In this picture from 1914 in Dudley, you can just make out my grandfather. He's the small boy with the cap running across Wolverhampton Street in the days when the trams were still running. Years later we worked out that this day was probably a defining moment in his life, the day he chose never to have a second thought or to be bullied by others. You can see him running. This is because he had stolen the ham you can see him carrying under his arm. This one action started a chain of events for my grandfather that would go on to dominate his formative years. Petty larceny, theft, criminal activity that would shape him, turn him into one of the most notorious villains in the Black Country.
When he died in 1972, this photograph turned up amongst his possessions, in a locked drawer of his bureau. We agreed amongst us that no one in the family had ever seen this photo before, curious as to its importance to him. On the back of the photo he had written the date and time, together with a brief note - "Me stealing ham from W.Smiths, butcher". He would have been 10 years old and this was perhaps his first, or at least one of his first criminal acts.
We have no idea who took the photograph or how he had come to have the original print in his possession, but it appears that it held some significance for him as he kept it all of his life locked away in his bureau drawer.
A day out in Dudley
Time inside passes slow,
So we went out for the day,
My favourite place to go,
The high street in Dudley
I'm sure that you'd agree
It's not like any other town,
There is lots to do and see
And there's space to run around
There's a playground there
Just in the middle of the street
And fruit growing everywhere
The strawberries taste so sweet
There's lots of places for grown-ups
Where they like to chat and sit
They say 'hello ya right bab?'
And then Tarra a bit.
There is no need to in
When it's black over bill's mother
Because should the rain begin
The canopy is the perfect cover
The grown-ups pick the veggies
And call come get some grub
We jump down from our climbing trees
And head over to the food hub
We get the buz back home for tea
And get it down our wazzin
I look back on the day with glee
My Dudley town is bostin.
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A More-Than-Human Story of Dudley High Street
This story is a collective outcome after utilising completed Street Detectorism maps, and More-Than-Human findings to create of 'A More-Than-Human Story of Dudley High Street'.
As part of a dissertation study, this workshop invited participants to share their imagination and develop stories from the previous findings on Dudley High Street. This story creatively archives nature on Dudley High Street, with emphasis for the value of storytelling and nature at the forefront of this task.