BURLINGTON STREET

BEFORE BURLY WAS DEMOLISHED

Eldie will always be home!

Eldon Street and Burlington Street was an amazing place to live. It was the most happiest and memorable years of my life as a child. A community built on friendship, trust, and reliance on each other. One where if you didn't have a key you could put your hand through the letter- box and open the door. A place of safety, Titchie a place of unity for all the children in the area a community centre, one where parents knew their children were safe from harm, happy and care-free Mr and Mrs Newcombe, Alma and the sewing class. Every day was an adventure, there were many great athletes that lived in our community I am telling you, skiers, runners, gymnasts, long jump, footballers, tennis players, swimmers, shot put. Kids fiercely racing down the long streets, in the depths of winter upon newly formed ice. Budding ice-skaters practising their fancy footwork on roller boots in the roller disco on Titchie roof. Long distance runners, kids chasing kids around the long blocks, racing with in-exhaustible energy in and out of arches. Snowballs thrown so long with amazing strength, Boroughs Baths where kids practised their diving and lengths for hours. Gymnastics class on a Monday in Titchie, the Long Jump in the park at the bottom of the pitch, jumping off swings playing England Ireland, or swinging from a rope tied to the first landing. Then there was Wimbledon, all the kids playing tennis on the large walls thinking we were the next Chris Evert or John McEnroe. Body Popping competitions, Bonfire Lolli-pops from the cake shop, Aggie Myles and Pomegranates. Rooney's and bags of Rainbow Drops, Tony Bennett's the Meat Shop, where Michelle Connolly's mum had the most cleanest nails. Brian's Shop who needed town or Greatie? A see saw, a piece of wood balanced on one of the bollards in the street, the Ghost of Titchie, our very own beauty pageant the May Queen. Bommie Night and Halloween, Disco's on a Friday the bestest Christmas Parties ever. Hours upon hours playing two balls on the bin sheds, the smell of disinfectant on the stairs when Ashy had cleaned them. All the Mothers playing rounders on the big pitch in summer it was amazing, the days so long and continuously child like. Oh I wish just for one day we could go back, I would like to go into Our Lady's Church and make false nails from candle wax or sit in the school playground making daisy chains. So happy, care-free an amazing place to be, I close my eyes often and relive a world that had no Playstation or mod cons of today, we used our imagination to make our own games and played for hour upon hour, wanting to go asleep just to get up for the very next day. No guns or extreme violence but community spirit, a place you were proud to call home. Clare Bostock

We thank Mr McGivern for providing this webpage with a selection of photos picturing Portland Gardens (Burlington Street) - before and during demolition.

We thank Tony Baker for providing this webpage with some photos of the Burlington Street area prior to the demolition of the flats in the late 1980s. We welcome adding other such photos to this webpage and to featuring readers memories etc of 'Burly' before it was demolished.

AN ARCH VIEW

We thank James Shea for providing us with this photograph of Bottom Portland Gardens taken through the archway from Burlington Street.

It is thought that this photograph was taken shortly before the block was partly demolished to make way for the housing now in place. If you have any photographs or memories of the Burlington Street / Portlands Gardens area that you would like to share with this website please contact ronformby@scottiepress.org or call in to the VNC Millenium Centre and we will be happy to feature yor memories on these pages.

BURLINGTON STREET

We are currently seeking more photographs and information about Burlington Street. We hope that former residents of Burlington Street might be able to assist with are intentions to highlight the role that Burlington Street played in the day to day lifestyle of people living and working in the Scotland Road area.

The Scottiepress would like to thank the Liverpool Records Office for giving us permission to feature some of the photographs on this page which are a part of their archive. This archive can be accessed by clicking here

FAMILY HISTORY

Our thanks go to Eileen Cassidy for providing two photographs which picture a family group in Burlington street and a wedding at Our Lady’s Eldon Street Church.

Pictured on the family group photograph are
John Gleeson – who had a General shop in Burlington Street
Mary Gleeson (wife of John)
Biddy Gleeson (daughter-in-law)
Joey Gleeson (grandson)

This wedding photograph was taken in 1933 and pictures the wedding of Winnie Glesson at Our Lady’s Eldon Street Church. Winnine married Srthus Eison The young boy standing to the front of the photo is Joey Gleeson who is now in his 70s.

Along with the Bride and Groom the people pictured would have been members of the Gleeson and Eison families. Best Man on the day was Phil Moyes and Chief Bridesmaide was Mary Gleeson who later became Mary McKevitt. Kitty Gleeson was also a bridesmaid and later on she went on to marry Billy Jennings.