My grandfather used to come on a coal barge to the Gasworks and used to bring his daughter, my mother…. who met my father, Harry Holloway, who lived in Yarmouth, and so they were married. Harry was in the Navy in the Med for 2 years and I was named ‘Palma’ after the Palma in Majorca. Palma Ault nee Holloway b 1927
Bridge opening for coal boat
It was awful if your radio was packing up. W e used to go to Weston’s and get our accumulator. They didn’t charge much and if you were lucky you had two, so you took one out and put the other in. We used to listen to ‘Take it from Here’ and things like that.
Pauline Harwood nee Hatch b 1930
When our accumulators were charged up at Weston’s shop, they were put on the shelf waiting to be collected. You had to put your name on them. Palma Ault nee Holloway
The main door to Mills, now bricked up, was in the High Street, with a little door on the corner which we use now as the main entrance. The Mills family lived in what is now ‘St James’, next to the Church – the rector lived opposite in what we know as the ‘Old Rectory’. The Mills family owned all of where St James Close is now and it was a market garden, with a tennis court for Nora Mills, daughter of the house.
The wine at Mills was kept in a dark place before you got to the bakehouse.
Old entrance to Mills on High Street
Palma Ault nee Holloway b 1927
On the corner in the Square was Mills Tea Rooms ( now ‘Blue’) where you could see all the lovely cakes and buns they baked. We used to press our nose against the glass to see which ones we’d choose. My favourite was the one with coconut on it. Ruby Meaning nee Mussel b 1915
Mills Tea rooms, corner of the Square and Quay Street.
When I worked in Mills Café we used to have to go across the Square with a big urn, – it took 2 of us to carry it – fill it up with boiling water in Mills Bakehouse, carry it back across the Square to the café and put it on the gas stove. We used to do this 2 or 3 times a day depending on how busy we were. The tea was 1d a mug. The cake shop was downstairs and tearoom upstairs. Palma Ault nee Holloway b1927
I was born in Cadnam and came to Island in 1933 and lived at No. 1 Fort Victoria Cottages. Then we moved to No 10 Mill Terrace in 1939, – I’ve still got the rent book.
All 3 girls shared the front bedroom, parents were in the middle and Stuart in the back bedroom. We used to have to throw buckets of water down the toilet. There was no electric in Mill Terrace until after the War and then you were allowed 2 lights – we had a light in the two living rooms.
Daisy Pitman used to take in washing and put it out on the marsh. She couldn’t get it in when it was high tide and us children were told to keep away from it.
Washing out behind Mill Terrace, with Daisy Pitman in boat