HYDE CHESHIRE

Harry Rutherford's
Festival of Britain Mural




Monday 6 September 2010

Around Gee Cross

Travelers Rest Joel Lane

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Stockport Road - Mottram Old Road Junction

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Thanks to Tracy and Clive for these two pictures.

20 comments:

Hydonian said...

Such a shame that there isn't a pub on Joel Lane anymore - It would certainly make walking up there a more enjoyable experience if you could stop for refreshments halfway up!

Tom said...

WALK... ha! I'd love to be able to walk up there now Nancy... There's days I can't manage the stairs... I can imagine the fuss it would make over parking now... ha!..
I like the second picture as well.. I never realise that a building was that close to the junction before... I thought the grass had always been there... I would like to have seen a close up of the writing on the gable end where the white arrows are. The sign post looks well and the phone box... I think it's a phone box anyway..

Anonymous said...

Box looks like an old AA one to me.....

Tom said...

I think it could be an AA box... this is the first time I've noticed the box on this junction... I know there's a few pictures of this area knocking about so will keep my eyes open.. thank to above for the input. ;o)

Hydonian said...

I'm sure someone told me that that building was also a pub at one time, Tom...though I could be mistaken.Maybe when we borrow that book of pubs in Hyde we may find out!

Lizzy said...

Hi Tom and Nancy

Here's what my dad says. The sign said Sheffield 31 miles and he is sure the other side said Manchester. The box was a telephone box, a concrete construction with windows in it. In that row of houses there were about 6 houses and 4 shops, which included Taylors the bakers and a cobblers. In either the last or the last but one house to the end lived at one time Tommy Wildgoose, who swam for Hyde Seal when they were world champions. He also thinks that the pub was between Tescos and Armitages office but he can't remember the name. He used to live at 10 Mottram Old Road (the one that looks like the window is lit up) at one time and when my grandad worked at Redferns he used to jump off the bus as it slowed down at this junction. I am suprised you can't remember these houses Tom, I do, and we used to call the grass field that's there now Wembley, which is next to the little hill, as apposed to the big hill which is the cobbled lane further along next to the Werneth.

Ghost of Red Pump St said...

The Red Lion pub did stand more or less where the Tescos car park is now. There was a further pub up Mottram Old Road, The Spread Eagle (i think). This stood on the bend just after where the reservoir stone wall now finishes and the houses start again. This Pub was also the local haunt of the 'King of Hyde' Fred Whittaker.

Tom said...

Hi Elizabeth
I'm sure your dad is right about the arrows... I came across a referance to the top end of Stockport Road being known as Treacle Hill.. now I know that cobbled path that runs at the side of the Werneth is Treacle Brow. It would be interesting to know where the name came from... I can't remember them houses at all .. I recall standing by the side of that road when the Queen visited the area... I was only young then and at Enfield Street School..

Hi Ghost,
There's a picture knocking about that shows the Red Lion.... if that was the pubs name, and was the other pub called the Eagle and Oak? I came across Fred Whittaker's name in the Blacksheep Index... (google it if you have not hear of them) I was very tempted to send off the money to get the report... It might just have been a strange will he left or a misdemeanor of some sort.. knowwing what we do of the chap it could be anything... one of Hydes more colourful characters..

Ghost of Red Pump St said...

Yes might be my error with the name !

Yes I ll give it a try, not heard of it before.

I am pretty sure that Mr Whittaker in the end did move away from Gee Cross and Hyde to Heysham where he died.

Dave Williams said...

I've had a look at the book of the pubs of Hyde and it only shows those in the town centre, from Grafton Street in the north down to Nelson Street and from Great Norbury Street across to what the map shows as Lumn Street.

Hydonian said...

Great Information here!Thanks everyone!

Ghost - Yes, that was the one I was thinking of and I think it was called the Eagle and Oak as Tom previously said.

Dave - No info on Gee Cross pubs at all in the Hyde book? That's a shame.

Lizzi - Does your dad know anything about the cobbles next to "Wembley"? My Friends Grandad helped to lay them and she is looking for any info she can on them.

Ghost of Red Pump St said...

There was a further pub facing where the chippy is now on Stockport Road, The Boy and Barrel, which is where the inquest in the murder of Thomas Ashton was held.

Tom said...

Ghost... I think we have a picture of that as well... across for what was Tommy Chows chippy..

Ghost of Red Pump St said...

Just going off topic, Hydonian, I love the picture you have of Fine Fare, or Hyde Department Store as it proudly claims with the under construction motorway in the fore ground. What a pity they removed the signage, it would of been a real welcoming approaching Hyde from the Motorway !! My mum today told me when it was being built the developers hoped to bring in a debenhams or such like store into the building however the sister shops in Manchester and Stockport complained about the idea worried about losing custom and hence thats where the said Department Store signage appeared prior to Fine Fare taking up occupation. If anyone as more info or pictures around opening or construction I d love to know !

Tom said...

Ghost...
If we can find anything we will do a posting about that for sure...

I got a job for a very short while working on the Motor way... about 4 days infact ha! Me and my mate Steve Smith got labouring jobs with a contractor called Kelly Brothers Construction from Colwyn Bay (I think). We had a compound near Godley arches.. we would have to pick pipes or what ever up from the stores there and take them to whereever they were needed... trouble is we both had never drove before, and we'd lied about our ages. We got to racing each other about the dirt roads and were both sacked when we crashed the dumpers at Broomstairs... before the motorway bridge was built... one of the dumpers ended up rolling down the hill and into the river Tame... it stayed there about six months until the bridge was slide into place and then lift out by crane...
From the motorway we both then got a job at the 'Department Store' but that only lasted until dinner time of the first day.. the bricky's had put a breezeblock wall up in the morning but we knocked it down (with a dumper) messing about at dinner time..

I seem to recall that Nicholas Parsons ( Sale Of The Century Fame ) opened the store... I heard he was well plased with the size of the queue to meet him, but was upset when most passed him by to grab a bargain at the cheese stall.. ha!

Ghost of Red Pump St said...

Ok cheers Tom, might have to head down to Ashton libray for the North Cheshire and Advertiser micro fesh from around that time though to investigate further about Fine Fare !!

Hydonian said...

Tom , it was Derek Nimmo ,I think ,who opened Hyde Department Store. I was there at the opening ceremony, lol - I also met the rock group KISS (complete with makeup) and got their autographs on KISS masks!I loved that place.It was so exciting to a teenager having all the stuff that you'd normally only find in the big Manchester stores.

downsie21 said...

When the Boy & Barrel was pulled down Derbyshire's Timber yard took its place and that was still going when I was a lad.

Pags said...

TMBC image archive (http://www.tameside.gov.uk/history/archive.php3?strWord=ashton) has a photo of the boy and barrel - difficult to see but can be seen more clearly with a bit of digital enhancement (I converted the picture to negative to read the sign on the wall. But I'm not sure I can post my version without infringing copyright)

Tom said...

Hi Pags...
I'm not sure of all the in's and outs of copy right... would you be so good as to email us on hydonian@gmail.com