I have found it helpful to keep alphabetic lists of various things, some brief descriptions of what or who they are and where they are mentioned in the notes on the diaries. I did this when I found myself describing the same person or place twice and/or when I found I had forgotten who someone was. These ‘things’ include:
- Books that I have referred to. These are organised by category and are not in alphabetical order.
- Books that grandad read. These are organised chronologically.
- Chapels and churches – particularly Methodist chapels and churches. Where there is a chapter with a main description of a particular chapel, this is shown in bold.
- Cinemas, theatres and concert halls – as with chapels, where there is a chapter with a main description of a particular cinema, this is shown in bold.
- Facebook groups of which I am a member.
- Films that grandad and mum saw
- Football clubs
- Hospitals
- Parks, public spaces and places of interest – interpreted fairly broadly.
- People – these are organised by alphabetical order of family name (surname). In cases where I only know the first name, I have used that within speech marks. In the case of married women, the main entry is under their married name but their maiden name is also included with a reference to their married name.
- Railway stations
- Shops and other businesses
- Websites that are cross-referenced in the notes
- A list of Ministers at Bourne chapel
- A list of men who appeared before the Kirkby Tribunal during WW1
- Names of people killed in the world wars
- A list of concerts held at the Market/Festival Hall
- A list of dances held at the Market/Festival Hall
- A list of boxing and wrestling bouts at the Market/Festival Hall
I also came across references to the Methodist conference taking place in various cities including Nottingham. I tried to find a list of where the annual conferences have been held but have not found such a list. Therefore, I have compiled a list as best as I am able. This dates from 1932 to 2022 but I have not yet established where the conference was held in 2007.
My grandfather worked in Station Street for most of his working life. According to the 1911 census, the Parkin family were occupying numbers 70, 72, 74 and 76 Station Street. When his diary starts, in 1914, he was working in his father’s shoe workshop there. Later, he became the owner of the shoe business and ran it until he retired in the late 1950s. The Parkin family lived there from when my mum was born in 1934 until 1951 and mum and dad also lived there briefly after they were married in 1956. Both mum’s and grandad’s diaries talk about people and places in Station Street and I have been gradually building up a picture of what it was like “then” and what it is like “now”.
Initially, I documented an imaginary walk up and down Station Street both “then” (circa world war 2) and “now” (2021). This became the most visited page on the website apart from the home page. So, when I came across a video documenting a similar imaginary walk in Norwich, I thought I could do the same here. and managed to do four such videos. Then, in August 2023, I visited Kirkby. I did a real-life walk up and down Station Street and also obtained more material. So, I have completely re-done the page as a walk up and down Station Street. I have kept the original imaginary page as an archive as I have not yet done any updated narrated photos as videos. These also appear on a dedicated page. I also saw a suggestion that we have descriptions of each building on Station Street. So, as the walk was organised in that way, I have set these up.