Hucknall High Street 60s/70s


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Yes Mick, i keep threatening to go in one morning for a change,.......like i say i'm starting to like Hucknall........its slowly re-adjusting to life with out the Pits......i'm on the edge of it and the neighbours are very mixed in their backgrounds.....just say hello to mine don't know their names except next door, the only real banter i get is from folk who walk their Dogs from a nearby council estate........i'm looking to move again..............

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I've been looking on Google Map for a newsagent that was on the right hand side of Annesley Road, going towards Hucknall High Street but It doesn't seem to be there anymore. A few years ago, I kept a

Hucknall I loved Hucknall when I first moved their, I lived on Robin Hood Drive and was told by people who lived there that if I fitted in I would know. If Hucknall folks did not take to you, you wou

Mary1947. Dead right about hucknall now. Have to say,though I still prefer it to Bulwell!. My mum came from Hucknall, Victoria St. She always maintained that a family member ran the Half Moon, but I'v

My strongest memory about Hucknall was in the late 50's. I drove one of my old Morris 8's onto the car park at the side of the church and went for a few pints - can't remember any pubs now. Got back to the car in the dark. The headlights on that car were like fag ends and my eyesight was not so good either. Anyway I drove off, BANG, BANG, BANG!! Oh bleddy ell. I had not seen the steps, just thought it was a wide exit from the car park. Driving cautiously home I realised that the car seemed more comfortable and was not slightly tilted as it had been for a few weeks. Checked it out the following morning and found a front friction damper dangling loose. Ah! I then remembered that I had knocked the other one off a fortnight before on some poorly lit roadworks. Hence the softer ride and  even keel. Got away with murder in those days. What a stupid youth I was :rolleyes:  Hmm.. I've just had a private cringe ...........

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I've just used streetview to find the car park mentioned earlier. Could not recognise Hucknall at all. So much bigger. The car park was the Market park by St Mary's. There are no steps there now? Any memories or old photo's of the Market car park?

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On 27/04/2016 at 7:29 PM, colly0410 said:

I remember when I moved schools from Trent Bridge to Beardall St in Hucknall: There was a teacher at Beardall St called Mrs Daft; I fell about laughing when I heard her name, & the other kids were straight faced wondering what I was laughing at.

The Dafts were a quite well known 'Ucknall family. I think they were Methodists and went to the Wesleyan Chapel at the bottom of Watnall Road.

I remember one of the Daft children being insulted by one of the teachers at Beardall Street Infants school and it's something that's stuck in my mind for nearly 70 years. The poor kid (poor in all respects) had the misfortune to have ringworm and dicks (see elsewhere on this site if you need a definition) and tended to be picked on by all and sundry. I would have expected better from a teacher but the kid gave a wrong answer to a question from the teacher. Teacher responded "Daft by name, daft by nature" The kid was absolutely distraught and broke into the biggest shower of tears ever.

It was nearly hometime and there were several parents waiting to take their home - they heard the riposte and reported the teacher first to the headmistress (Mrs Hoyland) and the Education Committee

 

We didn't see that teacher again.

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Mary1947, I also remember the park pond. I think there was a fountain and it had railings around it. Anyway, a small child was playing with a beach ball and a gust of wind blew the ball into the water. Up comes a park keeper to the rescue, he strides the railings and goes into the water. He didn't sink!! This was amazing. Somebody who could walk on water just like Jesus.

 

I was about 4 or 5 at the time. It wasn't until several years later that I found out the water was only about a half inch deep

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Back to the High Street shops. One that doesn't seem to have been mentioned is Arthur Saxton TV and electrical shop. The also did model aircraft and electric trains. It was across the twitchell from the Central Garage (Yorkshire Bank now) and is now called The Fruit Corner. Next door was a pet shop (now Birds). I don't remember the others on that block The Post Office is as it was and then Wakefields Chemist, now Boots. Are there really two Boots Pharmacies so close to each other? Then there's Stallard's now Bibliana Lounge.

 

On the other side of the High Street - approximating to the opposite of where I have just mentioned were Wakefield's Army Stores, Frank Sissons and the Hucknall Furniture Company.

 

Wakefields Chemist was owned By Geoff Wakefield. Wakefields Army Stores by Frank Wakefield and The Furniture Company by Philip Wakefield. All brothers.

 

Note the modern location references are from the current Google Street View - French version.It might be more dated than the edition you get over there.

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The smell of old canvas bags, rubber and old things.

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Jonab......Re. the Daft's.  It was interesting to learn of their origins.  My parents sent me to a Methodist Sunday school in Netherfield in the early 50s.  One of the teachers was a Mr. Daft.  They had a son named Paul.  There may have been more family members there but my memory is a bit shaky on that.  Nice enough folks but I'm sure they got their legs pulled a bit over their surname.

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Just a few more shops Bullocks toy shop, Roses shoe shop, Fords family store, good old Woolworths, co-op (now Pilgrim Oak) G A Insurance. Hillards, Kim Marie (hairdresser Portland rd) still there, Big CO-OP on the market. Barry Austins, Tailored's, Bryon picture house, Pork Farms, Currys,  (no not food) Lakes chemist Maloney butcher. Just a few I can remember.

Pubs night club (bottom Annesley rd) the Lion, Plough & Harrow, Half Moon,  The Chequers Bentnick Club, Constitutional Club, The Oak, Yew Tree and not for getting The Hucknall miners Welfare. PLUS Seven Stars and the Blue Boar. not sur if all spelt right just remembered Fine Fare Dept.

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Some of those are later than me!

Pork Farms (Watnall Road/High Street) was previously Proctors, a jewellers and clock shop.

Lakes Chemist was previously Birketts Chemist.

Tailored's is that Taylders opposite the Market Place?

I remember the toy shop. Wasn't Bullocks also the name of an upmarket photographer near there?

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Bullocks was not only a toy shop but a photography shop. Claude Bullock was the photographer as I remember and his son Derek was more on the toy side. Going back to the shops at the top of High Street, the one next door to the pet shop was Percy Taylors butchers and the next one was Dorothea's ladies outfitters later to become the job centre. Another jeweller in the town was Joseph Cawley who had a shop between Boots and Sissons which is now Greggs. Further up towards the market was Raymond Teed's opticians, Wighay Plumbing, the Co op had a bakery shop, Jacksons off licence and Parrs pork butchers. The High Street is now far removed from what it was when I was a kid.

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Thanks woody for filling in those gaps in my memory.

Am I right in thinking that Fords shop was in two halves with a staircase between the two leading to a dance school (Vince Dickens?) and a tiny watch repair shop - or was that Cawleys and my memory is awry?

 

I remember Teed's opticians very well. The Teed family lived next door to my auntie on Wood Lane. Were there really only two opticians in the town then (Teed's and Wakefield's). I can't recall any others.

 

Whilst on medical related matters but a bit off-topic, I think the chemist's shops have been comprehensively covered, what about doctor's surgeries. I remember Dr's Vartan, Fitzgerald and de Costres on the corner of Woodstock Street and Portland Road, Dr Boyd on Bolsover Street (he killed himself), Dr Wallen on Duke Street and Dr Bridgwood on Derbyshire Lane (opposite the Cripples Guild or orthopaedic clinic as it was correctly known). The only dentists I recall are Hilary Blyth on Vine Terrace, a dentist at the end of Beardall Street near to Watnall Road and the butcher like school dentist at the clinic on Watnall Road opposite the Council offices.

Is that really all of them?

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I can't remember details of the Ford's shop save to say it was where the Pilgrim is now before moving lower down High Street near to Barclays. The little watch repair shop was Cawleys, always reliable for lasting repairs.

Another doctor was near the cemetery gates at Butlers Hill , this being Doctor Savage. There was a dentist opposite the old police station by the name of Donovon, allegedly trained at Dewhursts. I think the one at the end of Beardall Street was Rayners.

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Turning a bit off the High Street on to Station Road with the Co-op grocery shop on the corner there was a small street leading up to a car repair place (which looks like it may still be there, according to Google SV). The other end of that street turned into a twitchell on to the High Street at Lodge's ironmongers.

I digress. Next along was a solicitor, Shelton's, I think, then a double fronted house substantially hidden by a Monkey puzzle tree. The place was, in fact, Rhodes shoe shop which, seemingly, few people knew about. This wasn't surprising, being hidden away like that. If you looked carefully it was possible to see shoe boxes stacked up inside. What was odder was the mysterious card sign hanging in the window "INVITATION INVITED" I assumed it was meant to read "INSPECTION INVITED" and they hadn't noticed their signwriter had it wrong. Rhodes was owned by a Cecil Rhodes and I was told that he and I were related in some way. Considering that Cecil Rhodes was a famous explorer, I took it that I was related to that person rather than the owner of a strange shoe shop.

Further along was Baths Lane – leading to the swimming baths and now called Ashgate Road, apparently. On the other side was (is) the Station Hotel – something of a dive in my time there and an offshoot of Station Road – Station Terrace. Here were houses on the left (still there) and a cement/builders yard on the right beyond that was the insecticide factory Doff which still exists on Watnall Road as Doff Portland.

Moving along Station Road, there was the bridge of the LMS station (which is now the end of the tram line, it seems. I don’t know, never seen it). Station Road then split then, as now, into Papplewick Lane on the left and Wigwam Lane on the right. Down Wigwam lane was Cordon’s Tent Contractors and a small sock knitters called Wass’s (sp?).

Much, much further down Wigwam Lane, past the settling lagoons from the pit and slag heaps was a sausage skin makers, the sewage works and Clark’s Farm. There was a farm nearer to the slag heaps but I can’t remember its name - might have been Webster's but not at all sure.

Further away from the High Street, off Wigwam Lane and down Oakenhall Avenue was a small shop run by Frank & Vera Knight. Before retirement, Frank Knight was a well known Nottingham Forest Player in his day - look on Google!

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Jonab as I was saying in another thread your memory of old Hucknall is better than mine as you must remember it as it was when you left and mine is as it has gradually changed, I think you would be lost now as it has changed beyond recognition, the close of the pits tore the soul out of Hucknall for a while and the closing of the Welfare tore the Friday night enjoyment out. Hucknall has changed from a self sufficient manufacturing town to a dormitory town, the majority of people now work out of the town. As for homes Rolls Royce is now being built on , the buildings are staying for their own use whilst the rest is being transformed into housing estates and some industrial use. As you go up Watnall road pass their entrance there is now 2 traffic islands leading into the estates.

As for Nabbs lane it use to stop near the end of the school playing field, it is now a very busy road going all the way to Beauvale and on the left houses by the hundred nearly reaching the motorway. Papplewick Lane now has roads leading off it to houses galore both sides with even more planned. Wighay road leading Linby now has houses built on the left hand side, which use to be fields, with even more planned, Annesley Road once a thriving shopping area now has many shops altered to dwellings and not a pub is now open on it, the Portland pub has been closed some time and they have been trying to turn it into flats.

The best thing to happen is the building of the inner relief road and the upper end of High  street has been paved over for pedestrian use only and has been smartened, up it is now possible to walk along and not be pushed into the road.

The market is now on this stretch but only a fraction of what it was, gone are the days of the girls finishing early of a Friday to go to market to purchase something new for the Friday night at the Welfare and a copy of the Hucknall Dispatch to see what has happened. I long for Old Hucknall to return but age has caught up with me and I wouldn't be able to enjoy it , that along with strong words of guidance from my wife.

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I have thought of visiting the town again on one of my trips to the UK but more and more I am being put off doing so.

Despite hating the place when I lived there, I do have some fond memories which would be destroyed if I went to see a place which I know from yourself, Google maps and SV I would hardly recognise.

Age is certainly catching up with me as well. Nowadays I have extreme difficulty in walking and a wonky heart so I am in a wheelchair most of the time. I am lucky in living where I do where it is quite normal to have domestic staff to look after me - provided I can afford it, which, fortunately, I can.

 

I am hoping to add more to the 'Ucknall thread(s) as the memories come back.

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Jonab   if you can visit it again ,I am sure you would enjoy it, you will recognise the High street and surrounding areas , it is very wheelchair friendly and with coffee shops etc with outside seating it is quite enjoyable sitting there with a coffee and a natter on a nice warm day, people are still friendly and talkative. If you do decide to let me know and I will meet up with you if you want. Welfare, the place of enjoyment, has been knocked down so you will not be able to relive and memories from there.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I've just remembered something else - Cupitts (? Kewpitts?, Cewpitts?) sweet shop. I don't mean Mrs Peppers, it was definitely not that. Was it what became Roy Allsebrooks, next to the High St/Station Rd Co-op?

 

I think it was run by two old spinsters who, like my granny, always wore Victorian mourning black, even in the 1950's - 60's.

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- - Or was Cupitts at the bottom of Duke St. nestled between The Byron and the houses?

I do remember Brownlow's dairy (shop) half way up Duke St. opposite the school entrance. They had the franchise for supplying school milk (another thing lost forever).

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