Postcards from home?

 Two postcards, wrongly labelled !


Wermeth Low? Love the spelling !


Mottram Road? I think they mean Market Place. :)

Another disappeared shop.

Number 2 Stockport Road used to be a hairdressers in the 1960's and 70's and has also been, to my knowledge, a secondhand shop....Does anyone else know anything about it?

Yet another business that has disappeared into the depths of time.


Mid 1970's when it was a Hairdressers.


Business closed and for sale.


2012 now a house.
Also, the shop to the right used to be a sweetshop called Bowlers circa  1950-70's . It then became Beryls. Alas, now also housing.

 
Taken in 2007, showing the location of the shop from another angle.
Thanks Susan :)

Busheyfield Close, Newton.

Here we have some more photos of the Steel Houses in Busheyfield Close, this time after a flash flood in the summer of 1952.

The local children look like they are having a ball playing in the water !!
Hyde Mill can be seen in the background.
How the area has changed...




The same view taken in June 2012


1952


1952


2012


Again, many thanks to Tony Downend for sharing these wonderful photos with us.
Keep them coming, Tony! :)

Greenfield Street Brass Band

Here is a photo of Greenfield Street Brass Band from approximately 1979-1980.
The band are pictured with Deputy headteacher Mr Evans.
It was sent to us by Rob Heywood

If anyone can recognise any of the band, please contact us.



Many Thanks,  Rob !

Now and Then

 "Now and Then" shots of Hyde Department Store now home to the Morrisons Store.

The store was originally known as Hyde Department Store or FineFare Superstore and with a retail space of 76,000 square feet was the largest store in the FineFare organisation throughout the country.
It was opened by the popular 70's TV actor, Derek Nimmo in March 1976.
(Thanks Susan ) :)


Pictured circa 1976


The same view 2012

Eclipse Brewery token

Looking on ebay yesterday, I came across this strange little token.

We found out last year that the Eclipse Brewery stood around the junction of Fernally Street and Mottram Road . I haven't seen the tokens before though.
Does anyone have any knowledge of these?

The Phantom Lorry of Hyde

 Here is a wonderful account of Hyde's very own Phantom Lorry !!

It was written by Jeffrey Stafford and very kindly sent to us by David Stafford. 

Thank you so much, Jeffrey & David !

I had heard about it but hadn't realised it was quite so famous !

Hope everyone enjoys it as much as I did !

 

 







   
A map showing the stretch of Mottram Road where the Lorry has been seen.
The New Inn is top right.

Thanks to Google maps. 
  
The following article was sent to us by CeeCee and also By Eric Downs ! It's great to have people helping us  get information together for the site. Keep it coming !!
 


Many thanks, CeeCee & Eric :)

Carrfield Mill

 This week we received the following from Lee and Judy Brown....

"Enclosed are a couple of photographs I took of Carrfield Mill, when they were still working a night shift. One from Park Road and one from Newton Street. I took them when I went out to photograph the opening of the M67 circa 1978."





Carrfield Mill was founded by the Ashton Brothers, Samuel, Thomas, James and John, of Greencroft and Newton Moor Mills. Erected 1817, Carrfield Mill was intended as a combined spinning and weaving mill from the start and 200 powerlooms weavers were being employed there in 1819.
Carrfield Mill lies in a hollow and not surprisingly it was locally known as "The Hollow Factory".
The partnership known as Samuel Ashton & Brothers was dissolved in 1821 when Samuel left and the remaining three brothers traded as T.J. & J. Ashton. . In September 1823 this partnership too was dissolved, John and James forming another partnership with Robert Ashton, a younger brother, at Newton Moor Mill  and Greencroft Mill. This left Thomas Ashton in sole control of the Carrfield Mill site.

Many thanks for the photos, Lee and Judy & to Ian Haynes for the information about Carrfield Mill from his book, Hyde Cotton Mills . For anyone interested there are sometimes copies of Ians book for sale  at Harrisons Newsagents in Hyde.  :)

Glass House Fold

In Paul's post about the area around Kingston there's a mention in Elsie Hawkins' description of life around there in the 1930s of an incident in Glass House Fold when two children fell down an old mine shaft. The story is in Thomas Middleton's 'History of Hyde', but I remember reading it when I was very young in 'History of Denton and Haughton', also by Thomas Middleton. The story is as follows:

"Glass House Fold was the scene of an extraordinary adventure which befell two children in 1910. The children were Sarah Leech, aged eight years, and Jack Bowker, aged five. At three o’clock in the afternoon of Sunday, February 27^th, 1910, they were playing together in a field a few yards distant from their homes, when suddenly they disappeared – the ground beneath them had given way. Nothing was seen or heard of them until half-past eight next morning. For sixteen and a half hours they were at the bottom of an old and long forgotten pitshaft.

The police were informed, and a close search of the neighbourhood commenced. When daylight broke next morning, and the search had proved fruitless, it was feared the children must have fallen in the river and been drowned. Then suddenly, two men, still searching, met near a wall, and called to each other to ask if the children had been found. The next moment there came a cry from behind the wall, and on looking over, the men saw a hole. They shouted down, and in answer, the girl called back that she and the boy were both safe. Rapidly a number of men gathered about the pit-mouth. They could not see down the hole, and they dared not approach the edge for fear the earth would give way so a plank was obtained, and laid across the top of the shaft; a basket  and a rope were procured; the basket was lowered, and the men shouted to the youngsters to get into the basket one at a time, and stick tight to the rope. In this way both were brought to the surface.

The story the children told was simple and touching. When they found themselves at the bottom of the shaft, they began to cry. Some time later they felt sleepy. The girl took her pinafore off and laid it on the ground in the darkness, put her hands together as she had been taught to do at home, and prayed that God would take her and little Jack back to their fathers and mothers. “Then,” said the girl, “we cuddled up together on the ‘pinny’, and Jack put his jacket over us to keep us warm. We stretched our arms round each other’s necks and went to sleep.”

The children slept all through the night, and they had not been awake long when they heard the noises of the men outside. What had happened was that the children had fallen down a ling disused pumping shaft of the old Glass House Fold coal-pit. When the colliery ceased working, the shaft had never been filled up; it did not even appear to have been covered over; but in the process of time, grass and herbage growing over it had gathered dust and soil, and covered it with a thin layer of earth, which looked just like the rest of the field – and the presence of the shaft had been forgotten.

The news of the children’s adventure was printed in newspapers all over the country, and thousands of people flocked to Glass House Fold to view the shaft and to see the children, who were not in the least the worse for their strange adventure in the earth. A few days later the shaft was filled up with loads of clinker from the Hyde Sewage Works."

The stories in both books are identical, but in  the History of Denton and Haughton there are a couple of pictures, firstly of Glass House Fold:

Then of the two children:

I met Jack Mason, as he was then known, in the late 1970s when he lived at the bottom end of Lumn Road. Beryl says that before he retired he was a manager at Ashton Brothers and he attended the same church as she did - the Fellowship Church in Chapel Street.

Happy Days...The Area called Kingston

There is an old expression which says "A picture paints a thousand words", but I think the opposite is also true that a thousand words paints a very good picture, particular in the case of Elsie Hawkins's description of what life was like in the Kingston area of Hyde back in the 1930's. The following was written in the 1990's (I think).

I was born in Frances Street, Hyde. We were bounded by the canal, gas works, Arley Mill, Millwood, sewage works, Smiths bone yard and the River Tame. Just over the bridge at the river Tame you come to Haughton Green and there we have Dan's Wood, Glass House Fold, Denton tip and Haughton Dale Rocks.

There were lots of children in our street so we were never at a loss for a playmate: what games we played, skipping, rounders, whip and top, bowl and hoop, statues, hop scotch, tick and ghosts. A favourite game was shop. We got some clay and made pies, cakes, sweets and even little coffins with a little clay baby inside. We had broken pot for money; if you had a piece with lovely colours or a nice pattern on , it was worth a shilling or sixpence depending on size. We also had concerts in our back yard. We were all budding ballet dancers. Admission was a piece of pot. It seems that we had glorious summers, and as we grew older we wandered further afield.

I will start at the area known as Kingston. At the canal where we fished for tiddlers, the bluebell wood near the cinder walk and the Bowker Brook, we took jam jars there to collect frog spawn, which we later took to school. Then there was the gas works where we could take a little barrow to buy some coke. It was put on the weigh bridge, then it was filled with coke and weighed again. We paid threepence or sixpence for it. We also went picking for coke. The Gas works were on Raglan Street and the carters always lost some of their load due to the cobbled roads. Arley Mill, off Raglan St and Alfred St was a cotton mill, and I can remember a big fire there. I think it was around 1930. Also in that area I remember a big chimney being demolished. Near by is Read St. Facing the terraced houses was a field called "Bob's field". This was a lovely romping ground and later it became a football pitch. It was the home ground for our local football team the "Kingston Star". Between Frances St West and Read St west was and still is the Bone works, it has now grown into a big concern. It never seemed to smell so much in those days, but the older people still remember all the bluebottles.

The sewage works on Mill Lane, I don't think caused many problems, but the crabapples from the trees gave you quite a tummy ache. Across the way we had Hyde Hall Farm, a nice little spot on the banks of the river. We used to watch the cowman or boy driving the cows to the shippon for milking and sometimes we could seethem being milked. I used to take a jug and get the milk straight from the dairy, and it was often warm.

Crossing Mill Lane Bridge over the Tame we came to the little hamlet called Glass House Fold or "Fowt". It's name comes from the the Flmish glass blowers who settled and worked there in the early 17th century. A Mr Burley Key from Haughton Green, local historian, was convinced that the fold was indeed a place for glass making. At the start of the council housing estate, Mr key was watching a new sewer being laid along the river valley. One morning he found a mass of glass and crucible fragments that had been deposited by the diggers. He informed Pilkington Glass Museum. They sent their curator who recognised the fragments as similar types to those found in the first glass house sites in the late 16th & 17th centuries. In august 1969 they made the first excavation. and in June 1970 they returned forthe second. A booklet was published by North West Museums and can be seen in Hyde Library.

In Dans Wood close by by Glass House Fold were some old mine shafts, a young boy and girl from the fold were playing in the wood when they fell down one of the mine shafts. From Middleton's "History of Hyde", the girl said " I put my pinny on the ground and we said our prayers. "I put my arms around Jacky and we went to sleep". They were found the next day and I think were brought up in a washing basket. I don't recall the date but the boy was called Jack Bowker (or Mason), he was brought up by his grandparents Mr & Mrs Bowker. The girl was called Sarah Leech.

Then there was Denton tip also on Mill Lane, but on the right hand side. We had to go through a May flower field and we came out with our feet wet through. It was on this tip that we found our "pot" money. I remenber the noise of the crickets on this tip. What a place to play, but we were happy panning for pottery. We must have got filthy, maybe thats why my friend Tarmar and I went swimming in the River Tame. Our swimming costumes were filthy with black oil, and we were a dreadful sight. We only did this once.

On we go up Mill Lane into the little village of Haughton Green. At the far end of the village there was a little common called Tommy Todd, complete with swings. The Francis Street gang would swoop on the common, enjoying ourselves, and then like a tribe of Indians, and noise enough to wake the dead in St Mary's churchyard, the kids from the green would charge, and if you knew what was good for you, you went, and we did.

Our next stop was Haughton Vale rocks, we would sit down and eat our jam butties and drink Woodhead pop, and have a lovely time. We made our way home via Ivy cottages and the Gibraltar Mill, along the side of the canal to Captain Clarke's bridge. Under the bridge the tow path switches from the left side to the right side of the Peak Forest canal, because the Lord of the Manor, George Hyde Clarke wanted to keep his estate free from intruders. We then would walk onto the canal bridge at Manchester Road, under the bridge where the towpath goes back to the left hand side. We passed the place where we fished for tiddlers, down the path known as Cinder Walk, where there was another brook, which I think came from Godley, it would sometimes be coloured so it must have come past the CPA and got some of the dyes in it. As we pass it, we would chant...

Jinny Jinny Greenteeth coming with a knife, run lads, run lads, run for your lives...

I really don't know why we did this. We came out near Manchester Road near the Wellington Inn on Kingston Brow.

Edward Clarke married the daughter of Phillip Haughton of Kingston in Jamaica, and the area reminded him of Jamaica, hence the name. Also a lot of the streets around the Market Place were called after members of the Hyde Clarke family. Frances St., Anne St., Edward St., Rochfort St., Mary St., Tanner St., Clarendon St., Hamnet St., John St etc etc.

Apart from a few houses, Frances St and Read St have been demolished and just a few houses exist on the left hand side of Mill Lane. Hyde Hall Farm has gone, as well as Glass House Fold. Along with those may flower field and Denton Tip.

As the song says " The song has ended but the memory's linger on" and what memories of a lovely, happy carefree and delightful childhood.

By Elsie Hawkins

PLEASE NOTE.

Over the past week or so we have been receiving some unwarranted and unwelcomed comments, some of them of a racist tone.

Whilst we appreciate the value of free speech, we have decided that any comments that overstep the mark are to be deleted immediately.

We can't understand why anyone would want to spoil what we set out to do which is to post about the town we love.

Remember

If you don't like the site and what we choose to post about, PLEASE don't read it.

Racist comments are NOT permitted.

Hyde Mill

Hyde Mill, Pattreioux, Gallahers or Senior Service , the many names it was known by, shown here during the nightshift, lights ablazing !


The blue sign could be seen from Werneth Low at Night !

 Hyde Mill was designed by architect Sidney Scott, and was completed in 1906. The site had been acquired by Hyde Spinning Co Ltd from the trustees of C. J. Ashton. The Mill was four storeys in height, 47 bays in length and faced with bright red bricks with a water tower at its south western corner. When the mill was fully furnished with all the machinery it contained 116,532 mule spindles.

 The Cotton mill closed in 1958 and was sold to J. A. Pattreioux, makers of Senior Service cigarettes. The Gallaher group purchased the building in 1959 and the mill continued as a cigarette factory for over 40 years. Gallahers closed in 1999 and production was moved to Northern Ireland.

The building was also the home of Findel Education, a supplier of educational products for a few years after the cigarette production ceased.

The building was sadly demolished in 2009/10 and is now home to a new housing estate.

Thanks to Lee Brown for the great photo ! :)

 


Here is a photo of Hyde Mill taken from Bradley Green Primary School in 1987. 
Thanks to Dave for this photo :)

St Stephens Church for Sale, Bennett Street

A sad day indeed. 
Surplus to requirements, apparently.

Kindly sent to us by David Topping.

Many Thanks, David.

Prefabs in Hyde

Prefabs were the result of the 1944 Temporary Housing Programme, and were designed to provide a quick and easy solution to the massive housing problem caused by the Second World War. They were built around a central core of Kitchen, toilet and bathroom, designed by the Ministry of Works. Prefabs were a familiar site in at least three areas of Hyde by 1950. The smallest site was at the bottom end of Water Street, where the Manchester Evening News once had a small distribution centre, with only four Prefabs. The largest two sites were at Carter Street (Tin Town) and the old Brickyard area of Godley

The two pictures enclosed where kindly loaned to me by Joe Lloyd of Hyde, they are both of Carter Street around 1946 or 1947.



Carter Street construction 1


Carter Street construction 2

Many Thanks to David Stafford and Joe Lloyd for the information and photographs!

Police Sergeant William Clitheroe

 Here is a lovely story.
I hope someone can help Jim with his quest to find out more about the man.

Jim writes...

"I have tried to find information about the above who was in the Hyde Borough Police from at least 1911 when he is shown as a Constable living at Norbury Avenue, Hyde.
He was later promoted to sergeant and in 1920 was presented with a National Canine Defence League Medal - Below is the citation.
Hope you can help !".

National Canine Defence League Medal, silver (Presented to Sergeant William Clitheroe for Bravery 1919) hallmarks for Birmingham 1916, with silver brooch bar.

Sgt. William Clitheroe and Constable Hughes of Hyde Police Force, and Joseph Swindells of  11, River Lane, Denton, and Arthur Follitt of Jet Amber Cottage, Denton, who carried out a gallant rescue under the following circumstances:
 

For three days and nights the piteous whining of a dog was heard by those crossing the river bridge at Hyde, near Manchester, and the howling caused so much interest that the police investigated its source and found that a dog was precariously perched upon a buttress underneath the bridge. Nothing would entice it to take to the water and swim ashore, and it was slowly starving to death, its cries becoming fainter but more pitiable as it gradually became exhausted.

Two police officers and two civilians, deeply touched by the dog’s appeal for succour, determined to rescue it. A raft was improvised and two 30 feet ladders were lowered, all the operations having to be conducted from the narrow coping of a wall on the bridge, seventeen feet above the river.

For three hours the police and their assistants laboured at their hazardous task, and were often in imminent danger of being precipitated into the stream, which is deep at this point and fringed by treacherous mud banks.

After great exertions and much ingenious contrivance they reached the dog, fastened a life-line around the terrified creature and brought him to safety.

The dog was a “stray” and is said to have been following some workmen over the bridge when he was thrown into the water. His owner being unknown, one of the gallant rescuers has adopted him as a companion, with the approval of the Chief Constable of Hyde, and he is now recuperating in the kindly care of his rescuer.

The presentation of medals was made by the Chief Constable
for Hyde. (extract from the National Canine Defence League Annual
Report 1920).

 

Map showing Norbury Avenue 

Trams Galore !

 The following photos were sent by David Stafford.
I'm  not sure whether a couple of these have already featured in the past but, if so, it's a pleasure to show them again :)


Tram Depot - Lewis Street


Inside the Tram Depot.


Gee Cross Tram outside Depot


Lewis Street Depot


Unidentified spot, possibly next to Gerrards, Gee Cross



Trams at Hyde Market


 Unidentified place


Tram Shed

Two Trams next to Hyde Market Square

Many Thanks, David.
Great photos.

Edit.
Information from Maloney

"Tramcars never ran further along Mottram Road than the tram shed. It was in 1897 that the first tram tracks were laid between Oldham and Gee Cross by the "British Electrical Pioneer Company," the electrical tram car was the latest fad of the times. In 1896, the company obtained a provisional act for the construction of an electrical tram system from Oldham through Ashton, Audenshaw, Denton and Hyde and Gee Cross. Construction on the tramway commenced in 1897 and was completed in 1899. After the laying of the tracks was completed to Gee Cross, the regular service began on Monday June 12th 1899. Electrical tram cars, as they were called, were a convenient way for people to travel between Oldham and Gee Cross, as they made frequent stops at popular places along the route. There were sixteen tramcars and they commenced running at noon each day. The car ran the whole length from Oldham to Gee Cross. The electrical tramcar service from Hyde to Stockport commenced on January 1st, 1903. Before the electrical tramcar service the route from Hyde to Ashton was different. The section of the road from the Hollow Brow (Newton Street) past Cartwright and Rattray's (Waterlows) had not been constructed. So the horse drawn buses went up past Flowery Field Church and down Throstle Bank Street before turning on Dukinfield Road". 

Thanks Maloney.

Hyde Borough Police

HERE IS AN  APPEAL WE HAVE RECEIVED FROM ONE OF OUR BLOG READERS.

I wonder if anyone can help?

"Hello, my name is Jim Talbot. I am a retired Cheshire Police Officer and now a volunteer Trustee and Researcher for the Museum of Policing in Cheshire

 www.museumofpolicingincheshire.org.uk 

This Museum holds 15000 police officer records, these also cover some of the forces that were merged with Cheshire. 

 I wonder if we may make an appeal through your excellent website to anyone having information regarding Hyde Borough Police officer records or for anyone that would like to contact us via the above web site and supply any information on their relative that served with Hyde Borough Police. 

Thanking you in advance of any assistance that you may be able to provide." 

 

Thanks Jim.
I hope you manage to get some help through the site !

Adverts from The Hyde Guide

How many of these businesses are still operating today?

Sent to us by Marjorie Robinson.
Many Thanks, Marjorie!