1950s: Cole's Pottery, White Hart Lane, Tottenham - social life

The annual outing from the pottery - by Frank Marden, employee at Cole's Pottery

At the Cole Pottery, there was an annual works outing by coach, usually to Southend. The firm didn’t take part or contribute, nor did they give us time any time off, so the trip was organised on a Saturday afternoon after work. The cost worked out about four shillings a head, and that included beer, sandwiches, and the cost of the coach. The beer crates were piled three high down the middle of the coach. In those days, Southend was a popular destination for works outings as well as from the local pub (the White Hart). I went on several over the years, but I think we only reached the coast on two occasions. Most times the beer ran out and we ended up at the 'Tar Pot' pub on the way. [According to a report from another employee, Sid Cole gave half a crown to everyone who went on the outing.]

[The following photograph was supplied by Leslie Rodway. His brother worked at the pottery and he went on the Cole's outings along with various employees from the adjacent South's Pottery. There was a lot of camaraderie between the workers at the two potteries, many of whom had worked at the other pottery at one time or another.]

Left to right:

Back row: 1? , 2 Leslie Rodway, 3?, 4?, Dick Smith, 6 Frank Marden, 7 Dennis Fossey, 8 (with top hat) Bob Callow

Middle row: 1 Charlie Damon, 3?, 4?, 5?, 6?, 7?, 8 (at far end) Wren?

Front row: 1 Bill Eames?, 2?, 3 Peter Marden, 4 Ted Callow, 5?, 6 David Tubbs, 7 Bill Eames?