Colliers rhyme

[cappy]

THE TYNE COLLIERS WERE AN EVERY DAY OCCURANCE COMING AND GOING THROUGH OUR PIERS......AS A BOY I WATCHED FOR GRANDAS AND UNCLES COMING AND GOING .....I NEW MOST OF THE NAMES OF THE VESSELS AND COMPANY OWNERS .....FROM MY BED ON WINTRY NIGHTS I COULD SEE THEM COME OUT FROM THE PIER AND IN STORMY WEATHER WATCH AS EVEN THE MAST HEAD LIGHTS DISAPPEARED ....I THEN WAITED WITH BATED BREATH TO SEE THEM REAPPEAR ...KNOWING THE LONGER THEY WERE OUT OF SIGHT ...THE BIGGER THE SEA RUNNING....ALWAYS IN MY EARS WAS THE SHIPS SIRENS BLOWING THERE MOVEMENT SIGNALS FOLLOWED BY TUGS COMPLYING......IT WAS A GREAT UPBRINGING ....A VERSE ALWAYS COMES TO MIND ....FOR THE COLLIERS COMING UP FRM LONDON ....IE



IST THE DUDGEON
THEN THE DOWSON
THEN THE SPURN IS NEXT IN TURN
WHITBY LIGHT IS SHINING BRIGHT ...
THE WEATHERS GOOD THE TYNE TONIGHT

THE GIRLS SKIPPING IN OUR STREET OFTEN SKIPPED TO THAT RHYME AND ALSO BOBBY SHAFTOES GONE TO SEA SILVER BUCKLES ON HIS KNE ...HE,,LL COME BACK AND MARRY ME ...BONNY BOBBY SHAFTOE
MEMORIES ARE GONE NEVER HEAR THE WHOOP OF DESTROY
ERS OR OTHER NAVAL VESSELS NOW ...OR THE SOUND OF PILONS BEING DRIVEN IN.......MY YOUTH WAS MOSTLY SPENT HIRING DONNELEYS BOATS ROWING ROUND THE RIVER WITH MATES ....THE DONNELY FAMILY WERE WELL KNOWN BOAT PEOPLE ON THE TYNE FOY BOATMEN AND PILOT CREW....ALL EMIGRATED TO PERF ..WHERE JWS LIVES...MANY JOBS WENT FROM THE RIVER DONT THINK THERE IS A FOY BOATMAN LEFT THERE NOW ...COULD BE WRONG .. IN THE 60S THE RIVER CHANGED ...BUT THE MEMORIES ARE ALWAYS THERE .....REGARDS CAPPY R 683532

[j.sabourn]

My son was doing a family tree Cappy and he said he found a Sabourn a foy boat man going back to the 1600s , so that puts any accusations of being a French spy at Hartlepool to rest . Do you remember the Zephrus going aground off Cullercoats in 1948 a Greek freighter , the masters excuse was he mistook a newly installed Belisha beacon for the North Pier light. Last time there, there is still a couple of keel plates left. Cheers JS

[cappy]

my son was doing a family tree cappy and he said he found a sabourn a foy boat man going back to the 1600s , so that puts any accusations of being a french spy at hartlepool to rest . Do you remember the zephrus going aground off cullercoats in 1948 a greek freighter , the masters excuse was he mistook a newly installed belisha beacon for the north pier light. Last time there, there is still a couple of keel plates left. Cheers js

yes john remember her also the adelfotis 2 an old grek ...alll hands taken off by breeches boy ...tin the sixties was courting pat we went down to see her ...the coastgaurd motor was stripped of paint the wind being so strong that night the sand just took the paint off the motor like sand p[aper ......also the northern star i think she was on the black middens ....the right name for that pile of rock just under the surface north side......yes know about the sabourns from the 16th century ,,,,,there are astill some hanging round .....but we shipped them out on the ist fleet to perf ....lol regards old friend......cappy

[j.sabourn]

Well the ones here told me that the father jumped ship in Fremantle in 1928. I’ll want to see there are no shackle scars on their ankles if meet them again. When all these ships went aground they couldn’t blame them as radar assisted groundings as ships didn’t have them . I think the greek was very enterprising of coming up with a Belisha beacon to blame, maybe that’s why their name was changed to a Zebra crossing. Take care, they reckon conger eels don’t smell, don’t know what they taste like though. Cheers JS

[j.sabourn]

#2 That put a whole new slant on “ why did the chicken cross the road?”, because it saw the Zebra crossing . Sounds better than because it saw the “ Belisha flashing “. JS.

[Colin Wood]

Conger eel tastes just like cod. Father used to bring home conger eel cutlets for weekend tea. He used to buy them at a big store in Queensway Bayswater London.

[happy daze john in oz]

Then in the dance hall very often a Conga lone, but that brought in no Eels as far as i recall.

[Michael Black]

Cappy #1 still foy boatmen working on the Tyne. They moor the North sea ferries every day, not sure if port of Tyne require ships have to use them, when we used to moor the rigs and ships alongside at McNulty's they would come along although it usually ended up with them watching us handling the moorings.

[cappy]

Cappy #1 still foy boatmen working on the Tyne. They moor the North sea ferries every day, not sure if port of Tyne require ships have to use them, when we used to moor the rigs and ships alongside at McNulty's they would come along although it usually ended up with them watching us handling the moorings.

well michael it just shows what we miss i have not been around in the morn for the ferries but how good to know old occupations are still going ...reallly pleased about those foyboatmen

[thomas michael]

hi john #7
what about eel pie island, a place of blues and jazz in the sixties.
tom