Cockle Hall and Station House |
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Today I have been to see my eldest brother (John Kenneth Singleton), who did live in Cockle Hall with my parents Jack Singleton and Bertha Singleton with my older brothers John Kenneth, William John Donald, Edward, Brian Wyatt and my sister Bernice. He tells me that Thomas Lawrenson lived at the farm on River Road. He says the family left Cockle Hall in 1935 and moved to Station House. My father was then the Head Porter at the Railway Station. I was born at Station House in 1941. Apparently the ferry was run from Wardleys on the other side of the river and was last manned by someone called Hornby. My father and brothers were the main stay of the St. Johns Ambulance Brigade at Thornton and my father was I think classified as the superintendant. I understand that that my sister was involved with the mission (St. Johns Church) and spent a lot of time there.
As a child my pet dog a Beadle Hound fell in the brook one day at Station House when it was nearly flooding the garden, my brothers rescued him just before he drowned, and while they tried to bring him round the landlord from the Bay Horse came over and gave him some brandy. It worked wonders with him, and after that day he used to go to the pub every night. He used to come staggering home legless, after drinking the night away on customers leftovers. He was also known to all the bus conductors that came to Thornton Station, and made quite a habit of going joyrides on the buses. When we moved to Stockport he went missing and was never found, we always think he probably jumped on a bus here to go joyriding.
I am very interested in collecting as much information possible to trace back my family history. I believe that in my ancestors that some one was the first to run the donkeys on Blackpool Beach, another was called the Banana King due to importing them into the area. Also some connection to a mineral water company. I also seem to remember that the singer Donald Peers made a hit record By a Babbling Brook after watching the Kingfishers on the bend of the brook under the weeping willows at Station House.
My heart and thoughts are always in my life in Thornton, although we did not have very much after WW2 they were good times.
Happy Days.
Gordon