Born and Bred

Thomas's Story

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Thomas was born in 1912 into a strong methodist family, the fifth child of Horace and Martha Ann Lunn. At the time of his birth, the family were living in Rothwell, and Thomas would spend the rest of his life living and working in and around the Rothwell area.

As a boy, he attended Robin Hood Methodist Chapel. He also went to Robin Hood school, why he went to this school I am unsure, as Robin Hood was a small village a few miles from where he lived, there were certainly schools nearer to him. After leaving school at 14, Thomas went to work for 'Nightingales Market Gardeners' on Rothwell Haigh, close to where he and his family lived. Whilst here, Thomas learnt to drive and regularly took produce to Leeds market.

In July 1935, he married Hilda Clark at the Wesleyn Methodist Church in Rothwell. For a short while after marrying, they lived with Hilda's parents in Clement Terrace, Rothwell, where they had the first of their three children, a daughter whom they named Patricia Margaret.

Shortly after the birth of Pat, they moved into their own house in the next street, Talbot Terrace, where they would live throughout the war years. Sometime between 1935 and 1939, Thomas left his job at Nightingales and went to work for Holman's Coal Merchant, where he spent the war delivering coal and other essential goods.

Although Thomas was exempt from call up, due to his job, he joined the local Home Guard. Towards the end of June 1940, Thomas and his family also put up a family from the Channel Islands, who had managed to leave before the Germans took over. This family of refugees, I believe called 'Le Mesurier', lived in Thomas and Hilda's front room before eventually being re-housed a few months later.

Frank Harper evntually took over the business and Thomas continued to work for him until Frank retired, where upon Thomas subsequently bought the business and continued to run it, however, by then he was too old and thus did not make much money out of it, before he himself eventually retired. The actual business was located at 'The Coal Yard, Gascoigne Road, Thorpe'.

In his spare time, Thomas loved pottering around in his allotment where he also had an aviary for a number of years, where he kept and bred Budgerigars. However, sadly, one year there was a strong storm that destroyed his aviary and killed all his birds, so after that he just concentrated on growing vegetables.

Thomas also played cricket for the Wesleyn League, the ground was located in the grounds of Oulton Hall (now a Hotel, Spa and Golf Resort) in Rothwell. When the League was disbanded (due to mining subsidence), Thomas went to play for Carlton Cricket Club as a fast bowler and on several occaisions he captained the First Team.