Chris, writing a story like that about the Lambton Worm, how long were you in that hostelry and how much foaming ale did you consume before writing your narative. THE SHERIFF.
Here’s the words to the song of the Lambton Worm, one of the few songs or poems I know all the words to. It tells of how a young John Lambton, who’s family owned the lands around what is now Washington, caught a strange creature when fishing in the River Wear and threw it in a near by well before leaving to fight in the Crusades. However he was to return to catch and kill the creature that grew into a fearsome beast and become a hero of the local people of Lambton and the surrounding area. Very much a St George and the Dragon kind of story that was past on over the years.
I wrote the first verse in the Northeast accent but to do the whole story as it should be would be hard for non ‘Geordies’ to grasp. The first verse is the chorus sung at the beginning and after each verse by everyone and the story told by one singer. The accent isn’t actually Geordie but uses the unique Washington dialect, which is neither ‘Mackem’ (from Sunderland) or ‘Geordie’ (from Newcastle) the tale of the Worm is in the heart of Washington close to the banks of the Wear.
My Father was born in Washington and I had trouble understanding what my Grandad was saying in my younger days when he used to visit our Newcastle home, the ‘twang’ is only heard now from older Washington folk, too many settlers from Newcastle and Sunderland have diluted the original tongue.
My Grandfather drove the works Loco in Washington Chemical Works until his retirement in the late Sixties and although he breathed in Asbestos dust for most of his working life he died at the age of 94, however he was probably responsible for many other Washington people dying early from Asbestos related disease due to the huge white spoil heap he helped create that blotted the landscape next to the works. Drivers on here may know the works as Cape Insulation or Newall’s before that but in these parts it was always known as the ‘Chemical’.
Hope you understand the song, it goes to the tune of: De, de, de de de. Dum dum, de de, dum dum, de de de. I live a stones throw from the said Well, River Wear and Worm Hill which isn’t actually Penshaw Hill as in the song but an ancient mound behind the Well, and of course the song is true!
The Lambton Worm
Whisht, lads had ya gobs, a’ll tell yi a’ll an ahful story, whisht lads had ya gobs a’ll tell yi boot thi woorm.
One Sunday morning Lambton went a fishing on the Wear, an catch’t a fish apon his hook he thou’t looked very queer.
But wat’n a kind of fish it was young Lambton couldn’t tell, so he wouldn’t fuss to carry it home so he hoyed it doon the well.
Noo Lambton felt inclined to gan and fight in foreign wars, so joined a troop of knights that cared for neither wounds nor scars.
An off he went to Palastine where strange things him befell, and very soon forgot aboot the queer woorm in the well.
Noo the woorm got fat an graad n graad an graad an awful size, with greet big teeth, a greet big gob, an greet big goggly eyes.
An when at neets it crawled aboot ti pick up bits o news, if it felt dry upon the road it milked a dozen Coo’s
Noo this awful woorm would often feed on Lambs n Calves an Sheep, an swall’y little bairns alive when they lay doon ti sleep.
An when it had eaten all it could an it had had it’s fill, it crawled away an lapped its tale nine times roond Penshaw Hill.
News of this awful mighty woorm an its queer gannings on, soon crossed the seas an got to the ears of brave an bold Sir John.
So home he comes an catched the beast an cut it in two halves, an that soon stopped it killing Bairns n Lambs an Sheeps n Calves.
So now yi nar how all the folk’s on both sides of the Wear, lost lots of Sheep an lots of sleep an lived in mortal fear.
So lets have one to brave Sir John who kept the bairns from harm, and saved the Coo’s by making halves, of the famous Lambton Woorm !
THE SHERIFF:
Chris, you being a Sheffield man, can you tell me the name of the street in Sheffield where the Cyclops works were, was it Carlisle street east. I remember loading plates from Dalzell works in Motherwell to the Cyclops works which as you know was the armour plating works. Andersons also loaded a lot of scrap armoured plate from HMS Arkroyal which was cut up at Cairnryan and transported it to the Cyclop works in Sheffield. Sadly like a lot of other mills Cyclops is no more. If my memory serves me correctly you had to reverse off a roundabout and down a ramp to enter the works which was very old and seemed to have a lot of history about it.Regards THE SHERIFF.
Well,I do remember the place but I never went in it.I’m sure it was Carlisle Street East,on the right hand side going towards Rotherham.I seem to think it was an old Cammell works,the one’s of Cammell Laird fame.A mate of mine who drove for J J Shepherd,Oughtibridge,Sheffield did some loads ex Cairnryan back to the place,must have been in the 70s,not sure.My friend sammyoposite on here might know.
Don’t know much about the Lambton Worm mate,never been in the Barley Mow either,we never had time to stop,a bit like Sam and McKelvie.BRS lads are the one’s to ask,they’d all the time in the world. 
And Franky,I’d no problem understanding the dialect and I know all about the Lambton Worm now 
Thanks for that Chris, would it be opening a can of worms to ask what the Cammel people done in the works and how Cyclops works got its name. Cammel Laird were ship builders did they fabricate steel for that industry. ?
hiya,
Cyclops works, bit of a one eyed hole, sorry, sorry.
thanks harry long retired.
THE SHERIFF:
Thanks for that Chris, would it be opening a can of worms to ask what the Cammel people done in the works and how Cyclops works got its name. Cammel Laird were ship builders did they fabricate steel for that industry. ?
I shall have to do a bit of googling to find out more.As I say I never went in there and I’ll bet it was one of Harry’s “one-eyed 'oles”,Carlisle Street was full of 'em.
Can anyone tell me what works in Sheffield was owned by the English Steel Making Company and who,s transport did they use, thanks Bobert.
THE SHERIFF:
Can anyone tell me what works in Sheffield was owned by the English Steel Making Company and who,s transport did they use, thanks Bobert.
Hi Robert, English Steel Corporation was a massive firm it was on Carlisle Street, Hawke Street ,Janson Street and Brightside lane amongst other places it would depend what type of load you fetched out as they did bars,billets,ingots and then castings which were up to around 300 tons in the 70s but it became British Steel Corporation and now the only bit left is forgemasters. I think I have got it correct. There was a multitude of haulage firms ran out of it and internally as well if you would like me to name some I will and what I carn’t remember I am sure tax evading Chris will. opps did I write that Chris.
PS if you look up "Sheffield Forum " they have a big section on the steel industry
cheers Johnnie
sammyopisite:
THE SHERIFF:
Can anyone tell me what works in Sheffield was owned by the English Steel Making Company and who,s transport did they use, thanks Bobert.Hi Robert, English Steel Corporation was a massive firm it was on Carlisle Street, Hawke Street ,Janson Street and Brightside lane amongst other places it would depend what type of load you fetched out as they did bars,billets,ingots and then castings which were up to around 300 tons in the 70s but it became British Steel Corporation and now the only bit left is forgemasters. I think I have got it correct. There was a multitude of haulage firms ran out of it and internally as well if you would like me to name some I will and what I carn’t remember I am sure tax evading Chris will. opps did I write that Chris.
PS if you look up "Sheffield Forum " they have a big section on the steel industrycheers Johnnie
hiya,
Yes Franky used to pull ingots out of the Brightside lane works, seemingly Consett Works was the only place in the UK who could roll that particular stuff into plates, did many a load from there.
thanks harry long retired.
sammyopisite:
THE SHERIFF:
Can anyone tell me what works in Sheffield was owned by the English Steel Making Company and who,s transport did they use, thanks Bobert.Hi Robert, English Steel Corporation was a massive firm it was on Carlisle Street, Hawke Street ,Janson Street and Brightside lane amongst other places it would depend what type of load you fetched out as they did bars,billets,ingots and then castings which were up to around 300 tons in the 70s but it became British Steel Corporation and now the only bit left is forgemasters. I think I have got it correct. There was a multitude of haulage firms ran out of it and internally as well if you would like me to name some I will and what I carn’t remember I am sure tax evading Chris will. opps did I write that Chris.
PS if you look up "Sheffield Forum " they have a big section on the steel industrycheers Johnnie
Well,tha got most of it right Johnnie.“Tax avoidance” is better than “Tax evasion” though.
ESC was formed by Firth Brown and Vickers and was nationalized in 1967.I used to get them mixed up with United Steels which was Steel Peech and Tozer,Samuel Fox and Appleby Frodingham as well as various pits and coking ovens - Orgreave was one (United Coke and Chemicals).
Robert,I’m not sure that ESC had their own outside transport,BRS were big players and other Sheffield hauliers - including C.H.Preston who I worked for and others were in a group known as Sheffield Haulage and Storage on Petre Street that pooled the work.
And now,as my mate Johnniesammyoposite says,all that’s left is Sheffield Forgemasters which is thriving apparantly.
Harry Bonsall, P & O Middletons, Warringtons. Truswells. Trowbridge. Parkers. J.J.Shepherds, Harry Atkinsons, Kitchens, Simmonittes, Thomas Smith, Lol Wilson, Harry Waters, Robert Earls, Rivelin Valley, Talbot, Wilf Baxters, Hadfields, Mills, Frank Philips, Wheeler Road,and cox there is some more but I can’t think of at the moment
Thank you for the information gentlemen, the reason for my asking was I was reading a book on The Dambusters and in particular Barnes Wallace and it stated that the castings for the bouncing bomb were made by the English Steel making company in Sheffield and machined at Metropolitan Vickers at Trafford Park, Manchester. Thanks for the info on Chris, I had heard it was for tax evasion he left the country and in particular dare I mention DODGY NIGHTS out, not that I am one for causing trouble you understand, many thanks gentlemen for the info, Bob
sammyopisite:
Harry Bonsall, P & O Middletons, Warringtons. Truswells. Trowbridge. Parkers. J.J.Shepherds, Harry Atkinsons, Kitchens, Simmonittes, Thomas Smith, Lol Wilson, Harry Waters, Robert Earls, Rivelin Valley, Talbot, Wilf Baxters, Hadfields, Mills, Frank Philips, Wheeler Road,and cox there is some more but I can’t think of at the moment
Cooper and Hart,Caudles,Askeys,RDB for t’bits,Sandygate Haulage,H.Cawthorne,Jacksons,Henry Matthews,George Cowen,R.H.Kitchin,yer man from Grenoside who had the LEP contract and there’s more
THE SHERIFF:
Thank you for the information gentlemen, the reason for my asking was I was reading a book on The Dambusters and in particular Barnes Wallace and it stated that the castings for the bouncing bomb were made by the English Steel making company in Sheffield and machined at Metropolitan Vickers at Trafford Park, Manchester. Thanks for the info on Chris, I had heard it was for tax evasion he left the country and in particular dare I mention DODGY NIGHTS out, not that I am one for causing trouble you understand, many thanks gentlemen for the info, Bob
Eyup Bob
No,tax avoidance not evasion.Took two suitcases full of white fivers on the ferry from Heysham,all dodgy night out cash.It was ok for those with sleepers AND THOSE WHO HAVE THEM NOW Money was tight in them days so dodgies were a big bonus.
And you could tear a sheet up and make another out to get you home.I couldn’t cope with tachographs,too much like hard work turning that Veeder Root knob thingy,that’s why I went shunting.God knows how you cope with a digi card,we don’t bother with things like that in our Crown Dependency.
Sammyoposite will tell you about the bouncing bomb - he took the first one from Trafford Park to the south coast for testing on a solid tyred Scammell and got a dodgy night out as well
Whats a Dodgy card, a Tacho card and a Log book, I havn,t heard of them up north are they anything like a harness you put on the pump of a Gardner to get some life into them. Did your mate drive a Steam Scammel, I didn,t know they made them,It must have been a long haul from Sheffield to the south coast in one of those, I wonder how much coal and water he used. Bob.
It is my intention to visit a suburb of Sheffield on Monday, namely Buttertwaite Lane, Ecclesfield, I am now wondering if I will be safe in that neck of the woods due me being in contact with a tax evader. Bob.
THE SHERIFF:
Whats a Dodgy card, a Tacho card and a Log book, I havn,t heard of them up north are they anything like a harness you put on the pump of a Gardner to get some life into them. Did your mate drive a Steam Scammel, I didn,t know they made them,It must have been a long haul from Sheffield to the south coast in one of those, I wonder how much coal and water he used. Bob.
Sorry Bob,I forgot Scotland was a Crown Dependency .Did you know that Scotland once owned the Isle of Man,that’s why they never used log books or tachos over here.Log sheets/books - GTF
My mate Sammy drove a Sentinel steamer,did ten miles to the ton and 100 galls of watter.Straight over Woodhead with a bomb from Sheffield to T.Park,tip,load a machined bomb and away down to the south coast,tip,backload tomatoes off MMD and home all in one shift.That’s why he’s worth a fortune
Is that why he is saying NOWT because there is an element of truth in what you are saying. To have driven a steam Sentinal you must be a fair age and being able to remember it is even better. I take it Chris some of your mentors told you about Sammy as it would appear you come from a younger generation altogether. Do you think Sammy could post some of his exploits on here for us all to read in relation to his steam power days and could we have some of the "you don,t know your born " stuff as well please. Bob.
Chris, in relation or retaliation to Scotland being an English dependency, REMEMBER BANNOCKBURN.Before you mention Culloden , a certain race has put pressure on the government to remove the houlicost from the education coricullum as it did not happen, we are doing the same in relation to Culloden.In relation to the Scots going as far south in the 1745 rebellion as Derby then heading home again was Bonnie Prince Charlie stopped paying the night out money and put his men on by the trip. Bob.
Help.I saved a post as draft while I checked something and now can`t find it to post it.
Anyone know how,please.
Mark.