunday, 18 November 2012

Bill Haley



The King of Rock 'n' Roll, Elvis Presley, never visited Plymouth (or England) but the father of Rock 'n' Roll, Bill Haley, did.
On 22nd February 1957, Bill Haley and his Comets appeared for one night only at the Odeon in Frankfort Street. Tickets for the circle were 8/6 and also on the bill were the Vic Lewis Orchestra together with comedians Malcolm Vaughan and Kenneth Earle. Also featured was Desmond Lane with his tin whistle!
Bill played to an audience of 3,000 who, according to a report in the Herald, 'clapped and stamped their feet to the music'. The report said that the show was definately not for 'squares' and included the 'monotonous, pounding rhythm of electric guitars, string bass, and drums'. The show ended with the three songs 'Shake Rattle 'n' Roll', 'See You Later Alligator' and 'Rock Around The Clock'.
Hundreds of fans waited outside the venue hoping to get a glimpse of Bill but both he and the Comets left by a side door after the concert and were taken to their next venue at Southampton.  The tour was promoted by Lew and Leslie Grade and other venues included: February 1957: 6th  The Dominion in London for 4 nights, 10th The Gaumont at Coventry,
11th The Odeon at Nottingham, 12th The Odeon at Birmingham, 13th The Odeon at Manchester, 14th The Odeon at Leeds, 15th The Odeon at Sunderland, 16th The Odeon at Newcastle, 17th The Gaumont at Bradford, 18th The Odeon at Glasgow for 2 nights, 20th The Odeon at Liverpool, 21st The Capitol at Cardiff, 22nd The Odeon at Plymouth, 23rd The Gaumont at Southampton and on the 24th The Gaumont State at Kilburn for 3 nights.
March 1957:
1st The Hippodrome at Belfast for 2 nights, 3rd The Regal at Edmonton, 4th The Davis at Croydon for 2 nights, 6th The Carlton in Norwich, 7th The Gaumont at Doncaster, 8th The Gaumont at Wolverhampton, 9th The Gaumont at Cheltenham and on the 10th back to The Dominion in London.
The Comets included Johnny Grande on accordion, Billy Williamson on steel guitar, Ralph Jones on drums, Rudy Pompilli on saxophone, Al Rex on bass and Franny Beecher on electric guitar. Other songs included in their set were Razzle Dazzle, Rock-a-Beating Boogie, Mambo Rock, The Saints Rock and Roll, Rocking Through The Rye, Rip It Up, Rudy's Rock, Don't Knock The Rock, Live It Up, Crazy Man Crazy and Hook Line And Sinker.

Friday, 14 September 2012

Nazereth House at Devil's Point



Many people who regularly walk at Devil's Point will have noticed the building work that has been taking place at Nazareth House.
Before Nazareth House was built in the 1970s, the site used to house the Earl of Mount Edgcumbe's Winter Villa. The photo on the left shows the grand old building that once stood there.

The Winter Villa was built at Stonehouse in 1855 and was seen as a more comfortable and suitable dwelling for Ernest Augustus, 3rd Earl of Mount Edgcumbe (1797-1861), who was, at the time, in poor health. The house had fifty rooms but was little used after Ernest's death in 1861. By 1900, with the house no longer being used by the Edgcumbe family, it was leased to a prominent local family. In 1927, the premises were sold to the Sisters of Nazereth who were a Roman Catholic Order. The building was converted into a school and orphanage for young girls and opened in 1932 with a new name, Nazareth House. Orphans from Saint Teresa's Orphanage at Gasking Street, Plymouth were soon transferred to the the new building.
In the Second World War, the girls were evacuated to Elfordleigh and a regiment of Royal Marines were billeted there. The building was partly destroyed during heavy bombing and the cleared site was used for a chapel. After the war, the nuns and girls returned and were housed in what remained of the building. However, during the 1970s, because of maintenance bills, what was left of the Winter Villa was removed and a purpose-built orphanage was constructed in its place. Beside the small orphanage, there was also an old folks home. Recent reconstruction and rebuilding has taken place after the building was found to contain asbestos.



The second photo shows residents of Stonehouse holding a garden fete in the Winter Villa in 1912.
The third photo shows the villa as seen from Plymouth Sound.

Monday, 27 August 2012

Neil Armstrong



When I was 7 years old, back in 1969, Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the moon. I remember, at the time, that everyone was amazed by this. Every boy had a collection of Airfix models that either made the Apollo rocket, the Lunar Module or an astronaut. I had an astronaut hanging from my ceiling for years! Blue Peter showed you how to build a rocket out of a Squeezee bottle, together with other parts, and I had one balancing on my window ledge for months. Heinz beans gave away some fantastic posters of the space project that we all had pinned to our walls and Findus gave away free flexi-discs of the voices of the astonauts talking to mission control during the moon landing. For a while, everyone was moon-mad. I remember our teacher at Knowle Primary, in West Park, letting some of the kids in the class watch the moon walks on the tv that was kept by the assembly hall. Everyone had black and white televisions in those days and we all sat mesmerised as we watched the flickering images broadcast live back from the moon. After it was finished, we had to go back to class and tell the other kids, who hadn't been allowed to watch, what it was all like. We were all fascinated by space travel and imagined that people would soon be living on the moon and then Mars. Of course, none of it ever happened and Neil Armstrong's trip seemed to be the peak of NASA's achievement. It seems odd now but when the final man walked on the moon in 1972, just three years later, people had lost interest and were turning off their tellies in their droves. The same thing happened with the Space Shuttle program. It got in the end that, unless one of them crashed, their missions weren't even reported on the news. It was all very incredible but, people being what they are, soon get fed up with it all.
When Neil Armstrong died a couple of days ago, a part of my childhood went  with him. Days of anticipation watching the flight to the moon, the live broadcasts of the moon walks and the pomp and ceremony when the astronauts arrived back on Earth. It was all fascinating stuff especially for a small boy.
I read somewhere that there's more technology in a modern washing machine than there was in the lunar module (although I find it hard to believe!).
They were great days and there's nothing like it nowadays. The 1960s and 1970s were great times, full of adventure, when anything seemed possible.
No matter where space technology takes us, Neil Armstrong will always be remembered for being the first man on the moon and will always remain an icon of the 20th century.