I was born in 1905 up Hunter's Row. There were four of us up Hunter's Row but eventually there was eight of us. It was only a small place, kitchen and living room and two bedrooms. 

The back bedroom where I slept, I've got a vision of lying in bed one night and I turned my head - I could see the wheel of the bells going round through the slit of the window of the church - and it's never left me that hasn't. 

Church Walk cottages, 
between castle Street and Argents Mead

The cottages ran up by that wall of the church. I asked my brother once how many cottages there were. He said there was ten cottages. They were small, run right up. It were cobbled paths up to them and outside there was the water taps. No taps inside, no toilet, out the back you'd just got a kind of a sink and bowl. You had to go outside for your water. 

I went to school when I was four to the church school. That was right near the house. I also went to church school on a Sunday afternoon. It were the Rev Horrell at the time, he was a big feller, six foot, well built, well thought of.



A typical school in Hinckley: Mrs. Whatamore's School in 1903

The school is still the same now as when I went only there's a bit been built on the Church Walks site. The front part on Station Road, where the playground is, is exactly the same as when I went. I reckon there were 40 of us in the class. 

I was in Miss Harris' class and one day I ran away with my sister down Sketchley Brook. The man who comes to see where you are, he came down and fetched us back to school and Miss Harris, she'd got a bag of sweets and she fetched one out and gave me one and my sister one - she was like that, Miss Harris, she was lovely she was.