Riley street houses and residents

Details of houses and residents of Riley street written by Kath Cashen nee Hayward in 2002. She recollected them during her school days and teenage years. Kath was born in 1920. The following details describe residents of each house number from 1 to 31, as Kath recalls them. Copies from her handwritten description - transcribed in first person.

Number 1 - Large two-story building. Their children were all older than us. Sadie is the only name I remember.

Number 2 - The Clarke family - children - Biddy, Delia, Donny and Gerald. I think there were more older children, but I cant remember their names. Donny and Gerald were about our ages.

Number 3 - The Milton family - Miss Mag Millen, Miss Chris Millen and Mr Horrie Millen. Theyowned a butchers shop in High Street, next door to Tippings shop. As primary school children Peg Breeze and I used to call in there every afternoon on our way home from school. They were Peg's aunty and uncle.

Number 4 - The Hayward family - this was our home. My parents bought the house around 1924 and lived there until their deaths in 1965. There were five children in our family - Kath, Sadie, Marie, John and Mary. I would have been around 4 when we moved there. My father and his brother Clyde owned the Blacksmiths Shop in Station street, between the old Dungowan Theatre and Schwarts's garage, which was on the corner of High and Station Street.

Numbers 5 & 6 - Pair of semi-detached houses.

Number 5 - Mr and Mrs Griffiths - they had no children. When they moved, Mr and Mrs Rogers and family and old Mrs Jones lived there. The Rogers children were Tommy, Jeanie and Dougie. Later the Wilsons lived there.

Number 6 - Mr and Mrs Greggs and family - George, Freddie, Olive, Doreen and Claire (?). Mrs Greggs, Mrs Griffiths, Mrs ROgers, Mr Jones (House 22) were all children of old Mrs Jones.

House 7 - Old Mrs Joyce and her son Eddie Joyce

Number 8 & 9 - Pair of semi-detached houses.

Number 8 - Mr and Mrs Rickwood and their nephew Alan Reardon.

Number 9 - Mrs Smith - I think she used to play in an orchestra.

Number 10 - The Field and Want families. Later Ron and Jean Blatch.

Number 11 - The Graham family and I think it was Mrs Graham's mother lived with them. Later George and Ethel Greggs - they had a son Graeme. When George and Ethel moved to their own home, Freddie and Dot Greggs lived there. George and Freddie were Mr and Mrs Gregg's (Number 6) sons.

Number 12 - The Wade family - their family were all older than us. Eileen is the only name I can recall.

Number 13, 14 & 15 - My recollection of these places are not quite clear as to whether there were two or three houses here but I thought there were three. I can remember the Walsh family living between the Wade's place and the big shed. I also knew the Winchester family had lived in Riley street in the 1920's so I rang Joyce Dukes - she was Joyce Winchester and asked her just whereabouts her parents had lived and she told me that her mother had told her that when they had rented a house from the old lady - Mrs Hughes - who owned two houses next door to the Wades. Mrs Hughes lived in one and the Winchesters rented the other one. Joyce herself was born after her mother, father and brother Harold had moved to Union road, which was in about 1929 or 1930. I can remember the Cherries (?) and their daughter living in that area at some time also. There were also people named Le Voon who I think lived beside the big shed. So maybe there were three houses there as I thought there was.

Number 16 - Big shed - I cant remember what it was used for.

Number 17 - Large vacant block - it may have belonged to the Masters as they used it.

Number 18 - Masters grocery and general store - Mrs Masters and her son Arthur owned it. The store faced High street but had a back entrance from Riley Street.

Number 19 - Triglones Tank shop & residence. It also faced High Street and had an entrancefrom Riley Street. It had a large block of land at the back.

Number 20 & 21 - Pair of semi-detached houses.

Number 20 - The Enright family

Number 21 - The Smith family then the Lane family - one child Bernie. My brother Jacky [she only listed one brother called John, could this be Jacky?] and his family lived there for a few years in the 1960's.

Number 22 - Mr and Mrs Jones and family - children Eileen, Bill, Bessie and Charlie. A Mr and Mrs Stevens lived there before the Jones.

Number 23 - The Stubbings family. Then the Riddings family.

Number 24 - The Markham family - Mr Markham was once the Mayor of Penrith. His two daughters - the Miss Markhams as we knew them, having a Sunday school class at their home every Sunday. I can remember Peg Breeze, myself and my sister Sadie going to it each week. I would have been no more than 8 or 9, which would have been 1928 or 1929. Later Mrs Masters, who had the grocery shop on the corner - her daughter Stella and her husband - Mr Reddan - and family lived here.

Number 25 - Mr and Mrs Millen and family - children Jean & Betty. Mr Millen was a brother of the Millens who lived next door to us.

Number 26 - The Graeme family - they had a very large block of land and at the back of their place they had a big sawmill which was entered into from Jane street.

Number 27 - I think this house was built on part of the Graemes block. The Bool family - they had twin girls. Later the Reece family.

Number 28 - The Breeze family - children Geoff and Peg. Mrs Breeze was a sister of the Millens who lived next to us. When Peg married she married Jack Beadman - they lived at home and she looked after her mother, who was bedridden. Peg and Jack lived there until all the houses in Riley street were being sold, when they moved to Union road, taking Miss Mag Millen, who was Peg's aunt and who was living alone, as her sister andbrother had both died with them. Peg and Jack had two children Janet and Kate. Peg and I were lifelong friends from our earliest school days and onwards.

Number- 29 - Old Mrs Marsh and her grandson Alfie Stevens who lived with her while he went to school at Penrith High School he was my age. Later Geoff and Eileen Breeze - Eileen was the daughter of Mr and Mrs Jones (Number 22). They had two children - Judith and Alan. LAter Mr andMrs Morris and family of two boys.

Number 30 - Mr and Mrs Brown - they had no family. I cant remember the names of those who lived there after the Browns moved to Lithgow, but sometime in the 1950's, Joan Horstman and her husband - I cant remember his name - lived there for a while. Joan was the daughter of Mr and Mrs Horstman who owned the old Dungowan Theatre in Station street.

Number 31 - These houses really faced Jane street, I cant remember the names of the earlier occupants but in later years, Bill Jones - the son of the Jones from Number 22 and his wife lived there for a while.

At the back of the Stevensons, Clarkes, Millens & Haywards there was a cattle sales yard which faced Jane street and the other side faced Little Jane street. In later years, Sopers Timber yards were where the old cattle yards used to be.