Morris Engines, Courthouse Green

My grandfather John Reginald Walker used to be a fireman at the Morris Engines Courthouse Green during the second world war. When the war ended he received a letter from them releasing him from the service. My grandfather was a very proud man having served in the First World War. As a family we grew up in Foleshill having lived in Edgwick Road and enjoyed our many years there playing, working and shopping locally. Back then there was a community spirit and us kids were always in each others houses or going to Edgwick Park on our bikes.

Hello Foleshill Kid, are you Dennis Walker, if so we were at Edgwick and Broad Street schools together and also in the Reme at Castle Bromwich.

Hi Colcov Thanks for the message it is nice to hear from you. Dennis Walker was my father and I am his oldest daughter Carole. Dad passed away in January 2005 and I have been researching his family tree. I found a little suitcase with paperwork and photographs in and there are some of Dad in the REME. I also have the letters that his mum wrote to him. There is a lovely photograph of a group of men in a line waiting for their broth I think, and there are others of comrades around guns etc. I also have a lovely one of everyone in the REME all lined up and it used to hang on our wall before we moved. I also managed to get Dads records from the REME as well which makes interesting reading. I take it then you are a Foleshill Kid as well.

Hi Carole, thanks for your reply, sorry that your father passed away at an early age, the photo of him is just how I remember him when we said good bye at Coventry station on our demob day 58 years ago. We were great pals at Reme Castle Bromwich, just think how strange life is at times, we were at school together and then in the army as well. Yes I am a Foleshill kid, I was born in Emerson Road then moved to Ransom Road in 1940 as my father was a tram conductor based at Foleshill tram depot until Hitler poked his oar in! I often think about my school days and wonder how many of my fellow pupils are still with us.

Hi Colcov. Thanks for your comments it is appreciated. Dad would be chuffed that I have heard from one of his old pals, he often used to talk about his antics in the army and having to cut the grass with scissors outside the office of someone. It wasn't until I got his records that I found out that he had been naughty and that it was called jankers I think. Dad loved life and would often pull our legs as children growing up, even his speech when I got married made me cringe. When we were kids growing up in Foleshill there was a good community spirit and everyone pulled together. Before we moved away from Coventry I took my daughter around all the old places we used to go to and the corner shops that we used to pop into on the way to Edgwick School. It felt strange going back there. Yes I think it is strange when you look back at life, it's not until they are not there that you wished you had asked more questions about things and what they would look like if still around. I hope that all is well with you and wish you well for the future.

The thread "Photo poser 4" contains a reference to Morris Engines, Courthouse Green

Just been sorting through a drawer and happened to come across the START of my working life. The letter informs me of my starting date, wow that seems a long time ago!!!!!!! It was also the start of 17 good yrs that stood me in good stead for the rest of my working life after the closure. Good times. It also looks like I had a rise before I had even started, as the new starting rate was penciled in at the top of the letter.

Hello to all Just by chance I came across this thread whilst searching for the whereabouts of Vernon Lowe. As it happens we were both attending the apprentice school at the same time and became friends. However our career paths took different directions during our apprenticeship. I completed my time in the engine experimental department with a great team taking me under their wing. Such names come into mind as Brian Rees, Bill Mason, Jim Bowen, Tony Farndon, Frank Perdue, David Alexander and heading the department was Eddie Mayor to name just a few. Exiting and historical times now with the development of the 1293 cross flow head fuel injected Cooper S engine, Bill Mason was in his element getting the maximum roar! And of course output on his test bed. The rally Minis, and Healy Sprites engines were also developed there for the Le Mans and Monte Carlo rally. This was short lived as 12 months ofter completing my apprenticeship redundancies were announced as the engine development was being transferred to Longbridge. The engineering grounding has truly stood me in good stead throughout my working career and am grateful that I was a small part of that history in the making. I would like to return to my original quest, that is to see if anyone out there happens to know how I could make contact with Vernon Lowe or know of his whereabouts. Thanks in advance for any help on this.

Hi Jarek, I think you are the same Jarek who worked with me briefly at Sterling plant hire in 1970? I seem to recall that you gave me a cylinder head for a mini that I was running at that time, also as I was living in Warwick at that time I sometimes had a lift in your MGB as you lived in Leamington It must have made an impression on me because there is 1970 midnight blue one sitting in my garage. You mention Eddie Meyer as well, he was an engineer at Riley before Morris took them over, working at Durbar Ave. I also have a prewar Riley so I had brief contact with Eddie when I joined the Riley Register as he used to come to the meetings at the "Fletch" on Fletchamstead Highway and give away spares. Vaughan.

Frank Perdue ended up as a foreman at Austin Rover Canley. I believe he still lives local.

Played football for Morris Engines under Derrick Prestwick and Ron Floyd and Bernard Jones later became Morris Sports. It was the best field I ever played on.

Snap. I knew I had a Nuffield Tool & Gauge tool check somewhere with the last 3 digits of my employee number. 15087. Regards Mick

Hello Nat (remember you well, mate!) and everyone else who worked at the Morris between 62 and 75. Like many of you I was an apprentice there, signed up by Ted Dinan - like so many others - and like everyone else, share happy memories of my time there. Nat, you will recall our lunchtime games of chase the lady with Harry, Tony, Pete, Paul and occasionally Peg. Never won too many. Reckon Harry had them fixed. But fun. Like many of you what I remember most was that working there was a generational thing, my dad - Sean or John - worked in the a block stores. Me, like most apprentices at the time toured the site. One of my most vivid memories was of the foundry, aka Dante's inferno! Scared the **** out of me watching those blokes pouring molten iron, then trotting up to the club for lunch and sinking four or six pints in quick succession, only to go back and do it all again! Where was HSE when you needed it? I saw some post about Vernon Lowe, but it was his dad, GM Jack Lowe, who listened to me and gave me my break to shift from production engineering to what was then personnel. Where despite something like 30 years age difference, Harry Barratt and I became good mates. Killing the opposition at bowls most lunch times and the occasional team match. Till I got banned for ungentlemanly behaviour, after I smashed all the bowls of the winning team off the green! Didn't help they were coppers! I left to go to some weird and wild part of Central Africa in 75. So never got to see the dying years. My thanks to all contributors for the memories! Many of you will remember my best mate/best man Bob Ashby also headed off to Africa. South Africa in his case. But he is now back in the UK. I stayed in touch with another good mate at the time, Ivan Piggon across the years, we only lost touch a few years back after he moved to Wales. Probably doing unspeakable things to innocent sheep! Scary to think it was all so long ago, scarier to think that means most of us are knocking up the years too! Me, like The Who, never thought I'd get old. But stick around and it happens. Having lived in Oz for the past 30 years, nice to see all the piccies too! I actually have one or two of the apprentice floats, mostly my memories are of being drunk and usually falling off somewhere on route! But great fun just the same. I wonder if any of you know what happened to Roger Tunnicliffe. Another great mate from my final years as an apprentice.

Hi Mick, remember Terry well. That little Glaswegian, was of course Jimmy. What else! Like you, remember hanging out for morning tea and a couple of slices of that hot buttered toast. It was amazingly good! Specially on those cold mornings. John

Hi, just picked up on the site again after a break. I was apprentice at same time as Vernon Lowe after which I moved around the Morris production depts., toolsetting then foreman A block, B block and No 2 factory Durbar Ave. After that I made a change into IE (work study) then of course the rumours of closure. Took voluntary redundancy in 1980 and thanks to all the training and experience we got it has stood me well over my varied working life. Last I remember of Vernon he had a couple of engineering firms, Blackhorse Lane. But that was a loooong while ago!