Wigan Album
Gerard St. Ashton=in-Makerfield
10 Comments
Photo: Roger
Item #: 28567
Is there no clue on the card as to the year Roger ? After the war I would guess. I can just about remember the trolley buses, so I would hazard a guess at about 1952, give or take. And could that be Jimmy Gillett's horse drawn fish cart, or just the ragbone man?
I worked in Ashton in 1969 in Richardson's Chemists, just going out of sight in the far distance. Apart from the trolley-bus wires, old car and peoples' fashions, Gerrard Street didn't look much different.
Sorry, no idea of the year but I would think sometime in the 1940s, the street lamps in front of the church seem to be similar to the early mercury vapour types which started to be used around then.
I worked at Cromptons 1965-80 little had changed from the photo.
apart from there,s no cromptons anymore . it,s now gerard precinct . my mother worked at cromps owd viewer .
the year is 1939, this postcard, plus the other five in this series, was printed by R.A.P. for the newsagent at the bottom of warrington road (it was iredales last). when the war broke out they were put on a shelf in the stock room and forgotten about. fast forward to the early 90's and the local postman, who had an interest in old postcards, heard about them, bought them and placed them in antiques auctions up and down the country. that is as i remember the story from the postman whose name i cant remember. i have seen hundreds of copies of this card at postcard fairs over the years, but i have never found one that has been through the post so i believe they never went on sale in 1939.
What's the name of the church ?
the methodist church.
Congregational. The 'Cong' to locals.
I don't think it is Jimmy Gillets cart, He stabled his only called Dolly in Princess Road and I remember that as Dolly made her way slowly toward Ashton stopping whilst Jimmy sold fish, the householder would take it in strict rotation to collect Dolly's manure. Why it never occurred to them to go to his stables is a mystery. Does anyone have a photo of Jimmy and the cart, I can't find d one anywhere?