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Hockley Port

Astoness

TRUE BRUMMIE MODERATOR
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Edit. Unfortunately the set of 10 photos referred to are no longer available. But some have been reposted in post #21.

hi all. thought you may like to see a few pics i took last week of hockley port and the nearby buildings....

astoness
 
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maggie..cant beleive ive lived all my life not many miles from there and never paid a visit...is this the youth centre..i was challenged by the guy who runs this centre for the under privliged but once i explained why i was there and i was quite harmless we had a good chat...

lyn
 
Lyn I don't know very much about the place even though I lived in Brookfield Rd.Tom will tell you all about it later:)
 
It may well be now when I was there 70s it had only just started and was an adventure to work there it has all changed now compared to the site as it was we the volunteers and youth workers and the kids included worked to clean up the surrounding area including the canals and the time that I spent there was good fun:D
 
must say it did look quite clean and tidy..with a nice bit of green...thanks maggie and tom.

lyn:)
 
I also worked here it the early 80s doing up the old buildings for an indoor riding school for the disabled, the grassed area at the back was made up with a sand track for the riders. the row of buildings along side were changed to house farm animals and stable the horses. we finished in about 83 so not sure how it turned out or how long it lasted as a inner city farm and stables . there was a dock at the top which moored the boats and some of these had goats in the buildings.
 
those buildings at the side Pete were originally for stabling the horses way back in the 40s and 50s maybe earlier.. ..one of our members is married to a lady whose grandfather was run over and killed by one of the horses years ago ..seems it has come full circle
 
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hi lynn maggie tom
yes you are quite correct maggs i remember the guy whom lived up therefrom when we kids in the fifties
and up that port siding was all cobbled stone walk way up to the top and yes they was the stables and very broken down ones at that
also the little couple of houses that hadto been built in the very early 1800s very tiny ones just like the lock keeper furtther up the cut
where ralph lived at the feeder it was a bit spooky to go uo but we would see a couple of shire horse in the road way up there
the old man wouldcome out and chase us off then they became extint and empty and they built the newer stable yard abit further up the cut which was epwherethe feeder section was on the water ways the big shire horse charliechased us along he cut our little hearts was pounding
charli thehorse bolted for us out of the yard and down onto the tow path followed by the boat man raging at us and calling charlie to come back
but getting back to hockley port its amazing to see the differents and the remodern they are i would not have reconise ituntil you told us
best wishes astonion alan
 
I was brought up in Winson Green but never knew of its existence till my (underprivileged) kids went there in the early 80s. I can remember them talking about milking goats and making pottery and taking part in other activities. Apparently other kids got canoeing lessons on the cut but mine couldn't because, they reckoned, it was only for young offenders. I suspect it was because mine weren't underprivileged enough (no matter how hard I tried).
casse-mur-briques.gif
 
Hi osin
no it was not for offenders courses it was for the under privilledge kids of the area
and i recall the early days when the old stables was up there as well where the big shire horses was kept for pulling the coal across up and down the cannals and to the clissold street wharf where you would get your coal on a big builders hand cart off the side of the cannal
the big wooden wheel hand cart that most trades men would have used in the old days unless you brought your sack on your own hand ar youwould have paid two shilling and six pence to the yard office to borrow and take your coal and bring it back
when i was little wipper napppr i used to fetch coal around to a lady in clssold street and i broke my collar bone on the big hand cart as it towered above me trying to get it up the pavement i ended up in dudley rd for a fort night my old lady went barmy over it and stopped me going for this lady ever again she used to pay me half a crown a time then i would run down to wrenson for a bottle of sherry for her
shewould sit in thetoilet waiting for me to bring i around the bak yard and i wouldpass it to her through the door and said do not let my daughters know about this it was every saturday mornig with out fail ; astonian
 
I used to volenteer at the port I am the daughter of the woman that was the manager at the time June Regan, who later married john ward, long story and the place closed down in the early 80s and we moved to northern Ireland, longer story still i came on here to find old pictures to show my daughter and can't access any, help would be grateful, I remember we had round taken by the old bridge and would run the goats etc down the road each day to graze, and the horses for the riding school horses must be in the blood my daughter now owns 2 me still one, my other sister Jayne lives in Kansas and owns polo ranch, all stemed from hockley port, Jackie i think the girl was named was thev first manager before the city took over, we used to take the kids to somerset duneston friendship camp for 6 weeks every summer doing a week at a time stint with diffrent kids and staff,.
 
I worked there for 9 months 1973/74, volunteering with CSV.
Would love to see the photos but can't work out how to open them!

My daughter will soon be teacihng nearby so I must go and have a look at it again.
 
I used to volenteer at the port I am the daughter of the woman that was the manager at the time June Regan, who later married john ward, long story and the place closed down in the early 80s and we moved to northern Ireland, longer story still i came on here to find old pictures to show my daughter and can't access any, help would be grateful, I remember we had round taken by the old bridge and would run the goats etc down the road each day to graze, and the horses for the riding school horses must be in the blood my daughter now owns 2 me still one, my other sister Jayne lives in Kansas and owns polo ranch, all stemed from hockley port, Jackie i think the girl was named was thev first manager before the city took over, we used to take the kids to somerset duneston friendship camp for 6 weeks every summer doing a week at a time stint with diffrent kids and staff,.
we were never sober ha ha
 
Hello Trish, sorry those photos aren't available at the moment as the Forum was hacked and images were lost.
rosie.
 
My dad use to run Hockley Port in the early 80's. his name was John Dale. My sister ran the Farm. Her name is Jackie. My dad worked there in the early 80's then left around 87. It's a shame the council took over and closed it down. Now it's fenced off and used for people in the barges.. The adventure playground is knocked down. I still live in the area and this area needs a place like Hockley Port.
Every year we went camping. Earlswood log cabin was our main place. Not just in the summer, we went camping in most of the school holidays. Pete and Pearl Giles helped on most of the holidays.
 
I've just been asked by someone if I know where I can get a picture of Hockley Port Adventure Playground and wondered if any kind persn could help us out as I don't have anything. I tried to download a photo from his thread but of course I couldn't as they were lost when the site was hacked. I'd really appreciate a pic of this if it's possible and if the sharing would not be minded...? Thanks.
 
hello harborne...i may still have the photos i took of hockley port in 2009 but im not sure if there are any of the playground..i will have to search my files tomorrow for you and if i have them im happy to repost...

lyn
 
lYN
I think I have 7 of the photos you put on, but am not sure what the playground looked like. If you can't find them I can post any that might be useful. Doesn't look like my idea of a playground though
 
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