I received a request for a photo of Hilda Cottage from Pat Gracie (nee Souter) in Australia, so here's one showing how it looked this morning.
Pat's mum was from Johnshaven and she remembers staying at her Grandfather's home during school holidays. He was the harbourmaster and lived at Hilda Cottage, which is in a lovely spot near the harbour.
I mentioned this to Clark Simpson, who has an encyclopedic knowledge of the village, and he kindly sent me these photos of the cottage before and after extensive alterations were made.
Big changes! I wonder whether Pat knows the people sitting outside the cottage in the top photo.
The cottage has recently changed hands again, so it'll be interesting to see whether the new owners make any further changes.
Thank you for the 1975 photo. It looks very like my Grandfather sitting on the bench but he died in 1967 so it can't be him. My Grandmother died in 1969. After they died my cousins fell heir to Hilda cottage as the surviving sons of my Uncle Robbie. Clark Simpson will remember my mother well. Her name is Mary McBay and she is still going strong at nearly 90.
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