Tramps, Vagrants, Gentlemen of the Road

[machighlander]

hi all, just read a post from jasper and it spurned some memories for me re the above.

when i was a wee laddie every so often we would catch sight of one of these gentlemen passing through oor wee village, they all seemed to have the same sort of garb as far as i can remember, the old style greeycoat with the obligitary bit of string or rope tied around the middle, and a wee bag slung over their shoulders containing their worldly belongings.

our mums used tae try and frighten us by saying if we didny come in before a certain time then " charlie the darkie" or " benny the beast" would get us ( sadly terminology that we cannot be heard to use in this pc correct climate).

these guys fascinated me, i often lay in my bed all snug and warm, after having my warm supper and thought about the guys i had seen passing through. i wondered who they were, where they were going, and most importantly, why they chose to do it. after all, they all must have had their story to tell ( max ehrmanns' desideretta has a line which says this as well).

as the years went by they slowly became ever so scarce, and nowadays up here they are never seen, why ?.

all you folks cover some miles in all different parts of the country, anyone seen any of these " gentlemen of the road" recently on yer travels, or are they a dying breed.

cheers, just curious to know if these fascinating folks are around somewhere.

 

[forestgump]

did they have the big issue and a well fed dog.

 

[machighlander]

nah dean, thats the modern stuff, im referring to the old fashioned type, the true gentlemen of the road.

dont know what age ye are dean, but if yer anywhere near mine, ye should remember as they were a common sight.

 

[forestgump]

iam 18 on sunday

 

[machighlander]

gid for you laddie, go tae the pub an enjoy a legal pint

 

[forestgump]

thanks can you e mail you bank card details for that drink i will keep them a secret onist guv.

 

[Lord Braykewynde]

We had a tramp in Hereford in the 80s. I remember him well and he just walked the streets of the town, head down saying nothing or huddled in doorways if it was raining.

His family tried tracing him and now know what happened to him so they can have closure....

http://www.herefordtimes.com/news/4838598.In_his_black_coat__he_stood_sentry_in_a_Hereford_bus_shelter__Now_his_story_can_be_told/

 

[machighlander]

cheers lordy, didnt know that was what i had to do. good story buddy, and it emphasises what my original post was about. sadly in this day and age this type of tolerance and allowance of these people couldnt happen, they wouldnt be accepted.

to this day i still have my memories of those wanderers, and still wonder why they chose that life.

so, have any of you seen some of these mysterious men on your travels ?.

 

[Parksy]

A tramp lived on the central reservation of Wolverhampton's ring road for years in a sort of home made tent / shack.

No one took much notice of him really,he was part of the street but with the growing popularity of the internet he became a bit of a star on Facebook.

Sadly he died a couple of years ago, it turned out that he was Polish and at one time he lived a normal life, worked for a living and had friends before becoming a reclusive tramp. Read about him

here or simply Google 'Wolverhampton Tramp' and a host of information about this gentleman of the road will show up.

 

[Parksy]

Here's a picture of 'Fred'the Wolverhampton tramp

 

[602]

Hi,

From time to time, I see a sturdy horse cropping the grass verge, with a small caravan nearby. So one day I stopped , asked if I could take a photo.

"It wil cost you a pound!"

602

 

[Lord Braykewynde]

There are a few of the new age traveller types around us. The last time I saw them was last October just outside Ledbury.

There were about 4 old romany caravans with 10 horses tethered grazing the roadside verges.

One place they are usually found is the Black Mountains at magic mushroom time.

Sometimes you will see the new age travellers on the Xroads where you turn off the A3075 for Holywell Bay. They do wood carvings using a chain saw. I bought a bear almost 3 foot high and paid

 

[RogerP]

Parksy , you beat me to regailing Freds account.

There was quite a turn out when he passed away about 2 years ago and alot had been written about him. Seem to remember he was either a refugee or prisoner in WWII. Dont know how he ended up in Wolvo as few people could get close to him.

Its quite sad seeing his little plot of world now as I travel to a from work and not seeing him either sweeping up the leaves , generally keeping that patch of the ring road clean and tidy , or (not so nice) him having his daily wash down!!!

The place just seems a little less simple now. He asked for nothing caused no one any harm and just lived his life very very quietly and simply. The council and many well wishers made sure he had food and his tent was frequently changed when it was needed.

He was left alone caused no harm and , unasked for , kept the ring road in that area clean and tidy sweeping up the leaves collecting litter and just generally making it a nicer looking place.

I have no quarms with people like this who want nothing , ask for nothing nor cause any harm or loss to anyone else.

Sadly too many people in this country EXPECT to be handed everything on a plate for little effort on their part and people like Fred are frowned upon because they are deemed to be not like us and therefore a problem to be resolved.

 

[ValA.]

We still have one of these 'tramps' - now he has a long woollen coat, tied around the middle with string, a woolly hat, and a ragged beard. Hecarries a couple of supermarket carriers, and no one appears to know where he lives. He's in our town almost every day, and the police know him well. He's often treated to cheap meals at the local bikers cafe and can be seen sitting outside there most days. He harms no one, and seems to be given aid abd attention when needed - for example when he slipped a couple of weeks ago in the snow two Community Policemen picked him up.

Years ago, my Grandma, who lived on the main road from Leeds, used to provide left over food for the tramps - and apparently the 'knowledge' was passed on from person to person somehow and she often had people turning up for 'some scraps'. One even turned up for her funeral - which I thought was really nice.

 

[BedfordGeorge]

There was another Polish guy who lived near the old Polish Camp in Cuddington. He had a ramshackle building on a small triangular island at the Norley & Cuddington Road 'T' junction. The local people used to look after him, until he passed away.

 

[forestgump]

parksy is that not a semi in wolves.

 

[machighlander]

god bless them all, as said earlier they will all have their stories to tell. only they know what drove them down the path they took. but hey, its the same for us all, ye go down the path in life thats laid out for ye.

do me me a favour folks, and dont mock these guys.

oh wad the gift the giftie gie us.

 

[Parksy]

parksy is that not a semi in wolves.

Lol

That's a detached residence with adjacent flower beds and well kept lawns.

 

[Lord Braykewynde]

Most have them have mental issues. Not so many are seen today, except in the bigger cities, because they have sheltered accommodation. The problem arises when they refuse accommodation because due to the human rights act they cannot be forced to stay in shelter.

One chap who walks the streets with his matted hair has sheltered accommodation in Hereford but he still can't look after himself. When he's walking through town he will always be talking to himself using bad language and often will put his face in the front of a passer by and use foul language at them. Not nice if you're an old person, very frightening. Years ago people like him would be locked away in phsychiatric hospitals.

Apparently he became like that after becoming addicted to glue sniffing.

 

[machighlander]

so lordy, you agree to locking people with afflictions away ?.

sad buddy.

 

[colin-yorkshire1]

yes highlander of course he does well renowned for it LB is :O)

 

[machighlander]

aye, thats what chechescu ( or whatever his name was) did ower in romania, locked up all the children who had some sort of affliction. ye must have seen the news reports about it when he tumbled from his unassailable position. there were wee children packed into dormitaries and left to their own devices, no care given to them. they were covered in their own excrement, actually lying and sleeping on top of it. have tgeae children not got the same right as you and i to be here ?, just the same as the ones who seem a wee bit diferrent to you and i ?.

sorry buddy, but ye have touched a nerve with me, only by the grace of god we are who we are, never be judgemental.

 

[DARRENT]

aye, thats what chechescu ( or whatever his name was) did ower in romania, locked up all the children who had some sort of affliction. ye must have seen the news reports about it when he tumbled from his unassailable position. there were wee children packed into dormitaries and left to their own devices, no care given to them. they were covered in their own excrement, actually lying and sleeping on top of it. have tgeae children not got the same right as you and i to be here ?, just the same as the ones who seem a wee bit diferrent to you and i ?.

sorry buddy, but ye have touched a nerve with me, only by the grace of god we are who we are, never be judgemental.

Well Highlander,just reading your post from yesturday.Igrew up not that far from Belfast were i remember 1 of these men of the road.This man was called Mickey Marley who walked with a horse and a roundabout towing behind.A local group wrote a song about him one time after some wee gitt burnt it.one line of the song read"IF YE HAD,NT GAT A PENNY AN YOUR MAS GONE OUT YOU CUD STILL GIT ON HIS ROUNDABOUT".We were on holiday 1 year down south in the sprite major an i can remember my mother feeding him toast out the half door.I put Mmy hand on the roundabout an his dog near ate me.Thats as true as god.A decent wee man

 

[colin-yorkshire1]

many years ago when I was a lad there was a tramp that used to appear in our village each year at the same time mid april no one knew where he came from or went to he would come be around for a few days and then go.

this particular year I noticed him hanging around the btm of the street, I went into our house and told my father the tramp was at the btm of the street. its ok he said he means no harm leave him alone I will be out in a couple of mins he was, with a mug of tea and sandwiches? he placed them on the wall next to the tramp and walked away without saying a word 10mins later the tramp had gone the cup and plate left on our door step. when I asked my father why he had helped the tramp he just said "there but for the grace of god go I son" I asked him what he meant, his reply really shook me as he explained, "that tramps name is Albert he worked at the pit with me and your grandad, he used to live in the last house at the btm of the street with his wife and 2 kids one day while at work. lightning struck his house setting fire to it and his wife and kids were lost in the fire. the house was rebuilt but he would not live there anymore and just left. every year he comes back for a few days on the anniversary of the fire to pay his respects and then goes away again. he is getting old now so may not be around much longer, my dad was right it was the last year we saw him.

and 50years on I still dont like thunderstorms.

colin

 

[DARRENT]

many years ago when I was a lad there was a tramp that used to appear in our village each year at the same time mid april no one knew where he came from or went to he would come be around for a few days and then go.

this particular year I noticed him hanging around the btm of the street, I went into our house and told my father the tramp was at the btm of the street. its ok he said he means no harm leave him alone I will be out in a couple of mins he was, with a mug of tea and sandwiches? he placed them on the wall next to the tramp and walked away without saying a word 10mins later the tramp had gone the cup and plate left on our door step. when I asked my father why he had helped the tramp he just said "there but for the grace of god go I son" I asked him what he meant, his reply really shook me as he explained, "that tramps name is Albert he worked at the pit with me and your grandad, he used to live in the last house at the btm of the street with his wife and 2 kids one day while at work. lightning struck his house setting fire to it and his wife and kids were lost in the fire. the house was rebuilt but he would not live there anymore and just left. every year he comes back for a few days on the anniversary of the fire to pay his respects and then goes away again. he is getting old now so may not be around much longer, my dad was right it was the last year we saw him.

and 50years on I still dont like thunderstorms.

colin

Its amazing how these stories stick in your mind.