Samuel Bamford was the first to publish his account of everyday life in Middleton. In his diaries published in the 1840’s, he describes the daily life of the local handloom weavers, the customs and celebrations which they enjoyed and their struggle for political reform.In her biography, Alice Mellalieu-Campbell describes working in the Middleton Junction jam works in the 1930’s. Basil D’Oliveira wrote about the welcome he received from local folk when he joined Middleton Cricket Team in 1960. Helen Tse wrote “Sweet Mandarin” in order to tell the story of her grandmother, Lily Kwok, who opened the first Chinese restaurant in Middleton in the 1950’s. And not forgetting Alfred Howarth’s ‘Memories of a Middleton Moonraker’, his
recollections of life during the twenties and thirties.
All these books are available in the local studies section at Middleton library. We also have a wealth of unpublished accounts of local people’s lives.
Do you have memories of day to day life or significant events in Middleton history? If so we would like to invite you to a “Tell your Story” event at Middleton Library on Tuesday 2nd June from 10 – 12pm.
Come and view these first hand accounts of Middleton life.
- Alice Campbell will be there to tell people how she wrote her autobiography and had it published.
- The ‘Memories of Middleton’ Team will also be present. They can tell you how to write a short article for their magazine.
- Why not write a page or two and bring it with you. We will also have a member of a local writing group to tell you about the group she attends and maybe advise you on how to write your own life history.
