Quayside behind Castle Walk (c.1870)Photograph from the Heavisides Collection 
Picture Stockton Archive
A Pictorial History of Stockton-on-Tees
Quayside behind Castle Walk (c.1870)Photograph from the Heavisides Collection
Pushing Away Haven’t heard the story as you put it, but variations I have heard, read and seen, some of these instances would amount to the same, the cry of “not on my watch “I have heard in Stockton, pushing the body back out at a certain time and place in the tide turning process would send the body over to the Yorkshire side, that I have either heard or read. This must be a common practice around the world, in Belize, South America, the river authorities used to get paid a reward for pulling the bodies out of the river, this recovery was scaled, not going in to all on the scale but amongst them was, cats, dogs and humans. All animals were just “recover and collect your reward”, but humans, they were a different kettle of fish, for the want of another saying. You pulled the body out, you proved that you did not kill the person then you collected the reward, which was up to one half years pay. Hong Kong and different sides of the river to which different amounts you collected, all bodies were inspected for what they called punt marks, I think this is where the barge poles come in to it, if any punt marks were found the opposite side of the river authorities were fined. So did a practice exist in Stockton of using a barge pole, well unless you can question a person who did it then the mystery will stay. Roy.
As a user of Jimmy Kelley”s ferry I can honestly say that at that time(1955-62) he did get paid for taking bodies from out of the River. The going rate at that time was 5/- Stockton side and 7/6p on the Thornaby side. He new how the under currents worked and if a body was known to fall in on a certain day he knew where and when it would rise on another date. He often used grapling irons to pull a body from the bed of the River. I can remember him telling me about rowing up to Yarm to retrieve a body which was reported hanging from branches of a tree after the Spring Tides. He cut it from the branches and it dropped into the boat. As far as pushing bodies out of the way it would not be Jimmy. I could say that if one was seen it may be the Police who would ignore it because it was they that had to do the paper work. Then again I could not see that this would happen.
Hi Alan ,just read what you said about pulled bodies out the tees and getting ten bob on the yorkshire side and a few distant memories came back, I can recall sitting in a pub and being told by an old timer who was sat at the next table years ago they would push the bodies back out with a barge pole so they didnt have to spend all day doing the paper work, How far true it is I dont know or maybe the old boy was after a free pint, So if Roy Parkin or anyone else can shed any light on this Id love to know if he was pulling our leg about the story
This pic seems to be what we called Kellys Wharf who ferried people to Thornaby side for a toll. it is said he pulled bodies out of the river usually on the Yorkshire side that paid ten shillings , Durham side only paid 5 shillings
Is it, Was it, How Conjecture, guesswork, opinions, basis and inconclusive information, or conclusion and judgement resulting in printed and well documented facts. Without them both we have sameness and boredom for want of a couple of words or should we say lack of variety. Placing your conjectures down, as well as factual information by using some sort of reference to go to, would be very helpful and nice, so we can all go there and see for ourselves what our library service has to offer. Unless you have a very comprehensive private library at home then the public library service is all that is left throughout the Borough. An example of this is as follows: ‘Cromwell had many small buildings razed to the ground; it wasn’t the size of the place it was what it stood for, he even sent a corporal and three troops to have a road side shrine demolished because it was rumoured that royalists used it for some sort of meeting place and was symbolic to their cause. Where did this information come from, Hollywood, or some distant memory of mine, which I read or someone told me? Do you know? Obtaining the correct reference point for this would help the long saga on this site of Stockton Castle. Roy.