Hauxley exhibition marks 80 years since fishermen's deaths
The deaths of three young Northumberland fishermen at sea 80 years ago will be marked by a special exhibition brought together by the niece of one of the lost men.
George Taylor, Richard Armstrong and Andrew Allen Oliver, who lived at Hauxley, near Amble, were never seen again after their coble was caught in a storm in November 1929.
The tragedy rocked the close-knit village, and now the niece of one of the men has organised an exhibition to commemorate the 80th anniversary of their deaths.
Irene Liddle - nee Oliver - whose uncle was 23-year-old Andrew Allen Oliver, has pieced together newspaper cuttings from the time of the tragedy, and photographs of the men and the boat that was lost.
She has also researched the Armstrong, Taylor and Oliver family trees for an exhibition that will open at Hauxley Chapel on Bank Holiday Monday, August 31, and can be seen until the middle of next week.
Descendents of the three men, many of whom still live in Hauxley, are expected to attend, as are many former villagers.
The three men had set out on their coble, Renown, on November 11, 1929.
Four boats had gone out from Hauxley that day, and soon a storm was brewing.
Three of the boats managed to return to shore before the high winds hit - but Renown did not.
A lifeboat from Blyth conducted a thorough search of the area but all that the crew found was a bit of debris by Coquet Island and an oilskin of the kind the three fishermen would have been wearing.
Irene, 71, who lives at Low Hauxley and who has written several books on local history, said: "We don't whether it was caught in the storm or whether it may have been run down by a bigger boat.
"It was probably the storm."
Andrew was the brother of her father, William Oliver, and had only been going out on the boat a short time.
His death hung over the family as she grew up.
She said: "It was a big tragedy, with him being only 23 - the others were a bit older.
"He had only been on the boat from August and died in the November.
"It was always a shadow over the family when I grew up."
The deaths also impacted on the wider community. Irene said: "They had a big, big memorial service for the men, and fishermen came from the whole of the North East coast.
"It was quite a big thing if a boat was lost for a small community.
"It was a big thing here because there are only 29 houses.
"Three men from a small community was quite a big thing here because of the size of the village."
The exhibition is part of the annual Hauxley Fun Day, which takes place on Monday from 11am.
A commemorative service is likely to take place at Hauxley chapel on the day of the anniversary in November.
From left, Irene's Uncle Andrew Allen Oliver, George Taylor and Richard Armstrong
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I wondered if I am related to George Tylor. I am researching my family hstory. Most of my family lived in and around newbiggin and were fishermen. I would like to know a bit about George Tylor, his date of birth, his parents names and other information you have so that I could possibly tie up some loose ends. Thank you for your time.
Hi Tracey, one thing you could try is contacting the Chronicle and Journal's library department- ncj.library@ncjmedia.co.uk- they might be able to offer a service on this.