Wigan Album

This photo is what Wigan World is all about. Thankyou for posting. And what a litter-free street!

A scene that was very common on street corners when I was growing up, groups of women fradging and putting the world to rights. Great photo again.

Anita Bennett was my auntie, (my mum, Stella Bennett's sister) and Mrs Bennett, Rhoda was my grandma. A great photo, I have never seen this before. I thought straight away it looked like the top of Church Street, where it joins with Sephton Street.Brings back loads of lovely memories of my auntie and grandma.

Agreed, Our Joseph! This is indeed a scene from our Ince childhood. Thankyou, E J Hall, this is so special.

Hi Elizabeth, I'm sure my mum will know the other names you mention. Lily Fleming was my nanna, and Clara Groves was my great-grandmother. Thanks for all your comments.

Joseph, Fradging? That's a new one..

Jade, if fradging is new tuh'thi tha wain't uh bin browt up i wiggin i'll dust bet, all thowd uns went deawnt to street corners for a natter, thi aw knew what was gooin on uh'reawnd th'area tha'nos.

Thanks for sharing this photo, I remember my grandma being friends with Mrs Groves and Mrs Rawson.My Auntie Nita (Anita Bennett) married Thomas Ormesher in 1946 and continued to live in Christopher Street until 1987 when she moved to Crompton House, Scholes when my uncle Tommy died.

Don't understand you walt.

In the forties, and the fifties, where I lived in Spring View, and, Ince, it was customary, just prior to, and when the funeral cortege of a local resident was passing the houses of the neighbours. Those neighbours would close their curtains until the cortege had passed. Is this still customary?

Last sentence lost me. Born and bred I,m afraid .

walts translation, jade if fradging is new to you you wouldnt of been brought up in wigan i`ll just bet, all the old ones went down to the street corners for a chat, they all knew what was going on all around the area you know.

Thanks Ged, I knew someone would understand our good old Lanky dialect, "Lanky Spokken ere"

I doubt people still stand and watch funerals these days, it's a bygone thing of the past. The reason is because people simply don't care about their neighbours anymore, or each other. People are too concerned about themselves "me, me, me" all the time. We live in very non-community spirited times because simply we have too much of everything in the way of material goods, ie brand new car, big house, having the next big flatscreen TV and watching the drivel on it, central heating, en-suit bathroom, money, which makes us less dependant on each other for help. The neighbours where I live are complete snob, backstabbing types, complaining about the slightest noise, and when you walk down the street past them they never take you on. Alot of people today are like that (but it doesn't matter if you live on a council estate or a posh area) because they don't want people interfering in their boring, hectic, daily lives. Go back to the times in this photo were people were "proper" poor and needed others then people's attitudes would change in a heartbeat.

Al you said it all...

Al, I still wear a trilby. I still show respect for the deceased, as the cortege passes me, by standing still, and raising the trilby off my head. This kind of behaviour is bred into you.
I do this even when a cortege passes me, whilst I am driving my car, I still have to raise my trilby, if I am wearing it. even though it means taking one hand off the steering wheel.

My mother had a friend Jean Groves who lived in Christopher Street.We used to have a photo of her in a nurse's uniform and I think she also worked at Lostock Open Air School. The main thing I remember about her is that in about 1951 she wrote out the words of the song Santa Lucia for me!

Thank god most of us speake proper.

What a nice gesture, Albert! When we go to the 1940s events, Peter always raises his hat, (a fedora), to Ladies.

I remember the days when a neighbor died, everyone closed their curtains and the stayed closed until after the funeral.. Also, a neighbour would go door to door along the street to collect money to pay for a Wreath, as a sign of respect from all the neighbours.. I remember neighbours if not going to the Church, would stand at their own front gate as the Hearse went passed...We all knew our neighbours back then and most helped each other out... It's the way it was then, sadly it's not that way today...

I agree with Al all the way.
When I use to catch a bus (before I could drive in the 60s) if their was no seats available for the older people, I would let them sit down in my seat, and I would stand, not only for women but men too.

I taught my son and daughter to stand up for grown-ups on buses and have been gratified to see them teach my grandchildren, aged 7 and 5, to do the same, as well as not dropping litter. Children learn by teaching and example.

Far from a "bygone thing of the past", Al. I often see the good folk of Scholes and Ince watching funerals mostly the elder generations. I also see a lot of community spirit in these areas too, agreed we do have the care nots and self indulgent types now, but on the whole I think a lot of the 'owd ways' still shine through in this bleak and worrying world. You can't keep good honest folk down!

Janet (fl) Three of the maim items that have severely curtailed, chivalry, good manners, and respect for other people, are, materialism, greed, and the jealousy of what other people possess. When all of us ordinary folk each had what all of our friends, and neighbours had.(not very much). We were all much more contented, and happier.

You are right Albert, I'm not saying all those years ago was perfect, nothing ever is.. They were more simple times with simple pleasures, but there was a lot more Caring, Sharing, Helping and Respect than in present times, neighbours knew each other, looked out for each other..There still are some good and caring people, but they are only a few compared to what was the norm back in the day....

Garry, um who don't cum from Wigin ar awreet but don't talk proper like us duz.

Garry. Thank god most of us can spell [speak ] correctly

To be honest, I don't see many good people now like in the old days, and I can't imagine the tradition of watching a funeral still being common, unless you really personally knew that person. Granted, there still will be some albeit extremely rare to see. As for Alan mentioning about the old days giving up seats on buses compared to day, true in a way, but to say the elderley are the nice ones is not true. The elderley have this image that think they own the bus. I was on a buse one day recently travelling to Wigan and there was a young girl with a pram who had to squeeze into a tight corner, yet there were two old ladies who would not move and weren't disabled, even though there was room further back. They think they have special treatment because they're old. And I don't believe people are living longer than yrs ago either. People's attitudes and manners have changed across the whole age range, and it doesn't matter if you're 20 or 70, people are becoming more selfish, ruder, frustrated and aggressive (have you seen just how many miserable people there are today?...noone smiles). People today look really unhappy and down trodden and I don't know why.

You sound like a barrel of laughs yourself, respect for elderly folk seems to be lost on most people these days and going off your remarks about them it's no wonder. I have no idea of the reason though, bad manners or a bad upbringing would be my call.

Ladies, and gentlemen. No matter how much we look back to the time of yore, comparing our todays, with those days. We have a great deal to be thankful for, especially when we see on the television, how the thousands, upon thousands, of people, are living, in the African villages. It must be a time to reflect. "There but for the grace of God go I".

its nice toread some of the upbeat comments made by the people as long as youve got your health not much else matters really apart from that asense of humourwhere would we be without that germany

Cheers Ged,

I have to agree with Al.
People of all ages seem to be getting ruder these days & it does seem like people don`t respect each other like they used to do (or should do).
It is a crazy world we live in.
As for giving up seats on public transport,I (about 2 years ago),offered my seat to an older woman with a bit of shopping on a crowded & packed train,as I thought that it would just be a random act of kindness & thr right thing to do.
Only for me to be met with a degree of abuse from her.
Her response was something along the lines of, how dare you,I`m not old,I can manage,etc,etc,etc,
Sometimes you just can`t win.

If I`m lucky enough to get one,I now keep my seat & save myself the mither,even though it seems wrong somehow.

Please don't let her put you off .....she was in the wrong, not you. I would have smiled, said Thankyou and been grateful. It would have made my day to experience such good manners in this day and age.

hello albert did you know the aldreds from heywood street by any chancejim

ha ha i understand you compleatly walt x

My grandparents, Thomas and Elizabeth Finch lived in the house behind the ladies in the picture, 4 Church Street. I remember Grandma mentioning Clara Groves and I remember the Rawson family. The house on the corner used to be Mrs Hilton's grocers shop when I was a child. How lovely to have found the picture.