Family

I was born in Liverpool but was sent to live with my grandparents in Dundee (Gardner Street, opposite the allotments.) when I was 4 years old. I went to Ancrum Road School in 1950/1951, for about the next 5 years. Their ground floor flat had a huge bedroom at the front, and another smaller one. There was a press and a toilet off the hallway and then at the back, overlooking the 'greenie' was the living room/ dining room with their bed in a large recess! There was a coal fire with a large over mantle and a coal bunker in the window bay. Read more......

I first lived at 21 Kinloch Street at the foot of the Law Hill. An old tenement with 1 bedroom and kitchen/front room. The coalman used to come in and dump the bag of coal in the space under the wooden draining board. We moved to Findcastle Street in 1953 and we thought it was great, a new house and a garden. I went to St. Vincent's infants and primary school. It was a long walk to school. Then on to St. Michael's in Graham Street, we got a penny transfer for 2 buses. Used to go the Marryat (near Caird Hall) and the Palais to see all the bands. Read more......

I worked at the Veeder Root factory at Gourdie from 1977-79. I really liked working there making tachographs, sitting in long rows of women working away some with jigs some putting small parts together. My family lived in Fintry at 31 or 32 Findcastle Terrace opposite the primary school. My aunt's sister worked there also, Rosemary Pillins, and my friend Jackie Clancy, I think she later joined the navy. Her aunt Francis was really nice. Happy memories. 

I remember one winter in Douglas when we had no coal for our fire, my Mum sent me over to Douglas School which was just being built (so I would have been about 6 or 7 years old) to collect some of the wood off cuts. A joiner was working late, (I remember that it was very dark) and took pity on me and filled a sack with logs and carried it over to my house for me. My Mum, my three siblings and my self (my Dad was not around) had a warm house and hot water for some nights after that and we will always be grateful to that unknown joiner.

Born in 1945 in Clement Park, I lived at 50 Marshall Street, Lochee (overlooking Tipperary) with my mother Mary and my grandparents Andy and Lizzie Wilbourne. I remember the trains chuffing past our 'back green', Ancrum Road school, being sent to the shops for 'a lippy 'o tatties' and a globe for the gas light, pushing an old pram full of laundry to the wash hose in St Mary's Lane..so many memories..

I was brought up in Polepark by my dad Frank Traynor and the lovely Ann and Bert Small who owned a little grocer shop at 16 Polepark Road. They took over the majority of my care after my mum sadly died when I was four years old.

I have many happy memories of the jute workers who came into the shop and the actors from the Rep Theatre which was in the church at the top of Polepark. It was a lovely time to grow up and a caring way of life when people all looked after their neighbours. Ann and Bert Small ran a lovely wee shop and were kind to their customers. Read more......

I was born in Maryfield Hospital in 1947. My mum Ruby Fisken was a long time nurse there. My dad Jim played the piano in a local band that played at the dancehalls. I used to go and sit by his side. By the time the night was over, you couldn't see anyone's heads for the secondhand smoke.

In summer, I loved going for a day at Broughty Beach. When the bus would start and stop, all the shells of the wilks would run back and forward. Read more......

I was born in Charles Street on October 2nd 1942 and moved to 43, Hill Street the following year. From our house, if we leaved out we could see the war memorial on top of the Law. I remember my Mum putting up this black sheet every night, so it was obviously war time. The best memory however was seeing the flame lit on the memorial, so I now presume it was VE day.

Conditions in Dundee at the time when Lorna contracted Tuberculosis

Background to the interview with “Lorna” who was 100 years of age in May 2011. Visit Lorna's Memoirs page to find out more.

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