Official Ceremony somewhere in Northumberland 1930s? <COMPLETE>

[muso_bob]

I am speechless!! In reading thorough my mother's papers (which is light on) this photo was very special to her among her 'precious' collection.
Mim - you are without doubt amazing!! As others have stated as well. So very well done and I also have no idea how you did it.

Well, one answer now confirmed - the young girl cannot be my mother. My mother was born in March 1924 so would have been 14 when the centre opened.
So there has to be something else in the photo that was special. I have no idea where to go with this now, so will probably let it pass. Although it irks me.

In my mother's notes she was working for a "lady" by 1937/8 - had left home and eventually joined WAAF 20 Nov 1941 until released 15 October 1945. She apparently was a nanny - sometime however I don't know how old a nanny would be - certainly not 14!

Publicly I would like to acknowledge Gnu & C-side's wealth of local knowledge as well here - so right that it was not Newcastle - who would have thought Yorkshire. Now I will need to consider whether I can confirm my mother going there.

Oh, well back to the drawing board. Thanks again you wonderful people for your contributions.

Kind regards,
A puzzled Robert
   

[mim]

Robert,
Many thanks for your pm. Just to say that your mother could have been working as a nanny at 14 and therefore may

have been employed by the mother of the little girl in the photo and that is why the card was so special to her?

Writing in haste,
mim

[JenB]

Fantastic find, well done - how on earth did you find it?

She apparently was a nanny - sometime however I don't know how old a nanny would be - certainly not 14!

Robert - I wonder if, rather than working as a proper 'nanny', for which she would have needed quite a lot of training, she might have been what was known as a 'mother's help'?

[JenB]

Robert,

I wonder if it's worth an approach to, say, The Todmorden News about this?
http://www.todmordennews.co.uk/

There may well be readers there who know something about the event and the little girl involved.

It's quite possible she is still alive, so we are precluded from discussing here who she might be.

Jennifer

[Gadget]

Hi

I agree with Jennifer as I've found a possible birth reg and Jennifer's found a possible marriage but neither of us can find a death.  She might only be in her 80s or less.


gnu

added - it's on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjy7BAeDwE4

also:

http://nwex.co.uk/showthread.php?t=7667


How very very sad

[muso_bob]

Jennifer - thank you for your link and I used the word 'nanny' as the way my mother did speak of things she did when she was pressed to leave home - as all her siblings were to do. I will investigate the newspaper.

Gnu - thank you also for your links - the youtube is quite compelling and moving really as is the nwex link!

mim finding the building! I dare not ask how - and the links you added - just astounds me.

Christine - I have answered your question via pm as there may be something to follow up.

I feel that while the photo did not answer my question the way I was looking for - it is possibly helping to fill the many gaps I have in my mother's 'life line'.
I am blessed to have so much given so freely by so many people.

Thank you,
Robert

[muso_bob]

I have had a look around Todmorden. I wonder if I stumbled on  the site of the Ormerod Medical Centre - certainly looks sad to me! Just near a canal.
Robert

[muso_bob]

The world is a small place! I was born in Scotland and my wife in Australia - we are both chasing our respective ancestors. We have very recently visited a house where my wife's ggggfather lived in Littleborough, visited the Parish Church there and then onto the other church that celebrated baptisms and a marriage - St Mary's Todmorden!

Lo and behold I saw the 'building in the picture'. All boarded up as you found during the search for this building. I walked around the centre, just under the high railway bridge across from the Market square and it indeed looked sad. What a pity, looks beyond saving now.

So while I am none the wiser as to the significance of the photo to my mother I am signing this post COMPLETE and will create a new one should there be a need in the future.
Thank you all for your interest. Particulalry to "mim" who found the building and identified so much.
Robert