Growing up in Nkana-Kitwe

From Great North Road

Well where to start? I suppose at the beginning is a good place.

Cocky Pain with son Philip.

My parents, COCKY (ALFRED) and GERTY PAIN came to Northern Rhodesia in The early 1940's from Kimberly with my sister LENA and Brothers ALFRED and ARNOLD, they lived in a mine house in Third Avenue (I think) towards Club Street.

Of this early history I have little knowledge as in my early childhood kids were not allowed to hang around grown ups (the story of being seen and not heard)

Sadly, all of my family except my eldest brother ALFRED has passed on.

Unfortunately, later in life, I didn't pay attention when the family got together and reminisced about their old times.

Following is a summary of our family tree so that you out there might be able to make some mental connections.

(PARENTS)

ALFRED (COCKY) & GERTY PAIN

(KIDS)

LENA (eldest sister) & JOE WINDELL ALFRED (jnr.) & ROSMARY (nee NELL)

ARNOLD & MAGGIE (nee GUTHERY)

And then there was ME-------- PHILIP & VERA (nee KOWALIK)

Growing up in Nkana-Kitwe

Philip Pain.

I was born in Nkana mine hospital on the 19th November 1947 (this I don't believe because I know that I was sent here from the planet ZAAR which is in the 12th Galaxy in the constellation ZURCON) I was then taken home to the house where I spent the first eleven years of my life ----8 - 4th avenue. This mine house is on the corner of Kitwe Street and 4th Ave. across the road from the mortuary at the mine hospital (4th Avenue is the short avenue which runs from BOMA Street and runs into a dead end with Kitwe St and is the North entrance to the Nkana Hospital)

My earliest recollection of my childhood is my 4th birthday. I remember standing outside the kitchen door under the Bougainvillea car port in my khaki shorts and shirt with closed toe leather sandals when my father came out the house and moaned at me for not having my hat on (GREY FLANNEL BROAD BRIMMED which later became skull caps with many plastic charms from lucky packets sewn onto it) I was forbidden to go out in sun without a hat on. This was an obvious sign that it was not going to be a good day.

My family had decided to have a party for my birthday that evening with their friends.

Harry Nel played the guitar and his wife Edna played the piano accordion. The evening was a great success with lots of dancing by the grown ups with the kids running amok out in the garden when suddenly all the grown ups came out of the house trying to stop a fight between my brother in-law Joe Windell and our neighbor Clem Richter. (The Richter's lived across the road in 7 - 4th. Ave. Gerald Richter their son was at that time my best friend.)

What the fight was about I still to this day not sure, but I think it had to do with Joe dancing with Carol who was Clem's wife.

It is interesting to note that how the fight took place out in the garden with all the men forming a ring just like a schoolboy fight with the ladies on the outside screaming for the men to stop! I think Joe won the fight because when I went to play with Gerald his father was in bed with black eyes for a couple of days.

Prince Charles School.

My second most vivid recollection of my childhood was my first day at school, I had just turned 5 in November 1952 and in January 1953 when school opened my Mom had me all kitted out for my first day at the new Prince Charles primary school that opened in 1950. As we didn't own a car (My parents never learnt to drive their entire lives) my mom and I started off early with a brisk walk to the school to register me (I must remind those who can remember how far 4th Ave. is from 18th Ave.) I think my mom was more excited about me starting school than I was. Well after a long wait in which time I was running around making new friends, my mom called me and told me that I was too young to start school as I had to turn 6 in the first half of the first year of school. I remember my mom telling all her friends how disappointed I was. Thinking back now I don't believe I was, in fact I have a feeling that I was quite happy to stay at home for another year.

January 1954 --- 6 years old and I am now at school. The only memories I have of my time at PRINCE CHARLES SCHOOL was being reprimanded for being a hooligan (I was running around with my hankie tied on my face just like a crook in the flicks...Shows what a bad influence movies had on a young mind...Hate to think what effect modern T.V. has on the youth today) by the teacher who was on duty at play time. (Sub A and Sub B had play time NOT a break)

Another incident, which comes to mind and caused my parents much worry and got my hind tanned. When I started school and I had to catch the bus for Prince Charles at the Fredrick Knapp School in the morning. (The houseboy had to see that I got to the bus stop on time and meet me after school)

On this particular day on the bus home after school a friend and I were being unruly on the bus (too much energy.... I remember getting a kind of puffed wheat which was white and looked and tasted like polystyrene for breakfast) the lady who looked after the kids on the bus warned us that if we didn't stop our nonsense she would stop the bus and put us off.

By the time the bus got to the corner of 11th Ave. and Central St., she must have had enough because we were duly dumped on the side of the road. . (11th. Ave was in those days the main road to Ndola, before the Slag dump covered it) After overcoming the shock of being put off the bus we decided that this could be the start of a great adventure, if we went East for a few hundred yards we would come to the railway line which ran from Nkana station to Ndola. Now we knew that the station was close to Fredrick Knapp School (If my memory serves me correct there was a branch line which passed behind the Cadet shooting range which served Rhokana Mine) my friend and I decided that the quickest way home was to follow the railway line back to the school.

Boy! What an adventure for a six year old. I remember standing next to the railway line when a train came past and being buffeted by the wind from the passing trucks. As we progressed with our journey we started to get experimental, for as we heard a train approaching we would pile ballast rocks onto the tracks and sit on the embankment and watch how fine they were crushed. (This section of line was also used for shunting) After a while we arrived at the station marshaling yards and had a great time climbing under and onto the stationary trucks and carriages. Life was so different then, no one chased us away and had the occasional train driver wave to us. My friend and I eventually got back to our houses as it was getting dark; both of us pitch black with coal dust, not thinking that we had done anything wrong. I could not understand the thrashing I got from my Mom. (My dad was cool and never gave hidings.)

What had actually happened was that the houseboy had waited for me at the bus stop and when I didn't arrive, went home and told my Mother I was missing. Now in those days we did not have a telephone and as I have previously stated my parents didn't drive. The house boy, kitchen boy and garden boy were sent out with notes to all friends and family with instructions to search for me, this was still in progress when I got home, thus getting the hiding of my short life (I later got worse) (Gezz! I was only about a half mile from the house and it wasn't my fault that that the people looking for me didn't check the station out. I also tried to convince my parents that the lady on the bus was at fault for making me walk home. )

I have tried to recall who my friend was that was with me but I can't. I think his parents forbade him to play with after that incident. (Hey! it takes two to tango).

Contributed by Philip Pain