Changes I have seen in Barwick
Back to the Main Historical Society page
Changes I have seen in Barwick
from Barwicker No. 57
HOUSING.
My earliest memories
of Barwick start in 1937 when I lived at No.40
Main Street. No.40 was not the neat little
terrace house that it is today, but was in need
of many repairs and indeed had been 'condemned'
as had many other properties in Barwick.
Therefore in 1938 when the allotments in Chapel
Lane were taken over and the site used to build
'council houses' in Welfare Avenue and Croft Way,
it was a big change for many families to be
rehoused into accommodation which included a
bathroom (no longer the zinc bath in front of the
fire) and an inside toilet. Although the houses
had been condemned they were re-let during the
war years in some cases to house evacuees from
London and other places.
In 1950-51, the houses in Carrfield Road
were built. Some of the older houses in The
Boyle were demolished in the late 1950s and
replaced with the first purpose built bungalows
for Old Age Pensioners. More bungalows were
built in Carrfield Road for the senior citizens
together with the John Rylie House which was
opened in 1974.
In 1959 a new sewerage scheme was built
around Barwick and Scholes and this enabled the
mass housing development to take place. Flats
Lane and the Gascoigne estates were the first to
be built followed by the Richmondfields and
Elmwood Avenue, and in more recent years
Parlington and Beck Meadows were built.
EDUCATION.
In 1937 I
started school when Mr Ashworth was headmaster
although I don't remember much about him or Mr
Spedding who succeeded him as headmaster. Mr
Gray was the head I remember most and he was all
right. Miss Shillito and Miss Grimshaw were the
other teachers at Barwick. Pupils who passed the
scholarship went to Leeds to secondary school but
after the 1944 Education Act, we all had to go to
Tadcaster Grammar School or Parlington Secondary
Modern School (where the new houses have been
built in Aberford) and in more recent years to
Sherburn High School followed by Boston Spa High
School.
As a result of all the house building in
the village, the school was not big enough to
cope with all the extra children and a large
extension was built and opened in 1965. The
extension included a school hall, a staff room
and a kitchen so that meals were cooked on the
premises and not transported in. It was not long
before the school again became overcrowded and
temporary classrooms were erected in the school
grounds, and in 1971, the Infants School (for 5-7
year olds) was built.
In the early 1970s we had two schools;
the Infants' (5-7 year olds) and the Junior (7-11
year olds) but the numbers gradually declined and
in 1985 it was decided to close the Junior School
and merge with the Infants School as it is today.
The extension to the Junior School was demolished
and redeveloped into 'Schoolgate'. The old
school was left empty and became a sad sight with
boards at the windows and we now wait with
interest to see what the new development of the
school will be.
MEDICAL CARE
In 1937
there were two medical practices in Barwick: Dr
Knowles held his surgery at No.70 Main Street and
Dr Young held his at No.66 Main Street. In each
case the waiting room was outside in Main Street
and the consulting room was the 'front' room of
these houses. In later years both doctors moved
to houses lower down Main Street where patients
could wait inside (an improvement!).
It was in the early 1950s that Dr Smith
bought 'Elmwood House' and the adjoining cottages
which were later developed into a garage and a
surgery with a large waiting room and also a
dispensary. This was in use until 1987 when the
present Medical Centre with all its modern
facilities was opened.
BARWICK IN BLOOM
One of the most recent changes which we have all
witnessed in the village is the improvement the
Barwick in Bloom team have made with the flowers
and shrubs etc. and their hard work. The success
they have achieved is a good way to move forward
to the new Millenium.
FREDA HEWITT
Back to the top
Back to the Main Historical Society page