I travelled south to Port Erin to meet John Watterson and spent a couple of hours with him, sharing interesting memories.

His father was station master at Port Soderick from 1920 or maybe even earlier than that.

Harry Watterson lived with his mother and sister and, when his mother died in 1922, his sister went to be a housekeeper for a Mr Lace, who was a schoolmaster and organist at Santon Parish Church.

His father married in 1923 and John’s brother was born in October 1925.

John was born on May 25, 1930, both of them at the railway station house.

It is hard to imagine that John will be 93 soon, such was his clarity and recollection of events.

We spoke also of the loss of his wife Pam late last year to whom he had been married for over 70 years and their family Keith, Shirley, Julie and the late Fletcher.

In 1931 his father was appointed station master at Ballasalla and the family moved to live at Crossag Road.

Ballasalla was a very busy place with passengers travelling to Rushen Abbey, Silverdale and Shimmin’s gardens.

Tuesday was a very busy day with it being mart day. A livestock train would arrive at Ballasalla at noon with a locomotive and four livestock wagons.

They were bringing stock in from the Douglas and Braddan area to be sold at the mart after being unloaded and driven to the area next to the Whitestone.

At 3pm stock sold at the mart, mostly bought by butchers would be loaded on to the wagons. Cattle would be driven down first, then the sheep followed finally by the pigs.

All loaded, John’s father would have to get permission to allow the livestock train to leave usually about 4pm.

In 1935 the family were on the move again when Mr Watterson senior was appointed station master at Port Erin.

They lived on Castletown Road and, of course, this was another busy station in the summer time, with many visitors staying in the hotels and dealing with lots of luggage.

There were lots of staff at Port Erin including Dick Nelson the clerk, Tom Crennell, the wagon driver, and guards Richard Nelson, father of the clerk, Jimmy Kennaugh and Harry Barron, not forgetting Joe Buttell and Arthur Crellin, manning the engine.

At Port St Mary there was another wagon driver, Joe Cottier.

In 1940 they were living in Port St Mary station house with John’s father station master.

They were living inside the internment camp and John remembers about 1942 internees arriving at the station on the 6pm train.

They would then be escorted to the promenade by two policemen. All passengers on the trains coming in had to show their identity cards.

This was done by a special constable who was permanently at the station. If he was not available the station master had the authority to check all passengers.

In 1943 Mr Clucas from Ballachurry farm was sending lambs by train to Douglas on a Monday morning.

John got to know him by helping with the sheep.

One morning he was speaking to John’s dad and he asked if John could go to the farm on a Saturday morning to help.

He went and this was the first of many regular visits culminating in 1944 when he became the Ballachurry milkman and went on to work there for eight years.

The full name of John’s father was Henry Johnson Watterson but everyone knew him as ‘Harry’, and after the war he retired to Port St Mary.

John remembers helping Ingles Moore on Port Erin beach with the donkeys as a youngster and a lifetime farming at Upper Scard of almost 50 years.

He has won a host of prizes in carriage driving and remains joint president of the Manx Harness Club.

I also saw a photograph of him being presented with reserve best in show from previous Governor Sir Laurence Jones amongst many other treasured memories.

I’m told he still enjoys participating in the carriage driving and what an interesting man with a lifetime of experiences he was prepared to share with me, thank you!