I had been retired about three years when that dreaded fowl pest was found in the stock of a poultry man just below where I lived. This caused a bit of a shake up in our district. The inspectors came round and examined my stock to see if it was on my place. They told me I was clear of it but they warned me they would probably have to destroy all my birds as I was in the contacted area and would report to me in a couple of days. They came all right. A van pulled up with two men who told me to stay in the house as they were going to gas every bird I had on the premises. "Just a minute before you start. You told me my birds were clear." "It's quite all right." they said, "We will compensate you for every bird you have". It seemed to me a bad thing to do to destroy healthy birds that were laying but I could do nothing about it, but I was not the only one. A lady who lived only across the road had a stock of about 2,000 healthy birds, her complete livelihood. I always remember her coming to me and saying "What shall I do now? It will take me a couple of years to build up my stock again". I told her "You have my sympathy but I would not try to build up another stock because you will have a nice compensation and I would buy a nice little bungalow with it and clear out of this hard work". She just remarked to me "You are all right, you are on a pension but I am not".
It was a sad day when they brought the excavators in and dug deep trenches in the field to bury the birds, it looked a terrible waste of good stock. Myself, I was not unduly shocked about the whole matter as I was then 67 years old and knew I could not build up again or try to after I had cleaned everything up. I wrote to my landlords, the Lancashire County Council at Preston and told them my position. I got a curt reply, "Carry on the best you can. We understand." I explained the situation to the young fellow who was tilling the land for me and told him "I shall clear out of this holding at the first chance I can get, so if I were you I would get the most out of it as you can". He thanked me and said "If there is anything I can do for you, let me know".

At this time they had started to build old folks bungalows in Skelmersdale so I decided to try and get one of these bungalows as we, my wife and I, had always lived in Skelmersdale before we came to occupy the holding in Lathom which was only a mile from where we lived in Skelmersdale. My first thing to do was to get in contact with the housing authorities in Skelmersdale as they were then starting on a number of old folks bungalows. I went to see one of the Councillors who was in charge of the Housing Department and I put my position to him. He listened and then said to me "You have a nerve asking us for a bungalow when you neither live in the place or pay any rates to us". I could only answer back, "I have lived in Skelmersdale and all my family who are well respected in the district. Also I have done all my trading here". He replied to me, "You have not an earthly chance, Mr Yates". Anyway I was snubbed and went home a bit disconsolate but in the meantime I pondered my next move.

I had always been a member of the Labour Party whose meetings were held monthly in Skelmersdale. I had one or two good friends in the party who were councillors. I brought my question up at one of the meetings. "Is it possible for me to obtain an old folks bungalow in Skelmersdale," I asked, "as I live in Lathom?" One of the councillors said to me "That's a bit of a sticky question, Tom and I am afraid you will never get one. I am sorry and I understand your case as we all know that you have always been attached to Skelmersdale along with your whole family. As long as the independants on the council are in power they won't study you".
Twenty one of the bungalows went up that year, 1960. I filled a housing form up but from what I learned after it was not even studied. Anyway having plenty of time on my hands I kept and spent much time amongst the people of Skelmersdale, and one day I was sat down with some old codgers and talking about things that had gone by in the past when who should arrive and greet us all with, "How do you do lads". I quickly rose to the occasion as I had always known him and his family. I just simply said to him, "Is there any chance of having a quiet chat with you Sir, it's a bit confidential?" He looked at me and said "Can you make it for 3 o'clock tomorrow afternoon?" I just said "Any time is suitable for me", "Right tomorrow afternoon at 3 p.m." he said. I told my wife when I got home and she was like the independants on the council and remarked, "I am afraid you have little chance of a bungalow in Skelmersdale."

I arrived punctually on time at his house and he greeted me and asked me in. "I have finished my dinner and have a good hour for you Tom". I immediately got to the point how I was fixed with the situation on my holding in Lathom and could not manage it, then I asked him was it possible for me to get a bungalow in Skelmersdale, "You know I and all my family have always lived and worked in Skelmersdale". To which he replied, "Yes, your family have always been respected here and you have my sympathy, Tom" he said, "I will write you a note to give to the chief clerk as you go past the council offices". He got his paper and pen out and then immediately said, "On second thoughts, I'll see him myself Tom". Also I had second thoughts when he said this as I knew he would be conferring with his colleagues on the council before he made any move.

The council had started to build another 15 old folks bungalows in 1961 and I spent a lot of time in trying to contact different councillors. I know I was snubbed a time or two but I had nothing to lose. It was late September that year when the forms were to be filled up again by applicants who required one. I went to the Council Office and obtained a form which I filled up and passed into the clerks office personally, and also by doing this I had a little chat about the possibility of tenanting one, "It's not for me to say" he remarked. The time came for the bungalows to be taken, I knew this time that my name had been put forward to the council and waited for results of their choice. I was turned down again. It left me a bit disconsolate and I began to wonder whether it was worth the trouble trying any more so I carried on doing a bit at home and helping my friend across the road who had decided to build up her stocks again when she had got the all clear from the authorities on the fowl pest.

A few months went by. I had always kept my attendance up at our Labour meetings and was starting to acquire knowledge about council affairs. We had got quite a few young men in our party who had ambitions to try and be councillors and on this year, 1963, we were trying to get control of the council by putting up a few more candidates. Election time came and the Labour Party achieved what they had never done before and got complete control on the council. This again wakened my ambition to have another try for a bungalow as the council had planned for another 13 bungalows which had already been started on in School Lane. I then wrote to my landlords, Lancashire County Council, and asked them was it possible if they could help me in any way to obtaining one. I did not even get a reply back from them, I dare say they thought "Here's another fellow reaching for the moon". Anyway I stuck it out and tried to talk myself into a bungalow, I spent a bit of time on the site where the bungalows were being built. I said to my wife "If I don't get one this time I am going to apply for one in Ormskirk, and I don't like the idea at my time of life to move there amongst strangers".

A few months went by and it got to late November when these bungalows were finished. I had heard they were going to pick the lucky applicants so they could be tenanted for Christmas. I had already canvassed our labour councillors at our party meetings and asked them to do their best for an old colleague. I shall never forget. I was spending an afternoon looking round the stalls on Market Day in Ormskirk when I got a tap on my shoulder and an old friend said to me "I have a bit of good news for you Tom, you have been picked out for one of the bungalows in School Lane, but keep this under your hat till you get official confirmation which will be forthcoming". I thanked him for the good news and went home quite elated about the whole affair and thought to myself - this is a nice Christmas Box for us both. I received due notice from the Council that I had been a successful applicant and would I come and collect the key for the bungalow and also my signature for the tenancy. I was there prompt on time and eager to have a look at the place. It was a fortnight before Christmas and it was snowing heavily and we were having a very hard frost, but this did not daunt us and I and my wife put our wellington boots on and trudged through the snow. We were eager to get some fires going in the bungalow as we feared that the frost would soon freeze up the pipes, but we were too late as the damage had been done. As I opened the door the first thing that met our gaze was ice on the floor where water had spilled from burst pipes and frozen. Our back boiler behind the fire place was also cracked through being frozen. We looked around the place and looked at each other and remarked "We look like having a Happy Christmas with this lot". We did not stay long as my first job was to catch the people at the Town Hall and report this lot to them and get back home to Firswood Road and have a good warm and sit by the fire. We talked about the whole affair and I thought - there has been some negligence somewhere on somebody's part as eight of the thirteen bungalows were tenanted and had received their keys at the same time as we did. Everything was in a shambles. We had packed everything up ready for removal but this lot fairly took the wind out of us.

I had to write to the Lancashire County Council and explain the situation to them and I asked for a months extension and would they explain to the incoming tenant the situation, also I would have to compensate him as well for the delay. The new tenant for my house came to see me about the whole affair and was very considerate and said "Don't worry about us, I only have to give a weeks notice to clear out, so let me know when you are going". I thanked him as I did not know how long it would take to make the bungalow fit for us. The builder of the bungalows came to visit me and asked me would I go down to the bungalow with him as I had the key and he wanted to assess the damage in my presence as it seems there had been some misunderstanding about the keys having been handed out to the tenants of these five bungalows and he was not going to bear the cost of the extra work. He explained this to me and I said "What about myself being put to extra cost and trouble, and how long will you be in making this lot right?" He said "Give me a fortnight and I'll have you in". I could do nothing else about the whole affair but I spent a lot of time seeing the job was done, but they wasted no time and I managed to get some warmth in the place to dry the house out, the weather was still very cold and snow lay thick around.

We managed to get the place ready for moving in but my worry was how to get my furniture to the bungalow as conditions were bad on the roads with the heavy frost and snow about. Then I thought about the young fellow who had been working my land for me, I knew he had a small lorry in which he took his produce around so I contacted him and explained my situation to him. He promptly said "Yes, I'll do it for you. I'll run you a few things at a time so get someone to help at each end so I won't waste any time and we'll soon have you moved". I was very grateful to him so the next day came and I had plenty of help waiting for him. We got going and soon had the furniture moved and laid in place. I'll admit I was very thankful for what everybody had done for me that day and told them so, as the weather was very bad with snow and frost about. I always remember when everybody had gone home that night and I and my wife were sat in front of a roaring fire, I just said to her "By golly, I am glad this lot is finished as I think the weather will stay like this for a week or two", which it did.

I had time now to relax and do a few alterations in the bungalow and the more I saw of it the more it suited me and I thought what a delightful place to retire. We were amongst friends of old, also my brothers and sister lived within a half a mile radius and we were in the centre of them all - at the time of occupying the bungalow there were seven brothers and one sister. When I took over the bungalow I was just seventy years old, and as time went on and the weather began to get better I spent a lot of my time with my eldest brother who was then eighty years old. We used to go roaming round our old district where we had been brought up and visiting our brothers as we all kept in touch with each other.

About this time a new town was being built up around us. I remember myself and my brother watching the Mayor of Liverpool laying the first brick on a Patio House at Tammys on the New Church Farm estate, 1964. I have since watched the new town grow bringing many faces into the district, also much wanted new factories which the people of old Skelmersdale needed because there was nothing for anyone at Skelmersdale then. It had been marvelous to me how the place has risen from green fields and old slag heaps which I have always been used to seeing in my earlier years. The town itself is a credit for the planners with its wonderful roads that have been laid linking us up with all the great towns and cities. A meeting place had been built on the New Church estate and a number of people over 60 decided to form a club where we could spend an afternoon playing dominoes and bingo. We formed a commitee and made quite a success of it, which eventually turned into other spheres such as day trips to some holiday resorts by coach. This ended up eventually by having a week's holiday each year through us having a savings club which we put in what we could spare without us feeling any undue strain on our living. All this we just looked forward to as we were all together as club members. When we first formed the club we decided to call it the Good Companions Over 60's Club and I will say it was properly named as everyone would help each other when the need arose.

We had been living in our bungalow about five years when trouble began to loom in our family. I lost my eldest brother who died at the age of 84, this we could not complain of as he had lived his span of life. Two years later I lost another brother who was 80 years old, this again was a life's span, but the most unexpected came when my youngest brother died at 70 years old. This left us a little stunned as we all thought he was the best of us all, but as the Good Lord sayeth, he works in mysterious ways. I and my wife celebrated our Golden Wedding in December 1969, it was just a family get-together without much fuss which my daughters-in-law had made up for us. We had always been a happy family but old Father Time was beginning to lay his hands on us and slowing us down quite a lot, it was hard work for us going to our club these days and we were thankful many times to people who would take us in their cars. I am afraid we are practically dependant on other people to do for us what we can't do for ourselves. We have meals on wheels twice a week which we look forward to, also we have a home help twice a week which we find is a great boon to us. Also we can contact our wardens by pressing down the switch which is answered immediately by an intercom, and I can say they are a fine bunch of ladies who will do what they can to help us.

As I sit and think many times about my parents, what they had not and we have it shows what changes are taking place in our lives. It makes me wonder what the future has in store for our future generation. Anyway, our time is filtering out and we can console ourselves we had a mixed life of hard work and pleasure, so we can't grumble at what comes or goes now. My right leg which I have been dragging about for the last twenty years through injury is beginning to conk out, my wife is also showing signs of confusion. As I write the last phase of my memoirs my eyes are clouding over and growing dimmer. If I take my pen off paper I have to look hard to put it back where I have left off. It has taken me twelve months, on and off, to compile these incidents and as we await the Great Call my wife and I have lived together for fifty five years and we know in our hearts that it is drawing near.

And as we awaken each morning and see the light of day we give thanks to our Good Lord for his goodness and mercies, and as I lay my pen down with these last words . . .
Peace and Happiness to all Mankind.

Adieu