Memories
I was born at 3 Clyde Place, Bothwellhaugh on Fair Saturday of 1935. My mother was Peggy Craig, daughter of Bob and Mary Craig and wife of John Dyer. Although the family home was in Mossend, my mother returned to the Palace for the birth, where she was tended by Nurse Lauder. I was to spend large portions of my childhood here, due, in large measure, to my grandmother suffering a stroke and requiring my mother's services to tend her and the four men in the home. In addition to my grandfather, there were three uncles, Jimmy, Andrew and Robert. It was Andrew Craig who took all the photographs used in this website.
As I grew up, I became increasingly fascinated by the village, - the sounds of the pit winding engines, - the sight of the huge hutches tipping their loads of waste at the top of the bing, - the bustling activity of the locomotive shunting its long line of wagons on the colliery railway. Many happy hours I spent sitting on top of the air raid shelter to the rear of Clyde Place watching the engine, usually an ex Caledonian 0-6-0 "Jumbo". It was always a thrill to get a wave from the driver or fireman or to get chased by "Wee Davy", the pit policeman. Another favourite vantage point for watching the engine shunting operations was the footbridge between Douglas Place and Park Place. Clouds of steam would come up through the boards as the engine passed underneath. This was particularly exciting, when the engine was puffing hard as it left with its load of full wagons at the end of the day. The line went out over the main road from Bellshill (A725) via a low bridge. The road had to dip under this bridge and, consequently, was notorious for flooding. To alleviate this problem, a raised portion of road was created under the bridge on the north bound side.
In time, I got to know some of our neighbours, Hugh and Madge Finlay in No5, Martin and Jean Gordon upstairs in No4, Frank and Cissie Donnelly from No2, whose son Graham became a boyhood friend and Mrs Donnelly from No1 (No relation of the upstairs Donnellys). This is a picture of myself when about 12, outside No3, between my grandmother, on the left, and Mrs Donnelly from No1 on the right. These two ladies were good friends, and can be seen together on washing day (see Picture 3). I just remember seeing Mrs Donnelly's husband, Jock, shortly before he died, probably in the early 1940s. He had been the village undertaker and had an illuminated sign hanging above the front door of No1.

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