This photograph is of my great Aunt Emma Edwards taken many years ago on the step of her home at 7 Elliott Street, Portrack. She was a very tiny but gentle lady who would often be seen either shopping along Portrack Lane or on her way to chapel. As children we spent many hours in her house, which she shared with husband Jack.
Photograph and details courtesy of John Robson.
My great grandparents lived at 47 Elliot Street in 1891 – names were William and Annie Cassidy. They had previously emigrated to the US (twice !) but came back to the north east originally – Annie from Durham and William originally from Ireland. Thank you for the photos of this area x
Mrs Edwards is dressed, for household duties, like most women in Portrack. A pinafore dress made of cotton keeps the cooking spatters and muck from the laundry and setting up the fire from the proper dress underneath.
An iconic picture!
One thing that stays in my mind was reading through volumes of large hardback books they owned, featuring pictures from the first world war. Aunt Emma died in 1963 and Jack some years before, don’t know which member of the family those books were passed on to.
John Robson