Chris Melville's Family
When I was growing up there wasn’t a right lot to do. Where the Barncroft flats are they were known as the horse field and the field at the bottom on the other side of Easterly Road was known as the cow field.
Where the football field is just down the back here (Rein Park) was a building tip that had a little stream running through which comes out onto the back of Asket walk. At the bottom there were Rein shops which have now been flattened, also where the Monkswood pub is there were originally shops there too.
The house on Kentmere Gate which I have now forgotten what it was called, we used to call it “The witches house”. Also on Dib Lane was the old coaching house where we used to go pinching apples. That is now an old people’s home and sheltered housing sort of thing.
Where Grange Farm School is now there was a farm there, and there was also Pigeon Cote farm. Then at the top we had the woods; they were called Lime woods. We played in there because it used to have a big pit that was full of water, we tried to cross it and if you weren’t careful enough you would end up in the water; everything is now filled in.
Part of the Fox wood: it was where old Foxwood farm used to be which I believe is now private housing, and Foxwood school which was built in the late 50s ‘cos my brother attended that school and he is 5 years older than me. It’s a shame he’s not still alive because he could tell you a lot about it.
There was also St John’s school which is opposite Goats farm at Roundhay Park. From there up Elmete lane according to one of my maps is an old Roman Altar between the old Braimwood School and Elmete hall.
Then you have the special needs school and an old caravan site at the back of the school, Then just above that is the Golf course. We had the old Lime woods going towards what used to be Howson’s (printing works). They had a massive pond there and when I was a child me and other kids used to go fishing there.
Where the old Seacroft centre used to be that was built in 60s I know this because my father worked on the building of it, I don’t really remember much of what was there before the centre was built. What I do remember is the old windmill on the other side of York road which is now the hotel.
My Grandma lived at the bottom of North Parkway near the old Fellmonger pub which leads onto the old Foxwood School. We always used to go down to Black’s shops on South Parkway.
They are now known as Trotters shops due to the butchers that is there but I remember where the bookies is that used to be a shop where you could by allsorts i.e.:- nuts, bolts, screws we named that shop as Arkwright’s after the old show Open All Hours.
As you come up South Parkway you arrive at what used to be an all girls school called Parklands which is now East Leeds academy, from there you arrived at the village green where as a child I didn’t really venture much.
The only time I went to the village green is if we were catching the bus to go on holiday but more times than often we would go in town. Unless my dad could borrow a car but in those days borrowing someone’s car was rarely heard of.
I never went that far over as a child or growing up I spent most of my time on the Barncrofts or Boggart Hill area cos when you go half way up Barncroft Drive which cuts through to Barncroft Road that little wood there is where we went through to get to the old horses field.
Then over the years they built the Gate pub and then the club which is at the top of Ramshead drive called Beechwood Working Men’s club, I remember certain people coming round for a shilling a week or so much a brick which is what they did with the kids in those days.
I have a picture of me and my sister which looks like I’m doing the Highland fling.
As children we were never allowed to venture too far unless my parents said here is carrier bag which contained a bottle of water and mucky fat sandwich, then off we went to Roundhay park for the day where there was a waterfall which took the overflow from the lake and at the bottom of this was an outdoor pool where you could paddle or swim if you were brave enough. It was that cold you would get Goosebumps on top of Goosebumps.
Roundhay Park also had a massive lake which I never fished in ‘till I got a bit older and by that time I was working so the only time I ever got to fish there was when I finished work.
I attended Asket Hill and Grange Farm and Foxwood schools; Asket Hill has now been flattened to make way for houses.
When I left school in 1968 I started working for a company called William Reeds which was a tailoring company opposite the bus station in Leeds; underneath that was a company called Walter Wraggs motorcycles, opposite there were Quarry Hill flats.
After that I went to work for Montague Burtons. I worked in the despatch department where all the clothes would come through. We’d then put them on these boxes which had like a rod rest top on and we’d send them round. They had a little pin sticking out if you pressed a button these pins used to come out then they went out and despatched to other towns.
Each box had a label inside which told you what town it was going to; some had a number on and then off they would go down this line where you had to match the correct pin with the number and then another lad would put them all together and say right they’re going to Birmingham and then the numbers were all copied down on a sheet. All I did was put them on these boxes I remember it well because my two fingers were rock hard just doing that.
I was there from November 1968 through to July 1973. Then I was asked to leave because the job was that boring I ended going in late quite a lot. I was a really bad time keeper.
After there I went to a firm called Reynard’s Wines and Spirits but I was only there for a couple of months when I slept in the gaffer told me to leave. After that I went to work for an electrical firm I can’t remember the name and after that I went back to Reynard’s again for another couple of months. After that I didn’t work for quite a while but I have had all kind of jobs but I can’t remember the names of every firm.
I have worked on building sites, warehouses, hotels and cleaning. So as you can guess I have done quite a bit. I liked the building site work during summertime but same as always not in the winter. I actually didn’t mind the winter to be honest but it all depended on the firm you worked for. I worked for a company called Fairclough’s (not Len either).they were based at Garforth, I worked with a guy called George, he was the flagger and I was the labourer that’s why I didn’t mind the winter because you just got stuck in. All you could hear was the other lads moaning “It’s cold, it’s cold” that is when we used to shout at them “get something done. There is lots of top soil to move”. It wasn’t like it is today where you need this card or that card to be able to work on the sites. It’s totally different now which is why I would not go back on the sites today.
“So how did you break your leg”?
I was helping a friend. Somebody was walking up the path with some furniture. I took a short cut across the grass, slipped and there was a little bit of a post sticking up that I tried to avoid and my toe just caught the step it took a chunk out of my toe but I walked around for about three days then went to St James’s and got transferred from there to the LGI where I got plated and plastered which I still have in and I’m having removed on Monday 28th September I have 2 and a half years of pain now and now I can’t wait to get it removed.
Where the football field is just down the back here (Rein Park) was a building tip that had a little stream running through which comes out onto the back of Asket walk. At the bottom there were Rein shops which have now been flattened, also where the Monkswood pub is there were originally shops there too.
The house on Kentmere Gate which I have now forgotten what it was called, we used to call it “The witches house”. Also on Dib Lane was the old coaching house where we used to go pinching apples. That is now an old people’s home and sheltered housing sort of thing.
Where Grange Farm School is now there was a farm there, and there was also Pigeon Cote farm. Then at the top we had the woods; they were called Lime woods. We played in there because it used to have a big pit that was full of water, we tried to cross it and if you weren’t careful enough you would end up in the water; everything is now filled in.
Part of the Fox wood: it was where old Foxwood farm used to be which I believe is now private housing, and Foxwood school which was built in the late 50s ‘cos my brother attended that school and he is 5 years older than me. It’s a shame he’s not still alive because he could tell you a lot about it.
There was also St John’s school which is opposite Goats farm at Roundhay Park. From there up Elmete lane according to one of my maps is an old Roman Altar between the old Braimwood School and Elmete hall.
Then you have the special needs school and an old caravan site at the back of the school, Then just above that is the Golf course. We had the old Lime woods going towards what used to be Howson’s (printing works). They had a massive pond there and when I was a child me and other kids used to go fishing there.
Where the old Seacroft centre used to be that was built in 60s I know this because my father worked on the building of it, I don’t really remember much of what was there before the centre was built. What I do remember is the old windmill on the other side of York road which is now the hotel.
My Grandma lived at the bottom of North Parkway near the old Fellmonger pub which leads onto the old Foxwood School. We always used to go down to Black’s shops on South Parkway.
They are now known as Trotters shops due to the butchers that is there but I remember where the bookies is that used to be a shop where you could by allsorts i.e.:- nuts, bolts, screws we named that shop as Arkwright’s after the old show Open All Hours.
As you come up South Parkway you arrive at what used to be an all girls school called Parklands which is now East Leeds academy, from there you arrived at the village green where as a child I didn’t really venture much.
The only time I went to the village green is if we were catching the bus to go on holiday but more times than often we would go in town. Unless my dad could borrow a car but in those days borrowing someone’s car was rarely heard of.
I never went that far over as a child or growing up I spent most of my time on the Barncrofts or Boggart Hill area cos when you go half way up Barncroft Drive which cuts through to Barncroft Road that little wood there is where we went through to get to the old horses field.
Then over the years they built the Gate pub and then the club which is at the top of Ramshead drive called Beechwood Working Men’s club, I remember certain people coming round for a shilling a week or so much a brick which is what they did with the kids in those days.
I have a picture of me and my sister which looks like I’m doing the Highland fling.
As children we were never allowed to venture too far unless my parents said here is carrier bag which contained a bottle of water and mucky fat sandwich, then off we went to Roundhay park for the day where there was a waterfall which took the overflow from the lake and at the bottom of this was an outdoor pool where you could paddle or swim if you were brave enough. It was that cold you would get Goosebumps on top of Goosebumps.
Roundhay Park also had a massive lake which I never fished in ‘till I got a bit older and by that time I was working so the only time I ever got to fish there was when I finished work.
I attended Asket Hill and Grange Farm and Foxwood schools; Asket Hill has now been flattened to make way for houses.
When I left school in 1968 I started working for a company called William Reeds which was a tailoring company opposite the bus station in Leeds; underneath that was a company called Walter Wraggs motorcycles, opposite there were Quarry Hill flats.
After that I went to work for Montague Burtons. I worked in the despatch department where all the clothes would come through. We’d then put them on these boxes which had like a rod rest top on and we’d send them round. They had a little pin sticking out if you pressed a button these pins used to come out then they went out and despatched to other towns.
Each box had a label inside which told you what town it was going to; some had a number on and then off they would go down this line where you had to match the correct pin with the number and then another lad would put them all together and say right they’re going to Birmingham and then the numbers were all copied down on a sheet. All I did was put them on these boxes I remember it well because my two fingers were rock hard just doing that.
I was there from November 1968 through to July 1973. Then I was asked to leave because the job was that boring I ended going in late quite a lot. I was a really bad time keeper.
After there I went to a firm called Reynard’s Wines and Spirits but I was only there for a couple of months when I slept in the gaffer told me to leave. After that I went to work for an electrical firm I can’t remember the name and after that I went back to Reynard’s again for another couple of months. After that I didn’t work for quite a while but I have had all kind of jobs but I can’t remember the names of every firm.
I have worked on building sites, warehouses, hotels and cleaning. So as you can guess I have done quite a bit. I liked the building site work during summertime but same as always not in the winter. I actually didn’t mind the winter to be honest but it all depended on the firm you worked for. I worked for a company called Fairclough’s (not Len either).they were based at Garforth, I worked with a guy called George, he was the flagger and I was the labourer that’s why I didn’t mind the winter because you just got stuck in. All you could hear was the other lads moaning “It’s cold, it’s cold” that is when we used to shout at them “get something done. There is lots of top soil to move”. It wasn’t like it is today where you need this card or that card to be able to work on the sites. It’s totally different now which is why I would not go back on the sites today.
“So how did you break your leg”?
I was helping a friend. Somebody was walking up the path with some furniture. I took a short cut across the grass, slipped and there was a little bit of a post sticking up that I tried to avoid and my toe just caught the step it took a chunk out of my toe but I walked around for about three days then went to St James’s and got transferred from there to the LGI where I got plated and plastered which I still have in and I’m having removed on Monday 28th September I have 2 and a half years of pain now and now I can’t wait to get it removed.