Recently by Crosby Herald newsdesk

A FORMER Waterloo resident has told of his childhood experiences during World War II.
Paul Fletcher, 75, who used to live in Alexandra Road, has recalled life at that time including the Blitz.
His first thoughts of war came in 1938, after watching a sword fight in the Adventures of Robin Hood film and he told his father how he would fight the enemy.
When war broke out airfields being built in Birkdale and Southport as well as barbed wire and concrete tank traps being placed in the sand hills.
He said: "Occasionally throughout the war years we would hear an explosion and see black smoke rising from that area as a dog had strayed into the minefield and set off one of the mines."

Children played an important role, collecting salvaged paper and sacks of old books, which they took to assembly points.
Major raids were on Saturday nights and Christ Church, which was at the end of his road was hit as well as the library, where his eldest sister also worked.
Paul was among the many residents who ran to the church with buckets of water.
He said: "Bits of burnt paper were fluttering about from the library and other houses were alight.
"There was nothing the fire brigade could do about it as all the water was being used up to fight the blaze at Gladstone Dock."
Going to school and realising classmates had been killed was difficult and one of his friends, Ronnie Shaw, who was just eight, was among those who died.
Paul said: "It was sad when going into school to find some of your school pals missing and you found out that their house had been hit the night before and we would not see them again."
Windows were repaired by the council with cardboard instead of glass and there were no sweets, so children contended with Horlicks tablets and cough sweets.
He also remembers the local Home Guard, who were mainly elderly men, marching along South Road to protect the sea front.
Paul said: "They had no uniforms or weapons apart from garden forks, hoes and poles with carving knives tied to the end."

READERS are being asked to send in photographs and memories from their school days.
Photographs have been submitted by Memories contributor Tom Heath from his archive of pictures.
The photographs show Waterloo County Secondary School, which was later Crosby Road North Junior and Infants School, pictured in 1972.

Also featured is a photograph of staff, boys and girls at Crosby Road Secondary School, which was taken in around 1949.

The third photograph shows girls from Crosby Road School, although the exact date is unknown.

If anyone recognises anyone from the photographs or has any information they are asked to contact the Crosby Herald.
Anyone with school photographs or other memories can send them to Lyndsay Young, Crosby Herald, 26-32 Tulketh Street, Southport, PR8 1BT, email lyndsay.young@liverpool.com or call 0151 282 8117.

CATTLE once lined the streets of Crosby and as old photographs show.
A reader has submitted two photographs cows walking along St Luke's Road in around 1934.
They show the late John Bootle, when he was around three or four years old and have been submitted by his widow Cherie Bootle, who now lives in Mersey Road.

Cherie, who grew up in Brownmoor Lane near the dairy in Endbutt Lane and recalled how cows would go past her house and into Brownmoor Park to the fields at the back.
Her late husband John used to live in St Luke's Road and the photographs show him with the cattle in his road.

The dairy was owned by Mr Hall and his cows would travel through Crosby Village and into DeVilliers Estate, which were then fields.
The building in the photograph is the former Jim Armstrong Warehouse.
If anyone has any photographs and memories, they can send them to Lyndsay Young, Crosby Herald, 26-32 Tulketh Street, Southport, PR8 1BT, email lyndsay.young@liverpool.com or call 0151 282 8117.

CHURCHES in Waterloo and Litherland are featured including St John's Church, which is pictured at the junction of Wellington Street and St John's Road.

The church was built in 1824 and it marked a celebration of the Napoleonic wars.
It was fire-bombed in 1940, which destroyed most of the inside and it was reopened in 1951.
Also featured is the first Christ Church in Waterloo Road, which was built in 1840.

The photograph was taken in 1899 when the church was being demolished to make way for the new building, which is now known as Old Christ Church.
Old Christ Church was also later damaged in World War II and vandalism also caused damage through the years.
The third photograph, of which the date is unknown, shows St Philip's Church in Orrell Road in Litherland.

In 1859, the worshipping life of St Philip's was founded and people used to meet at a room above the stables of the former Litherland Hotel.
The foundation stone of the present church was laid in 1861 and The Earl of Sefton donated the land for the building.
Tom Heath, a regular Memories contributor, submitted the photographs and anyone with any postcards to donate to his collection is asked to call him on 0151 931 2033.

READERS have sent in information about a Memories photograph.
The picture is of a joint confirmation ceremony between All Saints Church and St Luke's Church.
John Armstrong and his brother James recognised the clergyman in the middle of the photograph as the Bishop of Warrington, who used to carry out confirmations at that time.
They also recognised the clergy man on the left as Raymond Lee, who he believes is now a Canon but was the vicar of St Luke's Church during at that point.
The clergyman on the right, they recognised as Paul Elliot, who was Curate at that time.
They also said the photograph was taken in around 1973 or 1974.
The man wearing glasses at the very back of the photograph is a man with glasses, who they recognised as their late father, Ted Armstrong.

The boy on the right, pictured wearing a jacket and tie, pictured with his thumb in his pocket, is their cousin Steve Cottier, who still lives in Crosby.
The boy to the left of Steve, is John Brookes and the woman to the left of former vicar, Rev Lee, is Steve's mum Doreen Cottier.
The boy in front of the Bishop is Colin Spiers and the boy to the left is Peter Gagen.
Anyone who recognises any of the people on the photograph or has any other pictures for Memories is asked to send them to Lyndsay Young, Crosby Herald, 26-32 Tulketh Street, Southport, PR8 1BT, email lyndsay.young@liverpool.com or call 0151 282 8117.

PHOTOGRAPHS have been sent in to the Crosby Herald showing one woman's time in the Land Army.
Maureen Murphy of Ennerdale Drive, has sent in the photographs of her neighbour Rose Culkin, who served during World War II.

Rose, who will celebrate her 90th birthday this year, trained as a milliner in Liverpool before leaving the role to join the Land Army.
During her service she worked as Silcocks Farm in Litherland and at Hillcroft Farm in Halsall.
Rose ended up working for the Forestry commission in Hawkshead in Cumbria planting saplings which have now grown into a forest.
Maureen, 58, said: "She made many friends during those years and managed to stay in touch with them for years."
In the photographs Rose Culkin is pictured with Maggie Myers, Kathy Dwyer and May Webb, who were also in the Land Army.

She is also pictured in another photograph with farm hands at Hillcroft Farm in Halsall.
Maureen said: "As Rose will be 90 years old this year, the fresh air and hard work didn't do her any harm."

Readers can send their own photographs and memories to Lyndsay Young, Crosby Herald, 26-32 Tulketh Street, Southport, PR8 1BT, email lyndsay.young@liverpool.com or call 0151 282 8117.

THE series of churches pictured in the past continues this week in Memories.
Places of worship in the photographs include Crosby Congregational Church, St Andrew's Presbyterian Church in Waterloo, St Mary's Church in Little Crosby and Sefton Church.
The former Crosby Congregational Church, pictured on the corner of Mersey Road and Eshe Road, has now become Crosby United Reformed Church.

It is one of a number of photographs submitted by Tom Heath and it is not clear when it was taken.
The church was formed in 1885 to serve Crosby and Blundellsands, which was growing in population and within ten years the congregation grew to up to 300.
Mr A Brown Paton, who was a member of the church, laid the first foundation stone in 1897.
In 1972 the Congregational Churches in England united with The English Presbyterian Church to form The United Reformed Church in England.

St Andrew's Presbyterian Church in Crosby Road South in Waterloo is also pictured, possibly during the Victorian era.
The church was founded in 1855, the old building was developed in 1857 and the cornerstone for a new church building was laid in 1906.
Building work started on St Mary's Church in Little Crosby in 1845 and it was consecrated in 1847.

Sefton Church, the only Grade I listed building in the borough, is also pictured although the date of the photograph is unknown.
It was first built in 1170 as a private chapel of the Molyneux family and some stones from that era still exist.

The tower was built in around 1320 and the church was completed in the early 1500s.
Anyone with photographs or memories of churches in the area is asked to send them to Lyndsay Young, Crosby Herald, 26-32 Tulketh Street, Southport, PR8 1BT, email lyndsay.young@liverpool.com or call 0151 282 8117.

A PHOTOGRAPH has been sent in showing a parade in Litherland and the old lift bridge in the background.
It is believed to have been taken in the 1960s and shows the bridge in the background from Bridge Road.
Pictured is former Mayor Cathy Roberts and it was submitted by her granddaughter-in-law Liz Birchall.

Readers who remember the event or have any other photographs of the lift bridge are asked to send them in to the Crosby Herald.
Photographs or memories can send them to Lyndsay Young, Crosby Herald, 26-32 Tulketh Street, Southport, PR8 1BT, email lyndsay.young@liverpool.com or call 0151 282 8117.

MANY people may remember a street carnival in Crosby in 1975.
Chris Leigh has submitted photos he took of the parade from his parents house in Mersey Road.

The first photograph shows Alexandra Hall in all its glory and the second photograph shows the parade being led along Mersey Road towards the hall by a police panda mini car.

In the third picture the parade has reached Alexandra Hall and it also shows the traffic build-up in Coronation Road.

Anyone who remembers the carnival or has any other pictures of the event is asked to contact the Crosby Herald.
Readers are asked to send information and pictures to Lyndsay Young, Crosby Herald, 26-32 Tulketh Street, Southport, PR8 1BT, email lyndsay.young@liverpool.com or call 0151 282 8117.

A READER has told of her memories of a cinema in Litherland.
Freda Hurst of Dowhills Park was prompted to write after seeing a photograph of the former Colosseum in Linacre Lane, which was pictured on October 23.
She used to go there with her three brothers Eric, George and Clive on a Saturday afternoon to see their favourite programmes.

Freda said: "My brothers liked Roy Rogers and buck Jones also The Mask of Zorro. he used to have a sort of big whip and he used it like a lasoo, hurling it in the air and it left a Z mark on his opponent's forehead."
Scores of readers have responded to the photograph and the cinema which later became the Essoldo.