Does anyone remember Dolphin Street?

[dean1]

Hi hillsbro, excellent addition to the thread.

if you can get hold of a 1903 old ordnance survey map of Darnall, you'll see exactly how adrift the street was from the neighbouring estates. But as you say slap bang next door to the pit. i was wondering about their daily lives, Pit, allotment, chapel, pit, allotment, chapel, pit ----. Then the first world war!

as steve1953 stated earlier there are two photo's on Picture Sheffield showing the allotments next to the houses. There were also more allotments further up Broad Oaks Lane, thats the dirt track in front of the house on the photos at Picture Sheffield.

The casualty list posted by Ronty is not quite correct, but if you saw the photo of the memorial you'll understand how the mistakes were made. The 8 deaths should read -

 

Elkington, Thomas Mellor.

Jacques. J.

Jacques. William.

Johnson. James.

Leary. Robert.

Methley. Ernest.

Martin. A.

Waller. J.

 

 

Had quite a bit of fun on the Great War Forum sorting that out!

Dean.

[hillsbro]

Indeed, Dean, life was a lot simpler then - you did your shift at the pit, worked on your allotment, went to chapel etc. ... and then the war! I just looked up one of the casualties - Ernest Methley from No 21. He was killed in 1917, aged just 20. Unlike my great-uncle he doesn't have his own grave; his name is on the memorial at Thiepval. Just one casualty out of millions - such a waste.

I don't have a 1903 Ordnance Survey map but I just remembered that I have a 1912 edition, and so I looked it out. Here's a scan in case it's of interest:

http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u219/twigmore/DolphinSt2.jpg

Looking at the aerial photo on "Live Search" the area has, not surprisingly, changed beyond recognition, but Broad Oaks Lane can still be seen.

[dean1]

I think it got worse in the early 20's, there was an accident on the 3rd Dec 1923 when 7 men were killed at the Pit.

I cant find a casualty list of the men, but was wondering if some of them were on the War memorial that survived the war only to be killed at work?

Simpler life hillsbro, but i think a lot harder than today.

[carsupplier]

I know some of you have put links to old maps on here showing Dolphin Street, but I have been sent a map of the Attercliffe area, which I think is from around the 1950's. It shows Dolphin Street and Broad Oaks Lane opposite the Nunnery colliery. If anyone would like to see it I can send it via email to you, just PM me.

 

Chris.

[Greybeard]

Detail from the 1903 OS map here...

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/Taidi/Dolphin.jpg

 

Dolphin is an odd name for a street of little terraced houses - does anyone know who built them ?

 

Possibly the owner of Nunnery Colliery ?

[missis]

Many thanks to Steve1953, dean1 and hillsbro for responding! Steve1953 - have looked at photos on Picture Sheffield and will go into Sheffield Library as soon as able, to have a better look. Dean1, I would be delighted to receive photo of memorial - hope you got my e-mail address ok. Hillsbro, thanks for map reference. I think the street was probably built for the miners. Apparently the Molloys weren't in Dolphin Street in 1901 (as your research shows) - they were in Thomson's Square, Portobello Street, which I believe is (or was) up near St. George's Church. I'll have to wait for the 1911 Census to find out if they'd moved to Dolphin St by then. I am told that no. 42 was at the railway end of the road. If I find out why Dolphin Street was so called, I'll let you know.

[steve1953]

Many thanks to Steve1953, dean1 and hillsbro for responding! Steve1953 - have looked at photos on Picture Sheffield and will go into Sheffield Library as soon as able, to have a better look. Dean1, I would be delighted to receive photo of memorial - hope you got my e-mail address ok. Hillsbro, thanks for map reference. I think the street was probably built for the miners. Apparently the Molloys weren't in Dolphin Street in 1901 (as your research shows) - they were in Thomson's Square, Portobello Street, which I believe is (or was) up near St. George's Church. I'll have to wait for the 1911 Census to find out if they'd moved to Dolphin St by then. I am told that no. 42 was at the railway end of the road. If I find out why Dolphin Street was so called, I'll let you know.

 

hi missis, glad the photo was some help, i was born on harrogate road just off kettlebridge and dolphin streetwas no longer a bustling street me and my friends spent many a happy time tadpoling in cowlishaws pond which was part of the old nunnery pit remember the slag heaps well happy times.

[dean1]

thanks for the 1903 map greybeard, my scanner is Kaput so i coudn't post it.

Dean.

Just been on google earth, and Dolphin St is still there ish! The plot of land where it once stood still survives exactly as it was, but covered in greenery now. The allotments to the south east also remain.

Is there any one able to overlay greybeards map onto google earth opaquely and post it? I've tried and failed!!

[hillsbro]

I was curious to know when Dolphin Street was built. Using data from the 1891 census, I looked in the 1881 census return for a dozen or so of the residents. I found eight of them, but none of them lived in Dolphin Street. Most of the ones I looked up came originally from outside the area. Two, for example, were from Staffordshire, and in 1881 they lived at Wales and Kiveton. Others were from Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire, all coal mining areas. So I am wondering if the houses were built in the 1880s, and people moved into them as they transferred to Nunnery from other pits.

[Jazzer]

Hello Kirky,

I'm a newcomer to the site and had grandparents who lived in Dolphin Street Grandad John Henry (Champy) Smith and Grandma Polly lived at No 1. I heard My Uncle Vin Hutchinson who married Aunty LIzzie call it the Indian Village. Lizzie said he married one of the squaws. My Dad's Parents John Henry Turner and Rose lived in the same yard at the bottom of the street. There was a WW1 war memorial in a large picture frame hung on the wall at the bottom of the street. I have a photo of it. Many of my relatives names were on it. I went to visit the street with my Mum, I think in the early eighties, but they had just about finished demolishing the street. I wonder what happened to the war memorial. I would like to see it again if it is still kept somewhere. Eight of the lads from that street gave their lives in that war. It should have been preserved for posterity in the City and should also be on view to the public like any other Memorial.

 

 

Hi whoever is still on this thread ..

 

We lived in Dolphin Street from 1951 to when it blew down in the gales of 1962, I was born in 1953 so had my first 9 years there. My dad still remembers a lot from those days and we are digging out some of the photos taken on my mothers box brownie. My dad was in lodgings at Mrs Taylors (no 2) before we were allocated a house (22)

and while there (approx 1948/1949 as far as I can work it out)distinctly remembers a somewhat unstable neighbour having a go at the memorial with an axe, presumably to destruction. Which will explain why no-one has managed to find it. I have a photo of the flattened street with Mariott's farm (between the street and the railway) still going strong, with new factories emerging over on

the pit site. When I think how much freedom we had to roam the pit stacks, build dams in the streams, scrumping apples from Mariots farm etc etc I realise how overprotected and underpriviledged kids of today actually are......