Ushaw Moor Memories

1 - Great memories Wilf, Raymond Ayre was a very good footballer, I knew Ray when we worked at New Brancepeth Co-op and later at Brandon & New Brancepeth Co-op He married Moira Harwood who also worked there, a smashing lass. Raymonds cousin Eddie Ross was also a very good footballer and worked at NB Co-op.Raynond also played for Whitley Bay at Hillheads Road which is only 60 yards from my present allotment site.I am sure there a picture of him in the Whitley Bay club house. Cheers, Alf Rothwell (Comment this)

2 - Thanks for your positive comment Alf.After doing that piece I came up with another local footballer [by local I mean having a connection with Ushaw Moor or Bearpark or New Brancepeth].Richard Thornton was born in Bearpark and was a useful goalkeeper.He made one appearance for Leeds United in the 1925/26 season but in that game he nfortunately let in six goals. It may be the case that he was not to blame for any of those goals, because although he never played another first team game for Leeds, he was with them until his transfer to Accrington Stanley in 1929. From there he moved to York City in 1931.
Best Regards
Wilf (Comment this)

3 - I wonder whether Alf [Rothwell] is related to the Rothwell's that were living at 29 Jubilee Street, Sleetburn [New Brancepeth]in 1901.The head of the household was William, a coal hewer aged 56 and born in Derbyshire. His wife Elizabeth was also 56 and was born in Sunderland.Their offspring were:Robert [21 - coal hewer, born Quebec],James[16 - born Spen - I suppose that was Spennymoor or High Spen?], Thomas [aged 15 born South Shields] and Margaret [13 - born Felling].
I also checked the census for Brian's family, although he has probably done that already. The family living at 4 Harvey Street in 1901 were called Blenkinsopp. There was a family called Mclaughlin living at 4 Eshwood Terrace, but that has an a instead of an o in it. Details anyway - James [35 -coalmining deputy]Mary [35] Arthur [9] Ann [7] Mary [6] James [4] and Mary Quinn [daughter in law and widow born in Ireland].

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4 - Wilf, Spot on they were my great grand parents they were parents of my grandfather John who was born in Haswell in 1868 and died in Sleetburn in 1939. He married twice and his second wife was Mamie who was born in the USA in 1879 and died in 1938.They were the parents of my father James who married Eveline Holliday. I am the one and only offspring of James and Eveline.My grandparents and great grandparents (Rothwell) had huge families and lived in New Brancepeth and Ushaw Moor and surrounding areas.Most of the lads were coal miners. Sadly the last of my fathers brothers and sisters died in 2004.Alf Rothwell (Comment this)

5 - Here are just a few more notes about footballers.It concerns the Seed family. Harry Seed sadly died in an Ushaw Moor pit accident in 1949, aged 22.I can recall being told, many years ago, that he was related to a very famous footballer,Jimmy Seed, who not only excelled when playing for Sheffield Wednesday and Spurs, but also became a very successful manager of Charlton Athletic.Can anyone throw some light on the family connection please? (Comment this)

6 - Football being the 'universal language' I thought I might get a better response to the football article - however time will tell! I can give a bit more on the subject, for example,a lad called Ian Maguire was a pupil at our school and he was a year younger than me. I remember him telling me that his father played in the 1938/39 FA cup final.I believe he was in the much fancied Wolves team that crashed to Portsmouth.
Another football story relates to our school team. In the summer of 1960 our sports master, Mr Barlow, arranged for our team to play our Intermediate side , who were about a year younger than us.It was watched by the whole school on a warm summer's day.Even though I was captain of the school team I did not, incredibly, realise that the Intermediates were a regular team and in division B [2]. Not only that, they were the champions of it! The day before the game I took it upon myself, with a couple of other players, to pick our team and pin it up on the notice board,that was on the basis that it was only a friendly and therefore Mr Barlow would not mind. I normally played cente half although I had been known to play at left back and at outside left. My team selection had me at right back and our goalkeeper at centre forward. Mr Barlow was not pleased and took me to a quiet spot to cane me! At this distance that was the wrong thing to do; he should have explained how immature I had been and sought an apology - to cane was not sophisticated. In all other respects I found him to be a fine man and excellent teacher.As for the game itself we found it difficult to take it seriously, however the Intermediates did! We paid the price by going 2-0 down. I decided that the defence should at least mark the opposition and in the event we won 5-2. I think we would have won about 7-0 had we been serious from the start.
Another story - does anyone remember when Derby County came to Crook in 1955 to play a first round FA cup match? I believe that at the time cup fever was gripping the town of Crook. Special trains carried Crook fans to the game and private buses had been arranged by Working Men's Clubs. Crush barriers had been specially installed and all traffic entering Crook was diverted by the police into narrow side streets. Did any one go from Ushaw Moor? If so please tell me about it.Before the game Crook inside forward Ronnie Thompson said that he was aware that Derby play good football and that suited Crook Town fine.I can give a full report of the match if anyone wants it;I have not included the report here because I am sure that no one really cares after all this time! Cheers. (Comment this)

7 - Two more local footballers to log!
DENNIS KING
Born 16/09/1932 in Bearpark. He played 22 times for Oldham Athletic.Sadly died in 1988, at what was a quite young age.
JAMES SMALLWOOD
Born 01/09/1925 in Bearpark.He played 345 times for Chesterfield.
Wilf (Comment this)

8 - Here is a little more regarding note 6 above. I have found out that Ian Maguire's father, Ted, was brought up in Meadowfield and played on Wolverhampton's left wing in the 1938/39 final. The underdogs, Portsmouth, won 4-1.Also in that final was Joe Gardiner, from Bearpark, and he was playing left half for Wolves. Playing left back for Portsmouth was Billy Rochford - from Esh Winning!

Ted Maguire made a guest appearance for Sunderland prior to demob from the RAF.
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9 - A bit more football - this time school football. I have, at least twice, referred to my selection for the Durham and District Schoolboys' team and a reasonable response to that can be 'how pompous' because it hardly adds up to a glittering football career!However I am aware of the use that can be made of such references by family historians and with that in mind I hope that the following item, from a 1958 press cutting, proves interesting to some people:
Durham and District Boys visit Spennymoor Boys on Saturday in the second round of the Hartlepools' Hospital Cup. The side is the same as that which defeated Kelloe Boys at Brandon. - Kerr [Whinney Hill Modern];Pattinson [Durham Grammar];Flatley [Ushaw Moor RC];Ferguson [Durham Grammar]; Stobbart [Ushaw Moor RC]; Simpson[Bowburn Modern];Orr [Sherburn County];Ferguson [Durham Grammar];Pritchard [Waterhouses Modern];Meredith [Pittington County]; Bell [Ushaw Moor County].
My comments about that cutting are:
[1] Was their a misprint regarding Ferguson. Norman Ferguson played in the forward line - were their really two Fergusons from Durham Grammar playing in that team?Quite possibly so ofcourse.
[2]Leslie Kerr played for England Boys and for a time was on the books of Luton Town - although he never played for their first team in a league game.
[3]Meridith? Ws he the pleasant and polite lad that attended Ushaw Moor Modern, in a GCE stream, and played for the school intermediate side when they lost 5-2 to the school first team in a friendly?If so he must have left Pittington County to do so and his father is mentioned on this site as being a very notable professional.
[4]Centre forward Pritchard is mentioned elsewhere - the wandering minstrel!
[5] Flatley and Stobbart from Ushaw Moor Roman Cathlic School - what has happened to them? Do they still live in the village or nearby?
Best wishes
W Bell
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10 - Forget the above reference to Meredith because I have confused it with Maguire! (Comment this)