Colette Warbrook

finds out why one particular area was streets ahead for Irene Hulme

T HE Sneyd Street of Irene Hulme's youth was a hive of activity. Whether being chased by angry geese or excitedly preparing for Bonfire Day, there was always something going on.

"What fun and adventures my friends and I had in and around this street," she recalls.

"You wouldn't believe how busy it was; what with the miners, the brickworks and the pubs."

Sneyd Street, where Irene was born, connects Sneyd Green with Elder Road in Cobridge.

"The Hollies was the name of the field behind our houses, where Hanley Deep Pit was," continues the retired 65-year-old, "and that's now the Forest Park.

"My friends and I used to climb to the top of the tip and slide down on a piece of corrugated tin, and I mean the older of the two tips, the one that's still there and covered in trees."

Several paths connected Sneyd Street to Bryan Street, through the Hollies, which was how people walked to Hanley.

"There also used to be a smallholding owned by a Dougie Williams," says Irene, who now lives in Alsager.

"He kept pigs, chickens and geese, and if the geese were loose outside and you were passing, they used to chase you with their necks out and hissing.

"Dougie also had two horses, which he used to tether on the Hollies. One was white and named Beauty, and the other was brown.

"He used to drive a horse and dog cart up and down Sneyd Street, and he always wore a cap and red neckerchief."

I rene, whose late parents were Cyril and Ellen (known as Nellie) Duncalf, also clearly remembers the home of her gran's sister.

"Aunty Polly's house was quite large and used to be a bakehouse many years ago," she says. "The ovens were still in the back of the house."

On the other side of Sneyd Street was a marlhole where dynamite was used to extract the marl.

"There was a man with a Klaxon who went up and down when the workers were ready to blast," says Irene.

"Also, lower down, was the big marlhole we called 'the brittle'. This was the place we played about in and where damaged pottery from most of the potbanks was tipped."

The pubs, meanwhile, were the beating heart of the community.

"The New Inn was run by the Pritchard family," says Irene, "while Maggie Preston helped to run the Bull's Head.

"And then there was the Jug, which the Barton family ran."

But the highlight of the year for Irene and her friends was Bonfire Day.

"There used to be two big bonfires," she says, "one opposite 'the bogs', which we collected wood for, and one below the Wesleyan Chapel, which children from the lower end of Sneyd Street collected for.

"It was a really special day for us and something we looked forward to. And, if we were lucky, there would be 'bunters' and sparklers."

I rene's childhood pals included Elaine Forrester and Christine Hill, and she adds: "It was the end of a community when we all moved and the houses were demolished.

"But I have very, very happy memories of those times."

Irene would like anyone who knows Jean Gibbons, who lived in Barratt Drive, Cobridge, to contact her, as they both worked at Lewis's in Hanley. And Irene is also keen to hear from people who knew her when she lived in Sneyd Street and would love to see a photograph of the old houses before they were demolished. She can be contacted on 07938 545161.