| In memory of Andy Dennis
3rd January 1948 to 30th March 2007 |
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| My name is Andy Dennis. For the first 33 years of my life, I lived at Newbottle. I was born in Gawswell Terrace (only lived there 3 weeks!) The house I lived in faced west, and gave a great view of the "fever hospital" as it was known. The compound still exists, but I believe that houses now occupy the site, and a haulage business (?). I haven't been for several years, so I'm a little uncertain.
In about 1950, a council housing estate was built at Success facing the colliery houses. The council houses were called Clover Avenue, Blossom Grove and Aster Terrace. I forget the name of the colliery houses, probably "Colliery Row", such was the extent of the imagination of the builders. My cousin lived in Clover Avenue, and I visited him regularly to play. Behind the colliery houses was a large field with goalposts, so it was a magnet for us. Between Success and Newbottle was "the washer" where coal was washed before being transported by train to its destination. (Did you know that coal had to be washed?). The coal was from the collieries at Herrington's "Dolly" pit and "New" pit as well as Houghton pit. There was a colliery at Success in the past, but to my eternal shame, I never knew its location. I would guess that it was located between the council houses and the washer, because there were some ventilation shafts there. It makes me laugh now, but the path from Newbottle to Success over the fields was tarmac, and known locally as "the black trod". At the washer a metal bridge carried the footpath over the railway line. As the bridge made a noise as you walked over it, it became known affectionately as "the Clang". People these days would think you were speaking a foreign language if you said you were going "down the black trod and ower the Clang!" When the collieries closed, the washer became redundant, and was demolished along with the colliery houses at Success. A large sixth form college now occupies their site, along with some new housing estates. In fact I put my name down for a house there, before a better one became available here at Roker. The fields between Newbottle and Success have also been swallowed up by housing. I would like to think that "the black trod" still exists, but I doubt it. Thinking about life in the 50's has me quite nostalgic, like Dennis Potter's "Blue Remembered Hills". Life was so much more innocent then, before the yuppie invasion. |
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| Do you recognize the "Sun Inn"? (I don�t know who took the photo.) It's a lot bigger than when you left Newbottle. I walked past it four times per day from the age of 4 to 11. I feel quite nostalgic. The house that can be seen in the gap between the Sun and the white-ish converted farmhouse is the end house in the street where I lived, St. Matthew's Terrace. The original village of Newbottle is pretty, to me anyway, and it is improving thanks to new building within the village centre, but it is now surrounded by a massive housing estate covering the fields where I played as a kid. When they were fields they were owned by the Earl of Durham who lived in a stately villa in Tuscany. No doubt he sold them to developers to keep him in even grander style. He died the other day. The local sycophantic press still called him Lord Lambton (he insisted on it!) even though he gave up the title 40 years ago to be an M.P. Are you able to pick out which one is me on my Newbottle Infant School photo? I was in Miss Lowes' first year class of 1952/3. That is me in the back row and wearing the bow tie. |
| The Sun Inn at Newbottle |
| Newbottle Infant School. Miss Lowes� first year class of 1952/3. |
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| Back row John Bestford, ?, David Beeston, Andrew Dennis, Les Richardson, Billy Nicholson, ?, John Sweeting, ?, Peter Oxenham
Middle row ?, Billy Tate, Gregory Vaulks, Maureen Wilson, Ruth Oxenham, Kathleen Lynn, ? Frank Dixon, Kenny Turton. Front row ?, ?, ?, Christina Cook, Marian Marshall, Evelyn Wilson, ?, ?, Edwina Hicks, Jeanette Cutmore Only those highlighted went to Washington Grammar and were in the same intake as us. You will remember that Jeanette Cutmore was in our class. 13 March 2004 Thanks a bunch!!!!!!! I hate these photos of "Old XXXXXX", because they are meant to be historical documents, and I can remember several very well. Gaumont Cinema, Sunderland This was at the crossroads of Fawcett Street and High Street West. Although not the most palatial in Sunderland (the Regal was), it was the only one in Sunderland that had a restaurant. My Auntie Mary would often take me and my cousin to see a film, and we would have "high tea" afterwards. Usually egg and chips. Sunderland District Omnibuses Otherwise known as SDO or "blue buses". Their depot was only a couple of hundred yards from my house. Coming from Washington, it was at the bottom of the hill up to Newbottle. Tram at Seaburn Terminus I can just remember being taken to the seaside and getting a tram from the town centre to Seaburn. Washington F Pit-heap We from the Grammar school will never forget it! When an exhibition was held in our school in 1966 they asked for suggestions. I suggested that it be kept as a monument to our industrial past. Instead, it was used as a base for many of the new roads. Thanks for making me feel old! I've got another two photos for you. |
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| I am on the far left and my older brother Bill is centre front |
| I'm on the left with a book on my knee, aged about 10. At the front is our Bill aged about 16 and on the right is my cousin who lives in Freemantle, WA.
This second photo was taken round about the time I started the Washington Grammar School. |
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| Me when I was about eleven |
| Lots of people remember my calligraphy style of handwriting. My main memories of WGS are Mrs Steel's wonderful ginger puddings, all the lovely girls I failed miserably with, being ordered by The Boss to get my hair cut when by today's standards it was scarcely longer than a skinhead, and the Beatles. Whenever anyone asks me what Bryan Ferry was like, I tell them the truth. In the five years common to the two of us, I cannot recall speaking to him once! Bryan Ferry played the part of Malvolio in Twelfth Night, that would have been about Jan/Feb 1963. Although the plays were usually performed for the school, I really cannot remember seeing Twelfth Night. I can remember Macbeth, and Iolanthe in our first form, but no others. I left school in 1966, having failed to get the necessary grades for University entrance, so I entered the Civil Service as a trainee accountant in the District Audit Service, on the E.O. grade. The late sixties and seventies were very uneventful as I (very) slowly climbed the ladder. In 1979 and 1980 I visited the south west USA. Here I am at the Grand Canyon. I can remember looking over the edge. It was a long way down! |
| Me at the Grand Canyon |
| In 1981, I decided that spending money on luxuries wasn't all that wise, so I bought a house in Washington. In 1982, my small branch of the Civil Service was privatised by Thatcher. As the new body (the Audit Commission) needed experienced staff to get it going, I was "bribed" by a 57% pay rise to join them. Having completed the Great North Run in 1982, I was training for the following years event in 1983 when I started experiencing some strange symptoms, which were diagnosed in 1984 as MS. Apparently, I'd experienced the first symptom, without anyone recognizing it in 1970. At first, the symptoms were not very debilitating, I decided to see as much of the world as I could, while I still could. You say I look businesslike on my1983 passport photo. I can remember the day and place I had that photo taken. It was the day I learned that I had just got a very big promotion at work (big as in 57% pay rise!) Having bought my house two years previously, I hadn't been abroad for three years. I decided that I could recommence my travels. I went out at lunchtime and got a passport photo taken at Woolworth's in Durham Market Place. That explains the shirt and tie! I visited India, France, and Italy three times (being totally captivated) before it became too difficult in 1989. I was finally forced to take long term sick leave in 1990 and formally retired in 1991. |
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| Me in Jaipur. Note the turban! |
| Me at the Colloseum in Rome |
| Me on a group tour to the Taj Mahal. I'm in the back row, fifth from the left. |
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| Over the past 25 years, I've heard countless numbers of "cures" for MS. All have been proved to be incorrect. Some have proved to be fraudulent, with one Irish "doctor" now being sought by police abroad. Do you remember the great polio scare of the 1950's when people died, or spent years in an "iron lung"? With the advent of the Salk vaccine in 1960, polio was eradicated in the Westem world. But people who were confined to wheelchairs in the 50's are still in wheelchairs today. Polio can be prevented, but it has not been cured. In the same way, I'm sure that one day a prevention for MS will be found for people showing the very first signs by preventing the immune system from attacking the central nervous system, but equally I'm sure that a cure for people like me will never happen. For that to happen, parts of the central nervous system which have already been destroyed would have to be regrown. A bit like finding a way to grow a replacement for an amputated limb! 14 Nov 2006 There's a lot of activity in the stem cell debate. One guy from Co.Durham went to a clinic in Holland and paid �13,000 raised by friends. He's in the papers claiming a miracle change in his condition -no walking stick, going to the football match unaided. The same week of his treatment, the clinic was closed by the Dutch health authorities after another patient suffered a massive reaction. I'm still going to give it a while. However, it does seem that stem cells are the way forward. It's a shame for Americans that George Dubbya Bush is opposed to their use. Perhaps the recent mid-term election results will make him modify his extreme views. By chance my retirement coincided with the elevation of Durham County Cricket Club to first class status. When their new ground was opened in 1995, quite close to my home, I was there every day for five years. For a long period, Mike Candlish was the Cricket Club's Chief Executive. However an opportunity came for me to move when some specially designed bungalows were built at Roker, near the Stadium of Light, and I moved in in December 2000. I'm also a season ticket holder at Sunderland. (Just how much suffering can one man take?). This is an aerial photo of the area in Sunderland where I live now. |
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| An aerial photo of Sunderland where I live now |
| On the bottom right margin you can see a white-ish tower block. That is the block beside my place, to its immediate left with the red roof. Below the tower is an L-shaped building. That is Chillingham House, where I lived when mine was being built. At the bottom beside the river with two chimneys is the Glass Centre. To its left is St. Peter's campus of the University. Further downriver the big white building is the Stadium of Light where Sunderland play. You can see how close I live to it. The big white mass in the distance is the Nissan plant at Washington. Unfortunately it isn't possible to make out Washington. If you can make out the bridge in Sunderland, just at the left end is a blue-ish roof. Beside that is the new multiplex cinema which opens next month. It should be great for me, as long as they haven't put the wheelchair spaces in the front row! This is a view of the back entrance to my unit. I moved here in 2000 when the complex was newly built. |
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| The back entrance to my unit |
| The front of the unit overlooks a nice lawned area. Here is yours truly with my Mam, brother Bill and sister Pam. The room behind us is my very large bedroom where I not only sleep but also do my computing. |
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| My mam, our Bill, my sister Pam and me at the front. |
| Unfortunately my Dad died some years ago but here is a photo of the two of us having Xmas Dinner in 1987. We enjoyed tucking in! Hmmm � is that me sporting a beard? |
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| Me and my dad having Christmas Dinner in 1987 |
| I'm busy trying to look up my ancestry. On my Mam's side I can trace her mother's side back to 1775. All the men were called Robert Green, all lived in Newbottle and all were miners. So in 230 years they amounted to bugger all and never went anywhere. I've got her father's line back to 1850 in Lambton. I'm having little success with the Dennis line, getting no further than my grandad's father. I guess the Dennises weren't big on filling in forms.
Below is a photo of my grandfather, Moses Mills, seen here with yours truly. He is retired in the photo and was a greengrocer, as you suggest. He was a saint! My Mam adored him till she died. We scattered her ashes on his (and wife's) grave. By the way, our Bill thinks that it's hilarious that one of the William Millses was described as an imbecile. Funnily enough, the next census described him as an oil merchant , which is how my Mam described him. I'm really fascinated by all this, but a little disappointed that no-one amounted to very much, or was hanged. It makes me realise how fortunate my generation of the family has been. I think we all owe a huge debt to Moses Mills, who broke free from the labouring of his family, and sent my mam to grammar school till she was 18. |
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| This is my grandfather, Moses Mills, seen here with yours truly. |
| I remembered today that my other grandad, William Dennis, Charles' son, always repaired his own and his family's shoes. He'd obviously been taught by his father Charles the cordwainer (old name for cobbler), although he wasn't a cobbler himself. In fact in the house where I lived in Newbottle, we had two of his cobbler's lasts, but nobody knew how to use them.
My sister gave me a fascinating document, my grandfather's indentures when he was apprenticed to Jobling's glassworks in Sunderland. It specifies the behaviour of an apprentice � no frequenting taverns, playing houses, no gambling, no marriage! A woman contacted me a couple of days ago, because she'd learned through genesreunited that I'd included a Margaret Green from Newbottle (my maternal grandmother) in my family tree, and she believed that her great grandmother was called Green and lived in Newbottle. I found out that they were sisters, and now I'm helping her! She didn't know of any people before about 1880, and that's the line I've(or should I say you) been most successful with, possibly back to 1719. The funny thing is that her father's family lived just round the corner from me, but I can't remember them, even though I can still name most of the people in their street, including the family that lived in their house before them! I'm finally getting out and about in my new car which I got a couple of weeks ago. I'm starting to visit local places which I haven't seen for years, like Durham City and Hartlepool. The changes are unbelievable. Durham has changed more in the last 20 years than in the previous 800! Fortunately nearly all are in keeping with the character of the city. Seahouses is high on the list to visit, as is Wensleydale, which we're very fond of. We went to the cricket at Chester le Street last Friday and it pee'd down! This arvo (Sunday) we had a ride up Weardale to Wolsingham. As we were coming back to the car I took a quick snap. I took it with the tailgate up, and ramp down so that you can see how I enter. Note the blackened windows so that passers-by think I must be a celebrity. Although the car looks big, it's not a lot bigger than a normal car, and can be parked OK in a normal space. In a normal 7 seater, the seat arrangement is 2-3-2. In mine, the back two seats and the middle of the three have been removed so that I can be pushed straight into the second row. |
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| My new car. I had it modified to accommodate my wheelchair. |
| This arvo, we had a ride through to Washington to see how much the old place had changed over the years. In one respect it hadn't changed one jot, except that the windows may have been cleaned. We also had a wander up to the old alma mater. The sun was not in the best position for taking a picture. |
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| Our old music room at the Grammar School |
| I suppose that you knew that the old 1908 block was demolished a couple of years ago. What surprised me was that they have cleaned the 1932 block and removed the old patina. It doesn't look right, being a sort of beige when it should be reddish-brown. Can you remember music lessons in that room in the photo? A sign of the times was the sign inside the school stating "Scholars' car park"! Mather made the couple of people who had cars (Gary Clark & Pat Masters, can't think of anyone else) park in the back of Municipal Terrace.
I was thinking of you this arvo as I was on my computer. I looked to my left and saw this sight. I think my patio furniture will come in really handy � in about seven months! This photo was taken about 2 p.m. (9th Nov 2005) and by 3.30 it was just about dark. |
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| My very wet patio |
| We've just got back from Seahouses. As today was fairly mild, we decided to take a chance. When we got there it was f-f-f-freezing. We went into Lewis' fish and chip restaurant. We were the only people in for an hour. When we left, there was still no-one in, nor was there anyone there when we walked up and down the street, or when we eventually left for home. I don't think our �11.00 will have covered much of their gas, electricity, wages, fish, potatoes etc. They're building a block of luxury flats with balconies with sea views at the bottom of the street.
We continued on to Bamburgh and came home on the coast road through Craster, Warkworth, Alnmouth, Amble and Druridge. We got home just before sunset (today's the shortest day). 28 Dec 2005 This is what I woke up to an hour ago. It had actually stopped by the time I took the photo, but there's going to be intermittent blizzards throughout the day. |
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| Snow on my patio |
| Wednesday 28 June 2006. It's a beautiful day, with hardly a cloud in the sky. Just look at the hordes on Seaburn beach! Admittedly, it was a school day, but that never stopped Sunderland schoolkids from "playing the nick". |
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| A deserted seafront at Seaburn |
| I had a very quiet Xmas 2006, having lunch at my favourite Sunday restaurant. I got a great pressie from Bill. |
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| It is about 6'' square. It's a piece made in Sunderland between 1813 and 1819, which we can tell because the mark on the base "DIXON & CO." was only used between these two dates. It was made at the Garrison pottery which was directly across the river from the Glass Centre here. |
| My Xmas pressie from our Bill |
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| The white pub at the top is on High Street East. From that pub a steep road goes down behind the back of the Quay, and to this day the road is called "Pottery Bank". Before the Quay was built in the thirties there were many small privately owned quays, and the pottery would have been very close to export its products. I think it romantic that the piece was made there and nearly 200 years later it's on my coffee table. My cleaners have been told that if they damage it, the consequences will be too dire to contemplate! I'm thinking of rearranging my furniture and buying a display cabinet.
Watch this space! Andy |
| The Quay Pottery Bank is a steep road which goes down the back of the Quay. |
| Please consider emailing me with your memories of Andy. I will include them at the end of this memorial web page. |
How quickly Time slips away This memorial web page was created by Audrey Fletcher (nee Hall) ... for Andy |
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| 16th May 2007 Hi Audrey I also kept in contact with Andy through e-mail and want to thank you for the memorial. His own eloquent words are perfect and need nothing adding to them. I miss his words of encouragement and praise, even for the terrible jokes I forwarded to him. He had an incredible memory and when I numbered the school photograph he willingly help put names to the faces. His brother told me that the photo hung in his bedroom. As a teenager he attracted us younger girls with his blond Beatle cut and he will always have a special place in my heart. Lilian Wellburn [email protected] |
| 5th March 2008 Hello Audrey, I was drafted into the Grammar School as a first former in 1963, but I have a great memory for faces and names and I can remember Andy very well, along with Mr. Ferry and co (always aloof, even then), together with some of the older pupils, E.G. Christine & Tom Arrowsmith, Gary Clarke, Arthur Cope, John Marley, John (Bunse) Bailey, Dianne Tully, Kev Carr and Royston Humphrey (with whom I kept in touch and who died tragically after a long illness in 2005). In fact, I remember most pupils of note in every form both above and below me. I read Andy's page with great interest and laughed out loud at some of his descriptions of the old school and places in and around Sunderland. It was heartening to note that there was no trace of bitterness regarding his illness in the text; he obviously had a great sense of humour. Best Wishes Anthea Diane Bishop (1963 - 1968) |