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 Memories of Merelbeke - een randgemeente van Gent

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Category Albums Files
Belgium 1970s
7 256
MERELBEKE


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We lived in Belgium in the 1970s. Dad, Eric Hayles was working for Volvo Europa at Oostakker near Ghent and we moved into a house in the Verlorenbroodstraat in Merelbeke. We hope you enjoy our evocative photos of life in Merelbeke, a suburb of Ghent.

56 files, last one added on Oct 27, 2014
Album viewed 2114 times

GHENT/GENT BELGIUM


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We lived near the beautiful city of Ghent (Gent) in Belgium in East Flanders (Oost Vlaanderen) from 1974 till 1978, although dad was there for about another six years after that. We hope you enjoy some of our photo archive from those happy times.

48 files, last one added on Oct 27, 2014
Album viewed 703 times

MERELBEKE FRIENDS AND NEIGHBOURS


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Some of our wonderful neighbours and friends when we lived in Merelbeke. If you know any names that we haven't mentioned, please add them below the photo.

109 files, last one added on Oct 27, 2014
Album viewed 934 times

DANSCLUB TERPSICHORE MERELBEKE


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Mum and dad had dancing lessons at the Dansclub Terpsichore in Hundelgemsesteenweg in 1977-78. These are pictures from one of their social functions.

15 files, last one added on Mar 15, 2014
Album viewed 737 times

OUT AND ABOUT IN BELGIUM


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13 files, last one added on Mar 23, 2014
Album viewed 681 times

Our Welsh friends, the Davies Family


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We attended church at the Evangelisch Centruum, Burgstraat, Gent, where we got to know the wonderful Davies family from Wales (the clue was in the name!) Charles and Betty, Godfrey, Joseph and Noel. There were also two sisters who weren't in Belgium. Charles was an accomplished artists and signwriter. He once had a job painting the Coca Cola logo on lorries, so he must have been very good! He also painted a sign for our neighbours opposite which read "Bobinage van motoren".

11 files, last one added on Apr 26, 2014
Album viewed 604 times

Documentation


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Leaflets and other documentation from our time in Belgium

4 files, last one added on Dec 05, 2017
Album viewed 382 times

 

7 albums on 1 page(s)

Belgium 1990s
1 40
VISITS TO MERELBEKE IN 1990s


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In the 1990s, along came the internet. Jonathan put "Merelbeke" into a search engine to see what he would see, and stumbled across the website of Sint-Michielsschool. After writing a greeting in the guest book he received a reply from Guy van Heddegem, and a friendship developed which led to Jonathan visiting Merelbeke in 1998 and writing a song which was performed at the school's Eindejaarshow. He visited again the following year. Here are some pictures from those shows.... we hope to bring you some video clips in the future too. Photos mostly by Jonathan Hayles, captions by Guy van Heddegem.

40 files, last one added on Mar 16, 2014
Album viewed 604 times

 

1 albums on 1 page(s)

296 files in 8 albums and 2 categories with 5 comments viewed 229,668 times

Last additions
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GITO Merelbeke flyer van 1975 4/44418 viewsDec 05, 2017
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GITO Merelbeke flyer van 1975 3/44221 viewsDec 05, 2017
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1/41005 viewsDec 05, 2017
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GITO Merelbeke leaflet from 1975 2/4764 viewsGITO Merelbeke flyer van 1975Dec 05, 2017
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Cards at Number 31955 viewsOct 27, 2014
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Wilfried at his mother's in Moortsele1024 viewsOct 27, 2014
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Wilfried's mother in Moortsele944 viewsOct 27, 2014
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Wilfried and Lydiane at Wilfried's mother's in Moortsele954 viewsOct 27, 2014
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Tram near the Gravensteen in Ghent, 19781565 viewsOct 27, 2014
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Wilfried adds the finishing touches to his villa918 viewsOct 27, 2014
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Lydiane makes sure Wilfried is doing things properly912 viewsOct 27, 2014
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Wilfried adds the finishing touches to his villa905 viewsOct 27, 2014

Random files
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Sint-Michielsschool 1999441 views
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Maureen Hayles in Gent in 1974666 views
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The Criel family and Wilfried De Moor498 views
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Skating on ice on a small brook next to the Watersportsbaan in Ghent.674 viewsThe Hayles brothers, December 1975
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Stephen Hayles and Eric Hayles in Ghent708 viewsThe centre of Ghent / Gent in 1974.
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Maureen Hayles and Hilda Meersschaut510 views
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Patricia Meersschaut and friend 580 views
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Boer en ploegpaard1 - Merelbeke farmer 1975874 views
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The Cowans and the Davies's556 viewsA visit to Ypres. Mr and Mrs Cowan from Hayes Town Chapel were staying with us. Mum and Dad took them on a visit to Ypres. Betty and Charles Davies are there too, along with their sons Noel and Joseph. Dad can't remember if you all met up in Ypres or travelled together. Either way, he didn't have room in our car for his sons, and it was as a result of that he decided to buy the Volkwagen minibus you see in some of our other pictures. It was so if friends came over from England, we could all go out together.
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Winter in Verlorenbroodstraat769 viewsA view across the road from our front garden.
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Christmas fun in Verlorenbroodstraat757 viewsParty games, Maureen Hayles, Els Willems and Jonathan (Josh) Hayles