I was sent the above picture from a fellow blogger, his blog shows fantastic old pictures from Stalybridge. Check his blog out after you've enjoyed reminiscing about Meschia's, If you have memories to share please leave a comment.
Steph's blog is
8 comments:
As a kid in the 70's/80's can vaguely remember two ice cream vans positioned on Hyde market.
One was a van, and the second was a trailer van, which I think was a Meschia's.
I can remember the Meschia's Ice Cream van coming around the two estates in Newton (Hickenfield Road estate and Harbour Farm Road estate) every evening in the 60's and 70's and the ice cream seller was called Chris.
The ice cream man was Chris Maloney, His sisters ran the Meshias van on Hyde market. Chris was a lovely fella who was very popular with all the many children on our Gee Cross estate. He bought his newly built house on Brabyns Rd in 1961/62 when he won some money, his van would always be parked outside his house in the 60s 70s and 80s. Chris lived there many years, until he retired and went back to Ireland
There was also an Icecream parlour called Meschia's on Market street , opposite Boston Motors?
I remember calling at a Meshia's van on Hyde market in the 1950's on the way to see my Grandma who lived on Croft St (she later moved into a 1up 1down on Market St., now demolished, just higher up than Slaters paper shop). Mum used to buy me a Teddy Bear milk lolly or a cornet with raspberry!.
Rita or her sister Mary were usually selling the ice cream, I liked it best when Rita was there because she knew my Gran and used to give me a bit extra!
The other ice cream seller on the market then was Levaggi's from Denton but we always bought Meshia's.
In the early 60's I remember going to Meshia's with friends for a Hot Vimto after we had been to the swimming baths on Union St, although sometimes we would go to 'Togo's ' i.e. Fitzpatrick's Temperance bar / herbalists for a Sarsaparilla because they served it in a half pint beer glass, and after all we were about 11 by then!
As time went on and music changed from the Ronettes to the Rolling Stones and from Duane Eddie to the Who, the new kids on the block couldn't be seen with the Rockers in Meshia's, so we moved across the street to the Jester.
Small cups of coffee that was far too strong for our taste at the time or Coke from a machine rather than a bottle was now the order of the day. Upstairs there was a Juke box and a pinball machine.
We had good times in the Jester as 13 to 15 year olds but what we really aspired to were the older "Mods" and Scooter boys up the road in the Round Table, and thats where we moved to next.
Derek & Alf ran it. They had a successful lunch time trade where they offered hot meals every day for shoppers and local business people and would often go home to Didsbury for a couple of hours before returning to open as a swinging coffee bar in the evening from about 7 - 10:30pm.
Each night around 9pm Alf would would run around shouting "2nd Orders or go home!" You had to buy a minimum of 2 drinks every night - I never knew anyone who bought 3! We weren't there for the drink, it was more like a youth club! We were there for the girls, the music, the table football, the pinball machine and to find out where the party was on Saturday night.
Happy Days!
I can remember me chia his horse ice cream travelling round the Newton area in the 1947 and having to collect any horse droppings for my uncles allotment on bags haw street.peter barber.
I am a baby boomer, and was living in Chapel-en-le Frith in the 50's and 60's. I have happy memories of the regular visits of the Meschias Ice Cream van- all the way from Hyde! Great ice cream- particularly with raspberry sauce. The FA cup drwa reminded me- happy days in deed!
Peter Howe Oct 16th
Chris Molony
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