Children of Albert and Mary Ann Yarwood.

Words and wonderful photographs courtesy of Auntie Violet, these people were her aunts and uncles.

		Mabel "I never met her. We were living at Thornton Villas opposite her parents' shop but I don't recall seeing her visit. Perhaps she was banned for being unmarried, this would be looked down upon in those days. The photographs I have of Mabel were amongst some passed on to me by my mother when she moved into sheltered accommodation."

		Nellie and Tom Rowe "They lived in one of the houses just past the Gardener's Arms on the opposite side of the road. When their daughter Marjory (right) was eight or nine she went into hospital to have her toe straightened. I will always remember the day she was coming home. Just before they left to collect her they were told she had died, she had contracted dyptheria. It was a terrible thing, she was a beautiful child the same age as myself. How often they must have wished that she had not gone in for such a minor operation. After that they moved to Chadderton outside Manchester."

		Joseph and Josie Cryer "Josie's parents were not at all pleased, they thought she had married beneath her. Josie used to ride around in a pony and trap, there were very few cars in those days. Their daughter Brenda was a couple of years older than me, a very attractive girl. I used to feel sorry for her, she never seemed to have any friends. Probably none of the girls around were good enough for her mother. She was sent away to private school so didn't mix with the locals. According to my Dad, Joseph (pictured left with sister Nellie) was a womaniser, he eventually went off somewhere, we later heard that he had died. Eventually Brenda married and I have not seen or heard of her since."

Annie and Tom Hodgson
"I think Annie was the eldest. She, Tom (above right) and daughter Mabel (above left) lived at Marton. I didn't like Mabel much as a child. She would have been a couple of years older than me and as an only child was rather spoiled. One year we were invited to spend Christmas with them, Mum, Dad, Harold and myself, I don't think your Dad was born then. Annie and Tom made us really welcome, but I will never forget Christmas morning. Harold and I just got a few bits and pieces from Annie and Tom. What presents we had were left at home. Mabel got a great big dolls' pram, you name it she got it. Would she let you touch anything? I don't think so. Was I glad to get home? When she was married and had children of her own I got on really well with her. She used to come to Auntie Bessie's once a week, so living there I saw a lot of her."

Elsie and Theodore Clark
Elsie Yarwood married Theo Clark c1931. "Auntie Elsie was the prettiest of all the girls and was always beautifully dressed. I will never forget when she brought Theo to meet us. A strange looking chap, he was quite short, wore rimless glasses and a Homburg. I don't know how she could have picked him! Later I found out he'd led her a dog's life. They lived in Wilmslow and he was a traveller of some sort. They never had any family, he was too busy chasing married women."

We also have a similar viewpoint from another source. Ray Connolly from Norbreck found this Website while researching other Yarwoods, his mother in law (Alice Fuller nee Smith, b1909, d2000) was a friend of Elsie's. His brother in law Eric Fuller (born 1930) remembered Elsie and Theo visiting his family when he was a small child. He thought Theo worked as a driver of a furniture van or some such, "He was a funny looking little bugger, drove a big van and wore a silly hat."

"Even though they only lived a few doors from Thornton Villas we had very little contact with them. I saw more of them when I was grown up. Though not all that keen on Arthur I quite liked Alice. I don't know why they had no family, she would have made a good mother. She always left presents for us at Christmas and she always kept in touch with Phyllis. I always thought it was a pity they didn't adopt her when Mabel died. Arthur had a removal firm, they moved us when we first came to Dumfries in 1959."

The 1929 edition of the Thornton Cleveleys Trade and Street Guide shows Arthur as labourer, Mill Terrace, by 1934 he is at 85 Fleetwood Road, probably the same address, as a Haulage Contractor. In the 1952 edition his occupation is Parcel Delivery.

Ada and Tom Hopps "Before she married, Ada (right) worked as a nursemaid for Marrs the fish people. She had a wonderful time with them. They all used to go to South Africa for a couple of months in the Summer. The job of course finished when the children got older. Tommy I think is still living in West Drive, he remarried about 3 years ago. A couple of years back when I stayed with your Mum I went to see them. He is in his eighties and I was expecting to see a doddering old man. What a shock I got. He looked 10 years younger than me, his wife, who is Scottish, and a good few years younger than him is a lovely woman and they seem blissfully happy. Sons Lesley and James I have not seen since they were little boys, they are married and have families of their own."

		Bessie and Albert Thomas "Auntie Bessie used to come and visit us when we lived in Carleton. In her younger days she used to suffer epileptic fits which were most frightening. We used to have to put a cork between her teeth to stop her from biting herself. We were quite worried when she got married but by then there were drugs to help and she seemed fine after that. When Joe and I were first married we went to live with Bessie and Albert in West Drive. Albert had been an orphan and had lived in an orphanage in his early years. Their daughter Margaret was like her mother in looks. She used to live down one of those roads behind your Mum's house. I lost touch with her when we moved to Scotland and sadly she died quite young." The rather faded photograph shows Bessie and Albert cutting their wedding cake.

Albert and Rose
"I never had much to do with Albert. He lived in Carleton with his mother until he got married. Rose I never met, I didn't know they had five children."