William & Janet Clark's Children - Janet - Janet & Luke's Children - Jenny - Second Marriage to Norman Stafford

Sometime In 1943/1944 Jennie was invited to 1 Dodsworth North Greenside by a work colleague that worked at Scotswood Baths; their name was Charlton. Norman was friends with the husband and just happened to call in when my mam was there. Jennie and Norman were married on the 1st April 1944.  Norman did not tell his parents that he was going to get married, and I am not sure that my Grandma and Grandpa Dent knew either. There were no photographs taken of the wedding. They had two daughters Dorothy and Pauline.

1 Dodsworth North Greenside today

Jennie and Norman lived with his parents at 16 Milton Street for a couple of years where their first daughter Dorothy was born in 1944. Shortly after their second daughter Pauline was born in 1946 they bought the house opposite, 13 Milton Street Greenside.  

Pauline aged 14 and Jean Stafford 13 Milton Street Circa 1960

13 Milton Street today

By today's standards these houses were very basic, known as 'two-up and two down' (four rooms in all) with a back yard containing an outside toilet and coal house.  Coal was very important as it fed the only heating in the house, a cast iron range in the main room.

Similar Range to that installed in 13 Milton Street 

These ugly beasts were the only means of keeping the house warm, and they were also used for cooking and hot water, as they had an oven and a boiler.  Like many people after the war, Norman and Jennie decided to 'modernise' the house, so after a few years dad ripped it out and replaced it with a tiled fireplace. 


This, thereby, caused a problem, 'what to cook on'.  So a small cast iron coal fired stove was bought called a "Baby Belle," still ugly, but much smaller, was installed in the scullery, so two rooms now had a form of heating.  However, the "Baby Belle" was still hard work, but you didn't have to tramp through the house with dirty shovels of coal from the coalhouse  The stove had round plates that you lifted with a metal type hook leaving a hole where you placed the pans over the flames.  Dad also installed a bath in the scullery with a wooden hinged top over it and this was used as our kitchen table. (all mod cons!)  There was some type of boiler system installed for hot water.

A modern day version of a cast iron stove

This old photograph not only shows a range, note the clothes drying above.  It also shows an old man sitting in a rocking chair and surprisingly it is the same as the one I inherited from Grandma and Grandpa Dent - apparently it belonged to Luke's sister (my Great Aunt Amelia) who lived at Woodlands, near Bishop Auckland.

My Rocking Chair and Black Dolls today

William & Janet Clark's Children - Janet - Janet & Luke's Children - Jennie's Life Moves On

The beginning of Jennie & Norman's Family Life

1947 Norman with Dorothy aged 2 and Jennie with Pauline aged 1 
in garden of 13 Gregson Street Scotswood

1950 Dorothy aged 6 Grandpa Luke, Pauline aged 5 & Jennie
at Tynemouth Open-air Swimming Pool

Circa 1953 Pauline & Dorothy On A Day out with Mam and Dad

Circa 1963 Pauline aged 17 Dorothy aged 18 taking Rover for a Walk to Kyo Farm Greenside

PAULINE'S WEDDING - 30th SEPTEMBER1967 - GREENSIDE CHURCH
     L-R:  Thomas Tweddell (Grooms father) Jennie (Jean) Stafford (Bride's Mother)

               Jillian Tweddell (Groom's Niece) Allan Tweddell (Groom) Pauline Tweddell

               (Bride nee Stafford) Dorothy Stafford (Bridesmaid) Ian Tweddell (Best Man)

               Florence Tweddell (Mother Ian & Allan) Norman Stafford (Brides Father)

 Bride Pauline aged 21 - 30th September 1967 

Three months after Pauline's wedding in January 1968 Dorothy Married Ian Tweddell at the same church with her sister Pauline as 'Matron of Honour'

DOROTHY'S WEDDING - JANUARY 1968 
With Dad Norman with his two beloved daughter's

DOROTHY'S WEDDING JANUARY 1968 TO IAN TWEDDELL (TWO SISTERS MARRIED TWO BROTHERS)

L-R:  Thomas Tweddell (Grooms father) Jennie (Jean) Stafford (Bride's Mother) 

         Ian Tweddell (Groom) Dorothy Tweddell (Bride nee Stafford) Harry Tweddell

        (Brother & Best Man) Florence Tweddell (Mother of Ian Allan & Harry 

        

ELISE'S CHRISTENING 1978

Pauline's first and only child and Grandchild

     L-R: Phil Hartnell Dorothy Hartnell (nee Anderson - my cousin) 

            Dorothy Tweddell (Aunt) Jennie (Jean) Stafford Grandma  

                                   

For almost 10 years Elise brought unprecedented happiness to Jennie (Jean) and Norman, as did Jennie and Norman to Elise as can be seen from these photographs -

1978 "Happiness is a Grand-daughter - Grandma Stafford Jennie) with Baby Elise who is very interested in Grandma!

1978 I'm a Grandpa! -  Norman aged 68 with his new baby Grand-daughter - Elise likes his joke!

September 27th 1980 Elise's 2nd Birthday
What joy in being able to blow out your candles on your
Birthday cake made by Grandma who is holding on
Aunt Dorothy clapping her hands and Grandpa is just so happy!

Give a bairn some water and a Grandpa (and Grand-daughter) and the world is perfect

When you get tired a quick cuddle from Grandpa "is just the ticket"

Happiness is doing the dishes with your Grandma!

It's that water thing again - Grandma Stafford (Jennie) with her 'perfect' grand-daughter - she later taught her to swim

Probably the last photograph taken of Elise with Grandpa and Grandma

Sadly nothing stays the same (that is life isn't it). Even though Jennie (Jean) was 7 years younger than Norman she died before him. Jennie was born on the 17th August 1917 and died on the 22nd December 1987 at the age of 70.  Norman died on the 10th October 1991 at the age of 81.