Northumberland Archives

BERWICK NEWSPAPERS, 1923

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BERWICK JOURNAL, 21ST JUNE 1923

DEATH OF JOHN DICKSON

The death took place on Friday night at his residence in West End, Tweedmouth, of Mr John Dickson, a native of Edinburgh, but a resident of Tweedmouth for 23 years. Deceased, a butcher to trade, was an ex-Cameron Highlander, before coming to Berwick, and was engaged for some years with an imported meat firm in High Street, Berwick. When war broke out in 1914 he joined the KOSB.’s straight away on the 9th of August, and was soon on the Western Front, taking part in many important engagements, as he also did in Russia before the termination of the loop drawn out campaign. He was once gassed, and on another occasion had both feet frozen, and used to think even with these troubles, that he had come through the great ordeal very fortunate compared to thousands of others. Since demobilisation he has been less fortunate in keeping himself in regular employment, and at one time signed on to go with the Government War Graves Department, where bodies were being exhumed on the open battlefields and decently interred in specially prepared cemeteries, where it is now possible for relatives of deceased to go and find the graves of their dear ones. Mr Dickson was there 12 months, the full period of his engagement. He also served for some time at the KOSB. Depot in the Barracks, cutting and distributing meat rations to the soldiers. Latterly he found employment with the L. and N.E.R. Coy. at Tweedmouth, as a mason’s labourer, but with many others was discharged some time ago under the plea of economy, and redundancy of staff. Although only in his 44th year he has had a very chequered career, but proved himself a straight Britisher all through, willing to fight for the Empire, or work for an honest living whenever opportunities presented themselves either way, but like so many of our ex-service me, the privilege to work was often denied him. He was married to the 3rd daughter of the late Wm. Dryden, West End, Tweedmouth, the famous oarsman who rowed at Tweedmouth Feast Regatta for 50 years and was presented with a beautiful clock from the late Ald. Robt. Marshall, to commemorate his Jubilee as an oarsman on the Tweed. For some time past he has been in failing health, and seven weeks ago he took to bed, and never again rallied, death taking place as stated above on Friday night last from heart failure. Deceased was interred on Monday afternoon in Tweedmouth Cemetery, with full military honours. A detachment of KOSB from the Depot were present, comprising firing party, pall bearers, pipers and following party, while the coffin was covered with the Union Jack. There was also a large following of the general public, amongst them being many ex-service men. Amongst the relatives were deceased’s father, brother and sister, from Edinburgh, Mr Robt. Lowe, Mr John. Murray (Brothers-in-law), Mr Wm. Murray (East Ord), Mr Wm. Murray, jun., Mr John Murray, jun., Mr John Brigham carried out the duties of undertaker; while Rev, P. G. Peacocke, Vicar, officiated at the burial. Deceased leaves behind a widow and family of 5, 2 of whom are still at school; and to the bereaved ones we now tender our sincere sympathy in their sad loss.

BERWICK BARRACKS ACCIDENT

WELL-KNOWN INSTRUCTOR INJURED

On Tuesday, while C.S.M. Brisbane, K.O.S.B., was instructing recruits in the Gymnasium at Berwick Barracks, and was demonstrating the back heel kick from a high bar, he slipped and fell to the ground, landing on his head. He was rendered unconscious for some time. The medical Officer examined him, and it is

Fuller’s engraving of Berwick Barracks 1799. BRO 1637-04

satisfactory to learn that no bones are broken. It will be some time before C.S.M. Brisbane is out and about again. He came from the 2nd Batt. To the Depot in April, 1922, and is a fine soldier. He id well-known golfer on Berwick Town Course. We wish for him speedy and complete recovery.

TWEEDMOUTH GETS MORE HOUSES

Good progress is now being made with the erection of the new houses on the site at the top of Sunnyside, Tweedmouth, on Berwick and Scremerston-road. The scheme, which originated with Capt. J. Evelyn Carr, is designed to augment the housing facilities in the Borough, by private enterprise. A site, capable of accommodating 8 houses, has been purchased, and 2 houses are at present being erected, and will be ready at an early date.

The accommodation of the houses is: Living room, scullery, pantry, coal house, bathroom, and 3 bedrooms. Each house has a veranda and is fitted with hot and cold water. The living room is 16 feet by 12 feet 6 ins. The houses are made of rock faced blockers to the sill course and rough cast above. They have a coronet projecting over the eaves, and the roofs are tiled.

The view the site commands is an admirable one, and will, it is expected, appeal both to Berwick people and workers at Scremerston. All the fittings in the houses will be of the latest design, and everything is planned out for the convenience of the housewife.

The houses will be of the non-parlour type and, we understand, will qualify for the Government subsidy. If that is the case they will be cheap houses for the purchasers

Contractors for the scheme are: Builders, Messrs P. Whitlie and Sons; plasterer, Mr D. Watson; plumber, Mr Staple; painter, Mr Little. Messrs Patterson and Gray are the architects.

SAM LEWIS AND MR LAMBETON

SAM LEWIS

Sam Lewis, the great money-lender, once did a very considerate thing for Hon. Geo. Lambton- he had him arrested and lodged for 24 hours in Holloway Gaol. Mr Lambton naturally did not at the time realise the act was prompted by a friendly spirit. But 2 years later he learned the motive. Rather against his inclination he had been going to Canada to start a new course of life, and Lewis, his principal creditor, on learning this, had him stopped at Liverpool, and made it a condition of his release that he should promise not to leave England. Thus Mr Lambton was restored to a racing career- to the subsequent gratification of all lovers.

MR LAMBTON

Mr Lambton, who is brother of Hon. F. W. Lambton, Fenton, Wooler, tells what Mr Lewis, and “Why he had Me Arrested,” Mr Lambton says – Mr Lewis played very important part in my life, as one action of his probably altered the whole course of it. At last, the time had come when I was stone broke with no money left. No man was ever so fortunate in an elder brother as I was , but there was a limit even to his endurance, and after having saved me many times in my financial difficulties he arranged that I should go out to Canada, where my uncle, Lord Lansdowne, was Governor-General, as a member of his staff, so that my affairs could be straightened out and myself settled down to a more useful life. On the afternoon of my departure for Liverpool to join the boat I was arrested and taken to Holloway Gaol in the suit of Mr Lewis, who was my principal creditor, under the law of “Ne exeat regno.” After 24 hours I was released on giving my word that I would not leave England, so my Canadian trip was knocked on the head. At the time I was greatly surprised at Lewis’s action and thought he had behaved badly, and it was not till 2 years later that he told me the true history of the affair.

Ford Castle, Ref: BRO 426-1025

It was this on hearing the rumour that I was being sent to Canada he went to Marcus Beresford (a member of Waterford Family, who once owned Ford Castle, Berwick), who was a great friend of mine, and asked him if it was true and also if I really wanted to go myself. Marcus said yes, but that I hated the idea of leaving England, and that in his opinion I was quite unsuited to the life that I was intended to lead there, so Sam said, “Well, I shall stop him going, but it must be a secret between us two,” and until Sam told Marcus never breathed a word to me.

Not Just Family History! 

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A common belief is that working in the archives is a cosy job where all you do is sit down and help people with their family history. This isn’t exactly true….. 

I love going out in a van to collect documents and over the years I have visited some interesting places. I had only worked for Northumberland Archives for a couple of weeks when I was taken out in a van to collect records from the Dickson, Archer & Thorp offices in Alnwick. It was liking stepping into a Dickens novel and you could almost imagine Scrooge sitting amongst all the parchments, ledgers and scrolled documents. I can still recall the smell of the building and remember it being extremely heavy work as we carried material from the upstairs rooms down to the van outside. My body ached for days afterwards but despite this, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience and was eager to go out again. 

Going to Prudhoe hospital in 2016 to assess a large collection of documents and plans was also extremely interesting. The hospital had closed so the building was bitterly cold and slightly eerie with its long corridors and rusty old signs. Some of the highlights of the day involved discovering a beautiful staircase, luxurious wallpaper and stained glass windows. The following year, staff spent a few days in the cellar of the Land Factor building in Haltwhistle where we appraised records which were eventually deposited at Woodhorn. It was extremely cramped, hot and dirty down there! It was also very hard physical work but above ground there were some lovely features in the building including lights and glass fire extinguishers.

Alongside all the outreach work we do with schools and community groups, we also work with other agencies such as the media, coroner’s office, police and law courts. We are regularly contacted by researchers who work for tv production companies as they want to use copies of our documents in their programmes. This can often be at very short notice which has an impact on staff as documents need to be scanned and permission may need to be obtained from the depositor if we don’t own the collection. Royalty fees also need to be paid when material is used on television or in a film. Last week we had a request from a film company in India who wanted to use one of our images in a scene in a Hindi film.

One of the departments we have regular contact with is the coroner’s office. Most coroners’ records are closed to public inspection for 75 years. However, if a request is made by a person to view records within the closed period, a request needs to be made to the coroner’s office.

When we are contacted by the police they are often looking into historic cases and need to consult records that we hold. If they need to visit us, they view the records in a closed room away from our Study Centre. The same procedure is followed for staff from the law courts when they come to look at historic court records. Working with these agencies is fascinating but I have to admit, I still love going out in a van!

Dilston Hall Maternity Home, Northumberland

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This blog has been researched and  written by Hilary Love, one of the volunteers on our maternity care project. Project volunteers are researching maternity care in Northumberland with particular focus on Castle Hills Maternity Home, Berwick, and Mona Taylor Maternity Home, Stannington. We are also researching in less detail some of the other Maternity Homes in the county. This blog about Dilston Hall is one of a series that we will post about some of the other Homes. The project is supported by the Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust Bright Charity and the Northumberland Archives Charitable Trust. We will be posting more blog content from the project over the coming months. 

A new hall was built at Dilston in 1835 after the estates had been passed to Greenwich Hospital. When the estates were sold, Dilston was bought by Lord Allendale. In 1878, Dilston House was built and this is now occupied by one of the present Lord Allendale’s sons. After he moved to Bywell in 1942, Lord Allendale granted the Hall for use as a maternity refuge for Newcastle hospitals. The Dilston Maternity Home became established and remained until 1965 when it transferred to a new unit at Hexham General Hospital. After this the Hall was used for the education of children with learning difficulties and in 1971, MENCAP became the owners of Dilston Hall, including the Church and ruined castle. It is now known as Dilston College for the Education of Teenagers with Learning Difficulties. (Taken from The Northumberland Village Book, written by members of Northumberland Federation of W.I.s.)

A letter from Dr. Hart, Obstetric Surgeon, in July 1948, outlines some statistics of use at that time:

Admissions – 600

Discharges – 596

Deliveries – 563

Still Births – 16

Neo-natal Deaths – 7

Caesarian Sections – 12

 Abortions -3

Maternal Deaths – 2

A report of the Hexham and District Hospital Management Committee in March 1949 records the increasing shortage of nursing staff (a familiar concern in 2023!) so numbers of bookings were restricted. 100 cases were booked per month and about 15 placed on the waiting list.

The Hospital was taken over by the Regional Hospital Board on 5th July 1948 which meant cases could be admitted without considering county boundaries. Ante-natal Clinics were held and women encouraged to attend. Clinics were also held at Throckley and Forest Hall. 85% of admitted cases had been seen, preventing many complications. X-rays were done at Hexham General. Post-natal care consisted of an examination on 9th day after birth and some had a second examination after six weeks if they lived near a clinic.

A draft copy of a report by P. H. Knighton, Architect to the Hospital Board, dated 17 February 1950, considers the pros and cons of the possible acquisition of Dilston Hall. His recommendation was to approach Lord Allendale to find out whether he was willing to sell with a view to its adaptation as a Convalescent Hospital, once alternative and suitable accommodation could be provided for maternity patients.

A poignant and touching memory was recorded by Mr. Alex Hillary, April 6th, 2007, as reported to Susan Hedworth, Community Care Assistant.

“Memories of Baby Burial at Dilston Maternity Hospital.”

“I was a taxi driver at Dilston Hall then…. It was a maternity place then ….and I had to take the dead babies up for post – mortem at Shotley Bridge. They crossed their little arms over their chests, just so, with a flower in the middle, and I would come and wrap the cloth over them, put them on a tray and lay them on the back seat of the taxi. I used to have to take them to the Infirmary in Newcastle, too. Live babies, but maybe with no roof to their mouths. The nurse used to  go with them. There’s not one of them came back alive. She said they experimented on them  – to make them better you know. But it didn’t work. …….

But I still remember all those babies, laid out in front of the altar in that old chapel they have there. They were so beautiful, some of them. And do you know where they were buried? There’s that cemetery on the back road from Corbridge to Hexham. Well, just over the wall – that’s where they are. Yes, it’s consecrated ground and they put all the unbaptised dead babies there.”

Image Ref: ZMD/148/183

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