Saint Aidan's, Whist, Dominoes, Dancing, October 1959. Tickets 2 shillings (10pence).

Seaton Carew Artisan Golf Club. Annual Smoker to be held in Seaton Carew Social Club 1959. Admission 2 shillings (10pence).

Seaton Carew Social Club, Children's Party, December 1967.

Speedo Carpet Weavers, 13 Surtees Street, West Hartlepool. Advert.

St Francis Grammar School, Garden Party July 1967. Admission 6d (approx 2pence).

St Thomas More, Christmas Dance December 1959. Tickets 3 shillings (15pence).

The Boys Brigade. West Hartlepool (Stranton) Company, Company Concert in St Matthew's hall in 1961. Tickets 1 shilling (5pence).

The Boys Brigade Company Concert April 1961. Tickets one shilling (5pence).

The Hartlepools Co-op Dairy, Grand Xmas Party December 1963.

The Hartlepools Co-op Society Limited, Employees Sports Club Whist Drive and Dance 1960.

The Hartlepools Film Society membership card for Eleventh Season, 1956 - 1957.

The Hartlepools Table Tennis Association, Finals Night February 1956. Tickets 1/6 (approx 7pence).

Robert Wood was a West Hartlepool-based local historian who acquired a collection of local ephemera (posters, leaflets, etc.) in 1958. This came into Hartlepool Museums Service’s collections in 1977 after Robert Wood’s death. Along with the ephemera, there are other books that contain the results of some of Robert Wood’s research. He also passed on items to Hartlepool Reference Library, which are now in the Library’s collection.

He was a teacher by profession, becoming the headmaster of Rossmere Junior School, West Hartlepool, during the 1950s and 1960s, retiring in 1973.

Robert Wood collected the ephemera from Ord’s, a local printing firm. The firm had been storing all the paperwork from a 19^th century printer, John Procter. Originally this had been stored in Mason’s printing works at old Hartlepool, (F. Mason took over the works after the deaths of both Procter and his son). Ord’s took over the firm from Mason. They had been ordered to remove it during the Second World War, because it was a fire hazard.

According to Robert Wood, the then owner of the printing works had taken all the paper out of the attic, and left it in the back street. Some people took away posters, to frame up and hang as decorative items. So the owner removed the remaining paper into a shed at the rear of the printing works, where it stayed until he had a conversation with Robert Wood. Mr Ord told Robert Wood he was welcome to take away all the old papers. By the time Wood rescued the collection, some of it was in a very bad state. However, the papers three or four layers down had been protected (the roof of the shed leaked) and there were still many fascinating items that had survived. Wood said he would take the collection off the printer’s hands, and from then on Robert Wood spent the rest of his life sorting through the enormous collection (about 40,000 items).

After Robert Wood’s death, the theatre posters were bought for a theatre and music hall museum in Sunderland. That project was short-lived, all the theatre posters are now in Newcastle Archives. All of the remaining collection, including all handwritten items, came to Hartlepool Museums. Many are on display in the Museum of Hartlepool.

The Salvation Army, West Hartlepool, This Isa Your Life? January 1964. Tickets 6d (approx 2pence).

Tommy Wilde, vocalist, available for Clubs and Concert Parties. 56 Kendal Road, Hartlepool.

For 1 shilling and 6 pence, about 7p today you could eat a tripe supper at the New Cleveland Arms which became the New Fleece.

The date was 5th December 1888 and the ticket is part of the Robert Wood Collection.