What was Sharrow like in the early 1970s?

[ogden 10]

Was it Mrs Hazeltine daughter that died of meningitis in the early seventies

[Joe9T 10]

My mother and step father lived at Priory Terrace, it was Four bed roomed with inside bathroom upstairs just off Sharrow. Yes they pulled down a lot of the little terraced houses to put up the flats but I don't think it improved the area

 

I was only very young when the "flats" were built off Washington Rd, but I do think that possibly the old houses on that area were looking old for their time and probably needed to be demolished.

 

An area though is only as good as the people living in it and sadly Sharrow in my opinion has lost it's pride over the years.

 

It is so sad to see the disgraceful condition of St John's Methodist Church at the moment, following it's metal railings being removed in March, with tiles now being stripped from it's roof and the bushes outside the church, looking like they have just been ripped up and left.

Who ever owns this building SHOULD be fined for allowing this building to get in such disrepair and open to vandalism.

 

The Council SHOULD fine them, as it is a blight on the area. And let's not forget that the old Sharrow Primary School, which has also been closed for many years now, although still very sad to see empty; that has pleasingly been spared of any vandalism. So it shows that a building can stand empty and not be vandalised or be open to vandalism and break-in, if it's kept properly by it's current owner.

Edited June 30, 2012 by Joe9T

[Joe9T 10]

Also, I have noticed a rise in dog mess, especially on Wostenholm Road, opposite the shops, on towards Ventnor Place. These people should also be fined for not clearing up after their dogs, again not taking pride in the area that they live in.

Edited June 30, 2012 by Joe9T

[Plain Talker 11]

The butchers on Wostenholm Road was owned by the husband of the singer Marty Cain. It was a few shops down from the traffic lights.

 

Her husband was Malcolm Stringer. He also owned a butchers' shop at banner cross.

[only_me 11]

As young kids we thought the adventure playground behind the cross guns was great. The flats were new with all the walkways and binsheds where we would hide and congregate. In fact the whole complex was one big adventure to us. I still lived in a tiny victorian house not far from St Barnabas school Cecil road so the flats were out of this world to me at the time.

 

We also would all hang around the large buildings between Sharrow lane and Sitwell road. We became known as the Learners mob or gang due to one of the buildings previous uses. Those were great days in the early 1970s, nobody ever seemed to bother us. Sharrow was a brilliant area to be in at that time.

[Joe9T 10]

The butchers on Wostenholm Road was owned by the husband of the singer Marty Cain. It was a few shops down from the traffic lights.

 

No. 4, Wostenholm Road (which was between no 2. Wards J.S. Ltd. [fruitr] and no.6 Holmes C.W. [fruitr]), was owned by Utley J.K. (butcher) from around 1971 up until at least 1974.

 

I believe Malcolm Stringer took it over, sometime in the mid 70's, but previous to that the butchers was run by the following going back to the 30's

 

Dey S. (butcher) circa 1965 - 1970

Johnson A. & Sons (Butchers) Ltd. circa 1957 - 1963

Fisher & Sons (butchers) - 1948

Beckett Edwd (butcher) - 1933)

Edited June 30, 2012 by Joe9T

[Plain Talker 11]

As young kids we thought the adventure playground behind the cross guns was great. The flats were new with all the walkways and binsheds where we would hide and congregate. In fact the whole complex was one big adventure to us. I still lived in a tiny victorian house not far from St Barnabas school Cecil road so the flats were out of this world to me at the time.

 

We also would all hang around the large buildings between Sharrow lane and Sitwell road. We became known as the Learners mob or gang due to one of the buildings previous uses. Those were great days in the early 1970s, nobody ever seemed to bother us. Sharrow was a brilliant area to be in at that time.

 

I remember playing in the grounds of the "learners", nearly forty years ago

[Joe9T 10]

As young kids we thought the adventure playground behind the cross guns was great. The flats were new with all the walkways and binsheds where we would hide and congregate. In fact the whole complex was one big adventure to us. I still lived in a tiny victorian house not far from St Barnabas school Cecil road so the flats were out of this world to me at the time.

 

We also would all hang around the large buildings between Sharrow lane and Sitwell road. We became known as the Learners mob or gang due to one of the buildings previous uses. Those were great days in the early 1970s, nobody ever seemed to bother us. Sharrow was a brilliant area to be in at that time.

 

We would annoy The Cross Guns Pub, by ringing the back door bell and then scarpering for our dear lives. I think they had a barking dog too.

And, yes the place was all new and very exciting indeed.

[RosieMatthew 10]

Yes, I remember Mr Allott, when he owned and ran the newsagents on Wostenholm Rd. I didn't know him personally, just knew him from my experience of him when I went to his shop. A funny story did occur in the early 70s, during the power cuts (around 1973), when my brothers went into the shop late afternoon after school, when all of a sudden all of the power went off and Mr Allott shouted "nobody move", frightened that his shop might be pilfered in the darkness. My mum says he was a nice gentleman and another has said he never trusted anyone to the point that he would climb ladders in the shop backwards, so that he could keep his eye on the customer.

WE do have a chuckle about the power cut incident many a time and all the shops on that stretch were the creme de la creme. Shame that they are not like that anymore. Just further up Sharrow Lne from Wostenholm Rd, were two other fine shops in Hazeltines (corner of Priory Rd) and Pulfreys (corner of Fentonville St). I was born in 1965, so recall these shops from after that period up until I moved from the area in 1979. I am now back in the area, only a stones throw away from where I was brought up and the area has most definately lost it's pride.

Hi Joe9T. Just wondered how your research is going and if you had any more info on Fred and Joan Allott who ran the paper shop in Wostenholm Road from your mum. Does any one know if they had any children?

[DUFFEMS 56]

Hi Joe9T. Just wondered how your research is going and if you had any more info on Fred and Joan Allott who ran the paper shop in Wostenholm Road from your mum. Does any one know if they had any children?

 

If you have access to Ancestry there's someone who is maybe related to this couple.

[baz48 10]

I was born in Salmon St in 1938 and lived there about 30 years until demolition

Went to Sharrow Lane School then Greystones.Loved it round there the pubs

in my twentys were great and alot of characters some have been mentioned

like Arnie Allison landlord of the Washington and the waiter Jack Birch.We once

pretended to be arguing over mixing drinks and asked Jack to adjudicate as non

of us knew as much as Jack would. We asked him "How do you make a

Molotov Cocktail ?" He looked knowingly at us and said " You start with two

pieces of cucumber " The snooker room exploded and six of us were helpless

rolling around on the floor. More later!

[Joanl 12]

I used to live at the back of the post office on Washington Road in the 70's. My kids went to Sharrow Lane School. The shop on the corner was run by Mr. and Mrs Pitts then.