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Nellie Page with her mother Elizabeth and brother and sisters Edgar Lizzie and Elsie

Tragic World War One memories

on December 12, 2010 · 1 Comment · in Town Life, Wartime

Life was tough for families living close to the Ipswich town centre during the First World War period. In 2003 Nellie Page recalled her childhood and she recalled how hard it was for families to survive when fathers and husbands were killed fighting the war.

St Matthews Street, Ipswich, as it was in the late 1950’s. This scene would have been very familiar to Christine and Elaine and her large family. They lived in Tanners Lane, which was just a couple of minutes away. Most of the buildings featured have been demolished. On the right is the Queens Head public house, at the corner of St Matthews Church Lane. Civic Drive now goes off to the right of this view and Berners Street to the left. The St Matthew’s Street roundabout is now where the photographer was standing, around forty years ago. The buildings on the left were all demolished when St Matthew’s Street was made into a dual carriageway, in the mid 1960’s. The shops include, The Milk Bar, R White fruit shop, Howes and Sons Ltd. Motor Engineers, The Maypole Dairy, Bendix Launderette, The Utility Shoe Rebuilding Company, and The London Central Meat Company.

Life for a big family in Ipswich

on December 7, 2010 · No Comments · in Town Life

A tin bath in front of the fire, collecting coal in an old pram to keep the family warm, putting coins in the gas meter, visiting a scrap yard to raise a few pennies to help the family budget and even then not realising the family was poor until years later! These colourful memories come [...]