A total of 18 people attended this meeting, the second in
February, but the first of our monthly meetings, which will now continue on the
last Friday of each month until at least April 2020. We will continue to meet in either Sprotbrough
Church Hall or The Stables, which are
adjacent, at 2.30 pm.
Cynthia Welcomed everyone to the meeting and Introductions
were then made by everyone present. Although there had been several apologies, some new people turned up for the first time, including Dev Das, Meryl
White, Beryl Dawson, Terry Bramall all the way from Harrogate and Dennis, whose details weren't recorded; if anyone is in contact with him, perhaps they would ask him to get in touch with me. Some felt they were there under false pretenses
as they weren’t born between the target years, but it was reiterated that anyone
and everyone interested in the history of Sprotbrough is welcome as helpers or learners.
Our aims today were threefold:
i) Continue
sheet filling with memories, etc
ii) To continue
or begin new interviews.
iii) Mapping of
residents in the 1940s and 50s.
Before letting everyone do their own thing, however, it had
been decided to spotlight education and the village school in particular and I
read out some notes I had made from the last and seemingly only Minute Book available
before the school was handed over to the local education authority (LEA).
This recorded that in 1906 the school had 78 pupils and had
cost £91.14s.4d and that at the end of the year they had £3.10s.6d in
hand. It was, of course, run by the
Estate until it was sold, with church leaders also on the management board, and children came from the Sprotbrough Estate (47), the Melton Estate (17) and the
Cusworth Estate (14). It should be noted that only a headteacher and an assistant teacher were employed to teach all these children, who, in the early days, stayed there until they were 14! It also recorded
the appointment of Miss Gyton as Headteacher on the 23 February 1924, who many
people have already referred to. The
school was then purchased by the LEA and so was not put up for auction like the rest
of the Estate.
I then related two or three little anecdotes recollected from my own time there in the late 1940s and hoped others would come forward
with their stories, naughty or otherwise.
People then dispersed to their chosen activities and
conversations, which were as interesting and noisy as ever.
i) A few more
comments were written on the sheets and these will be added to records already
made last month.
ii) One or two
new interviewers came along today, eager to begin work, which is very encouraging,
and several interviews were begun at the meeting. An excellent interview had also been recorded
earlier in the week by Betty Brockman with Bill and Sue Erskine and Sue’s
sister, Enid, nee Maxfield. Others are
being lined up.
iii) The
Electoral Rolls of 1925 and 1965 had already been obtained, courtesy of Keith Crouter, and Linda Watson nee
Tyrrell had provided lists by email for Melton Road above the Ivanhoe. John Walton continued the work with his
knowledge of people on Main Street. We
hope others will be added as time goes on.
Electoral Rolls have their uses, but don’t, of course, include children.
The Next meeting will be held on Friday 29 March at 2.30 pm. Please check on arrival whether it is at the Church Hall or The Stables.
For further information, contact:
Liz Reeve: Tel: 01302 313030 or Email: soh.lizreeve@gmail.com
Cynthia Ransome: Tel: 07792287109 or Email: Cynthiaransome@gmail.com
