John Wilkinson    Family Tree 

 John Wilkinson 1922-1951 Father   My   father,   also   John   Wilkinson,   was   born   30th   Dec 1922        at        Lee        Siding        Huts,        Hesleyhurst, Northumberland,    son    of    John    Wilkinson        and    his wife,   Sarah   Eleanor   (nee   Hall).   The   only   boy   of   five children,    his    sisters    were    Esther    Hindhaugh    (Born 1920),    Isabel    (Born    1921),    Stella    (Born    1927)    and Elizabeth   (Born   1931).   He   married   my   mother   Vivian Knox    at    St    James    Church,    Shilbottle,    in    Oct    1945. Known   as   Jack,   he   was   nicknamed   Fixer.   He   worked as    a    stoneman    at    Shilbottle    Colliery    and    lived    at Bilton   Banks   with   my   mother   after   they   got   married. I     have     heard     stories     of     him     and     some     of     his workmates,   walking   to   work,   at   Shilbottle,   through the   fields   when   the   roads   were   closed   due   to   snow. This   would   have   been   almost   three   miles   each   way. They   eventually   moved   into   2   Percy   Road,   Shilbottle village.   My   mother   told   me   that   in   1950   an   extension to    the    church    graveyard    was    consecrated    by    the Bishop.   They   watched   this   from   the   back   yard   of their   house   and   my   dad   said   'I   wonder   who   will be   the   first   one   in   there'   Unfortunately   it   turned out   to   be   himself.   He   was   injured   in   a   fall   of   stone at     Shilbottle     Colliery     and     died     in     Ashington Hospital   on   the   1st   Feb   1951.   Obviously   I   have very   few   memories   of   him,   but   two   things   that   I can     remember     are     coming     down     stairs     one morning   and   seeing   what   seemed   like   a   very   large fish    lying    on    a    newspaper    on    the    living    room floor.   He   had   been   out   poaching   the   night   before. The   other   thing   I   remember   is   sitting   on   his   bed at     the     Hospital     a     few     days     before     he     died. Regarding    the    poaching,    I    was    at    Aunt    Stellas funeral   late   2007   and   met   Sir   John   Hall   (My   dads cousin)   for   the   first   time.   I   said   'I   bet   you   don't know   who   I   am',   after   admitting   that   he   didn't,   I told   him   that   I   was   the   last   John   Wilkinson.   I could   see   his   mind   ticking   over   and   suddenly   he said 'You're Jack the poachers son'. Memories !

Mam and Dad