I was 24 when I came on this estate in 1950 and I had a little baby, he was 18 months old - Barry, my son. And it was just one big mud heap. There were two houses going up together then. We'd no schools, we'd no buses, we'd no paths, we'd no gardens. It was just no buses, no school, no nothing. And the nearest bus was in King Lane.

The young couples that were nearly all my age at that time, just after the war, we were called the Baby Boomers. Because all our partners, loved ones, husbands, had been in the war, of course, and the war was over now.

These new houses that they were building, there were cooperation houses, like in Gipton and Meanwood. But when we came, these post-war houses as they were called on the estate, there was two lots from our choice when I was offered one. I could either go to Cookridge or Moortown. I knew where neither of them were. I'd been brought up in the other side of Leeds in Harehills. Anyway, a lucky dip. I said, 'Oh, we'll go to Moortown.' And that's how I come to be here.

And the experience I've had, and the difference all of us here today will have seen, is remarkable. From just nothing. And all of us, all young people, young couples mostly, maybe our grandparents, not myself, but some had their parents that came to live with them. They got a three bedroom house or something like that. So they could, you know, look after their loved ones. But mine was a two bedroom house; me and my husband. I can honestly say it's been my life. I've lived in Moortown since I've come. I've always loved it. And the people, we were all the same, we wanted to make it a nice, safe place for our families. We wanted them to have all the things we hadn't had.

I mean, I'd never been to see gardens and things like that where we'd been brought up as children. The only time I saw that was when I was evacuated. And I got a surprise when I walked through back gardens with a yard and I saw eggs all over the place. And I just picked them all up. And I had a little case that I took to school and I filled me bag with these eggs. I was told quite kindly by the lady who was looking after me that you don't pick them up and fetch them home. I just thought this was lovely; walk about and there's eggs all over.

So, we did work hard and we formed committees. We had group meetings, there was the Boy's Brigade, there was all these activities going on, the Boy Scouts. There was everything organised for our young families. And everybody seemed to take part of some kind, you know, working towards it all. Myself, I did a lot of work, which was a great pleasure and honour and I must admit, it was something for me to do, which I fully enjoyed. And the rest of my friends on the estate all joined in and helped, we all helped together to get- We got luncheon club, a couple luncheon clubs going, we got outings going.

But the big problem, and the big thing that does stand out in my mind as the most important thing, and the saddest thing as well that happened that I remember, was the ring road. Well that was just one ordinary narrow road then. There was no lights like it is now, just a narrow road and traffic. There wasn't as much of course as there is today. But just whizzed down, there was no speed limits like there is, there was nothing like that. You could go at whatever speed you liked. So, sadly to say, there was about - it came to about eight, if not more now, people who have been killed from this estate crossing that road. So my husband and a few more members of the public, we all got together on the estate and went round getting names to send to the highways to suggest could they do something about the safety of the estate and get the road altered. And that is how, really, we got the ring road. it started through a complaint like that, you know, for some of our friends that sadly died there. But it was good to get together and get the ring road we've got now. That was a big safety thing.

But yes, I've loved every minute, every minute of this estate. And I'm a bit sad now because all the world's altered and you know, the things that we did and all that because times have changed. Things don't stop as they were. And I can see a lot of joy die and joy that doesn't go on now. But there again I can see a lot of the progress I can't even get involved with now. Because it's gone, gone so quickly. And it's spread and it's grown. And now there's people all need their own houses. And we've seen this progress, which is wonderful.

We were all young couples, and you want to earn so much money before you were allowed one of these houses. And so most of us had to work, two of you worked. And the corporation made - we had nurseries by the corporation that we could take our children to and it was quite reasonably priced. So for the first few years, my little boy was about two when he started. And he went there until he was about four I think.

Talking about myself. I went to school, my age, at three and we started at three. But anyway, now I'm rambling a bit now. So I will leave you with the thought that I am now 97, and I came when I was 24, and I wouldn't have wished to have a better place to live and been brought up.