Farrington Park

[Colin Damp]

A couple of things. I had always been under the impression that No 7 Church Road had belonged to dad's aunt rather than his grandmother, but I could be wrong.

As to Dr Raven, mum once said he turned up in Leyland towards the end of the war and was rather scruffily dressed, being (according to her) a "displaced person" of German origin. Over the years he acquired a Lancashire accent and integrated into the community completely. I do know he bred, or at any rate kept, daschunds and would get very cross if anybody referred to them by the anglicised term "dash hounds".

I think he first went into partnership with Dr McDowell, John Hall coming along later. John was our doctor when I was in my teens and had major kidney surgery. He was also very kind to my mum in her final illness (she died in 1978). I was shocked to learn that he had died suddenly only a few years later.

I vaguely remember Dr O'Donnell. I think he was my grandad Newsham's doctor when I was small and I seem to remember he was done for driving his car (a Jowett Javeline, I think) while under the influence. That would have been in the early 1950s.

[frank h]

Dr Raven was my doctor until he retired, I remember he then moved into the detached pink painted house at the junction of Moss Lane & Wigan Road.I remember workimg on the property prior to his moving in with I think 2or3 Daschunds.

frank h

[anacortesdamp]

Colin:

I knew we'd run across Dr. O'Donnell somewhere along the way. I think you're right about him being Grandad Newsham's GP.


Frank

[Colin Damp]

On browsing this one again, I remembered a piece of history about Mill Street.

Unlike Leyland churches who had their "Walking Days" at Whitsuntide, Farington's was on the last Saturday in August ("The last Saturday in Farington", my grandfather used to call it). It was to mark the arrival of the first bail of cotton at Farington Mill after the end of the American Civil War during which cotton workers all over Lancashire had been laid off.

Until the 1970s, the walk would always pause at the top of Mill Street and the band would strike up with the "Old Hundredth" - "All creatures that on earth do dwell..".

I was told that the men from the mill bore the bail on their shoulders down the street singing that hymn as they went.

Not sure "Walking Days" still happen!

[shuffy]

Walking days do still happen but sadly the 'last saturday in farington is no more as St Ambroses joined with all the other leyland Churches for one big joint walking day.

[noel]

quote:

---

Originally posted by shuffy

Walking days do still happen but sadly the 'last saturday in farington is no more as St Ambroses joined with all the other leyland Churches for one big joint walking day.

---

I've been looking high and low since Colin's query about St Ambrose walking day. I know my mother took loads of photos as we lived facing Mill Street. Probably I'm on this somewhere age 5 or 6 and looking innocent as the day is long.