We want to walk in our grandad’s footsteps
After queuing overnight, James – pictured above with his wife Alice – was the first man to step on to the bridge. Right, The Sunday Post’s coverage of that little bit of history.
The authorities announced that pedestrians and cyclists would be allowed to cross on that January morning in 1965, and James was determined he would be the very first to take to it on foot.
“I remember my mum telling us he’d popped out for a pint on the Friday night,” says Jennifer, a legal secretar y who now l i ves in Glasgow.
“HeHe’dd come home to let my gran kknow ththatt hhe plannedld tto queue up to walk the bridge in the morning, just in case she worried about where he was.”
Crowds gathered on both sides of the Forth throughout the night, but being there from before midnight ensured James strode out ahead of everyone when the temporary barriers were lifted, just ahead of a local couple.
Three Fife school pals were the first to set off from the northern side and were so keen they sprinted the first half-mile.
Scores of cyclists also lined up to be the first bike enthusiasts over.
The bridge went on to play a massive part in James’s life.
“In his younger days he’d worked on pilot boats at Rosyth Dockyard so knew the waters,” said Jennifer.
“He ended up on rescue boats that went out whenever anyone fell or jumped from the bridge.
“One time he had helped to rescue someone and got them
asashoreoe alive.a e.
“We heard, though, that when he went to see the man in hospital the following day he’d torn my grandad to shreds, saying he didn’t want to be saved.
“I think that really affected him and he couldn’t bring himself to do the job any longer.”
Jennifer has fond memories of James.
“He was such a character, a real larger than life figure. I’ve got great memories. There are four grandchildre grandchildren and my gran and
gr andad stayed