Boat House Terrace,Cambois

[BIGhurst]

I have found out, to my surprise, that I had family living in Boat House Terrace, Cambois in 1901.  I believe it is still there, does anyone who lives or knows the area give me some idea as to the type of area it was then and any other info you may have I would be very grateful.  The family were Meredith and they were from Wales.

Many thanks

CAROLE

[diamond lady]

Hi Carole
I saw your message about Boat House Terrace in Cambois. I am sorry to say the street does not exist any more, the houses were pulled down when I was still quite young. I might be mistaken but it was about the late 60s. Cambois was a small mining village which is what drew a lot of people from different areas to live there, that is how my family ended up living there. My father grew up in a street next to there called boca chica. When I was small we lived in sinkers row just down the road but that was demolished so we moved further down the village. It is right on the coast so as children we played on the beach. Once the coal mine closed the miners had to travel to other colliery's to work but as we know they all closed eventually.

Susan.

[BIGhurst]

Thank you Susan.  Seems I was given the wong info by somemone on another genes site.  It looks like my family went from pit to pit lookimg for work dragging their family with them, they ended up in Tyldesley which is in Lancashire.
But it does enlighten me as I had never heard of Cambois!

Many thanks, CAROLE

[lambeth1]

My grandfather was born at 44 Boathouse Tce Cambois. Sorry to hear that it's gone. He had lots of brothers and sisters plus mum and dad so it must have been a squash as I imagine miner's cottages were not up to much. The rest of the family were born in Bedlington and my dad went to school there. The name is LAMBETH but got changed back and forth to LAMBERT  and was sometimes spelled LAMBERTH Anyway he and my grandmother emigrated to New Zealand in 1926 and my dad was a coalminer most of his working life but he always loved the beach and would drive us children there every weekend that he could. Most miners from Huntly New Zealand where we lived aspired to retire to the beach when they retired. Very understandable in my view. Unfortunately he was killed in a road accident before he made it. Anyone have class photos from Bedlington school circa 1920 ?

[Phodgetts]

A photo showing the rows at Cambois. It will give you some idea of the place they lived. It was grubby at the best of times, a place of heavy industry, and it was bitterly cold in the winter especially with the east wind blowing in off the sea. No central heating in those rows, just one fire in the main room, and the sash windows needed to be shut tight and the gaps plugged with old rags or newspaper to keep the awful drafts out in winter. Outside toilets too. Not an easy or overly comfortable life back then.

P

[Phodgetts]

The rows of houses are now lost to what has become Battleship Wharfe. The site is currently earmarked for some changes.

If you make an online search with the words 'battlership wharfe blyth' you will get to see various images of the site as it is now and what might become of it.

I will also add an unmarked photo of the one I sent you above, so you can save it for your own use.

Enjoy

P

[TriciaK]

I often wondered how Cambois got its name? Also Boca Chica but I think this has already been explained somewhere.
It sounds a bit french - un bois is a wood (trees), or boue is mud.
I've looked it up and cambouis means sludge. The kind you get in motor engines. But why the french?
And Boca Chica - someone in the past had a sense of humour 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boca_Chica

[Phodgetts]

Here you go Tricia. How Boca Chica got its name.

http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php/topic,601558.10.html

P

[TriciaK]

1745! A good story, thanks PH. Phil.