Lil's Story
I moved to Redcliffe when the area was cleared for the building of the council houses. My life until then had been spent in College Street, where my son was born. My son was 29 then and still unmarried. We moved to the new flats. We had a 4 bedroomed flat as my parents moved with us.
My husband worked for a firm in Wage Street - he was a plumber.
The tram still ran from the Centre to Hotwells. When we lived in College Street, we had to rely on buses from Redcliffe. All our shopping was done in Bedminster, it has not changed much. We shopped every Friday.
I worked at the Central Library College Green, until I was 70 as a cleaner, from 6.00 to 9.30 am. I travelled each day by bus - I’m 83 now.
The new corners to the flats are not very friendly and we don’t have much to do with them.
My husband and mother were Chapel people. I used to go to Redcliffe Church but mother never understood the service. I was christened and married at St George’s, Brandon Hill.
There has been local Bingo club in Redcliffe flats ever since the fiats were built 27 years ago. My friends daughter takes me to Bingo in Bedminster every week.
Memories
When I was in my teens my mother had a dress shop on Redcliffe Hill. I used to help in the shop we mainly sold dresses for the outsize people. One of my customers happened to be Molly Quichs mother which I served for years. If she wasn’t sure if she liked it I would ask her to take several home and decide. She lived just across the road, and she was very happy about it. Another customer I remember was Vie Perrotts mother I sold her a pink two piece for Vie’s wedding 50 years ago. A few years later we took another shop in Bedminster during the war, when we had coupons to buy clothes. Of course the trade was very good in Bedminster as the whole of town was mostly bombed. We ceased trading 1990 after nearly 60 years.
1930s
When we were young we could not afford holidays so, many from each family were sent to Winscombe for a week - we had to wear a uniform of Red and Navy with a cloak. We had to march along in files. If we went out, we slept in dormitories in hammocks - trying get into them I always fell out, and felt sick.
To wash every morning we washed outside in the cold under the taps. For exercise we went up to Crooks Peak. We all piled into a Van when time to go home - we were all pleased to be going.
Molly Quich
Laundry and housewifery at Windmill Hill for St Mary Redcliffe Senior Girls. Once a week a team of us went to learn how to become good Wives and Mothers. Miss Aliright a tall slim lady took us for laundry - we all took an article to wash and iron. The irons were heavy and were heated around a stove when they were hot enough we glided the iron on some brick dust to make it smooth - gatters on pinnies had to look professional - we had points for our achievements. Best of all cookery was my delight - I forget the teachers name. Every week 2 of us with 6d to spend went up to Bedminster - to buy veg for a dinner - I loved the smell of Irish stew its smell was wonderful and the taste was heaven if we brought our own ingredients we took the meal home. Mind you there was not much left on our journey home from Victoria Park. The cheapest meal for most of us was a 1d of chips in news paper - unemployment was all around us but Redcliffe school gave all of very excellent education, and today it still shows.
Joyce Freeth
Voting in Redcliffe years ago - you were either Labour or Conservative - most of us were Labour. If by any chance any of our neighbours were conservative we were not on speaking terms for along time. It was a fun day for all the Labour children - pots, pans, ash-bin lids, in fact anything that made a noise we all rang loud and clear going round every street
VOTE VOTE FOR MR - - -
TURN OLD IN SKIP ON THE LAND
IF I HAD A TWO PENNING ROLL
I’D STICK UP HIS - - -
AND HE WOULDN’T COME BACK TO BRISTOL
ANYMORE
When I was a little girl
When I was a little girl I went every year from August to September in the Hop fields. We was picked up by lorry and we used to take a table and chairs and mattress covers and a chest of drawers for our clothes we had our own hut. We put straw in the mattress covers and pillow cases and we cooked our food outside by a log fire.
Mum had a bin to pick the hop in and my brother Roland and I had a stool each and a box, for us it put the hop in, when we filled our boxes up we would tip them in the big bin and then the man would come and measure them out by the bundle. We would pick for a while then we could go and play.
Wall Ice Cream man would come round on a bike with a box on the front with STOP ME AND BYE ONE on it.
Anon.
When I was a child I can remember when I used to sit on the Church wall and take car numbers - in them days all cars were black. I was a member if the Salvation Army - I played the tambourine. I then left, went to G.E. and joined the choir until I was 16. I knocked on peoples doors to take their dogs out - sometimes I had 8 dogs at a time. Some nights I and others would go fobbing apples one day the farmers goat chased me and butted me on the legs, I got hiding when I got home.
I was well known for helping the elderly in the street, used to spend hours Saturday talking to them.