What Redhills means to me | Bill Richardson

Every experience of Redhills is different; Durham Miners Hall means so many things to so many people. We have set out to explore what Redhills means to the community whose ancestors created and paid for it.

In the first part of our series, we explore the experiences of Bill Richardson, a retired maths teacher, whose grandfather, WP Richardson was an Agent of the Durham Miners Association. In his formative years, this meant that his grandfather and father lived in Number 1 Redhills Villas.

Name: William Pallister Richardson (aka Bill) (age – over 75!)

Where were you born and raised?: Born in a nursing home in Newcastle at the end of WW2.  Pre-NHS. Dad was
still in the RAF. The house my parents lived in from 1935 was in Chester-le-Street and we left there in about 1948.  Though born in Crook, mother was raised there.
We had a couple of years near Preston then Dad got a headship in North Worcestershire. So all my schooling was there.  In 1963, I went to Manchester University.  That is where I met my wife and we married there. I taught at a school on the south side of Manchester.  In 1973, I got a job in Elgin [in Scotland].  Next year, it will be 50 years since we moved into the house
where I am writing this.

Dates of Redhills memories:
I am a grandson of WP Richardson who was elected as an agent in 1915. This meant the whole family shifting from Usworth to 1 Redhill Villas.  The family consisted of WP, his wife Esther, four daughters and my father.  The latter was the youngest and his birthday was in March 1911. As you will see from your records, WP held several DMA positions. Beyond that, he was involved with the Miners Federation of Great Britain and was appointed Treasurer on 1921. During the 1920s he travelled a lot and I have his passport, which may be the second one that he had. His wife died in 1927 and WP died in 1930, aged 57. I have a letter that he wrote and posted to my father on his last day.  It was a Friday, and he was supposed to be heading
to Weston-super-Mare the next morning for the annual MFGB conference.

Whilst the Richardson connection is clearly the major one, I do have connections through my mother.  Her maiden name was Gilliland. Her father was John Edward Gilliand who, after many years of mining, was appointed as a DMA Political Agent
and was based in Chester-le-Street.  He was a younger brother of James Gilliland, who held several DMA positions including President and for many years lived in 2 Redhill Villas. Finally, a sister of John E and James, Mary Ellen, was married to John Moordaff Cape, Political Agent in the Auckland Division.

My visits have been many, especially in the last 15 years since I began to display symptoms of my obsession with genealogy but I did go to one gala in my teens. I used to spend several weeks in the summer holidays with my mother’s eldest sister. Vera had married Hector Nicholson who had a baker’s shop in Chester-le-Street and around 1960 I went to The Gala.  I was taken aback by the liveliness of the event but I can remember little more. Some years later, in 1985, we travelled to Durham for a Silver Wedding celebration of some cousins.  On that occasion, I did visit Redhills and went inside and looked around and asked questions and soaked up the atmosphere.

Around 2009, I bought a flat in Lanchester and since then have made several visits each year, usually calling in at Redhills.  I spent many happy hours in the Muniments Room looking through its contents.  On one occasion, I noticed a photo which was definitely in need of some TLC and discovered that it was of the Women’s Labour Section 1945 Silver Jubilee and, on the front row, included my Gilliland grandmother, who had been the secretary for the first five years. (I asked permission and was allowed to apply supply the necessary TLC.)

What does Redhills mean to me?:

I find it exceedingly hard to answer this. From what I have written about my family it should be clear that in many ways it is like an ancestral home with my family living in the servants’ houses.  They were ‘servants’ they served the miners and much, if not all of the Durham community of workers. My dad lived there from when he was a small boy until he was approaching 20.  It is where he grew up and I have lots of photos of him ‘capering’ and messing around with his chums.  Much later when I was able to visit the building, seeing so many photos of grandad with his twisted bow tie was very emotional.  

We would love for you to tell us your story of Redhills, which you can do so here