Wigan Album

ooo where was mint cottage? love that name. Would love to go back in time to look at old Scholes, sadly all before my time.

born in harper st used to take papers all around area 14 1954

Mint Cottage was in Mint Court on the left going towards Whelley just a little further up than Molyneux St and Platt Lane. Spent many happy hours at my Grandparents (Ernie and Gladys May Hankin) house which was like a small holding with chickens, pigs and a pony. Granddad grew all his own vegetables and brewed root beer which was very refreshing in the long hot summers we used to have. It was a childs wonderland.

Hi Watchalot. Had a cousin lived in Harper Street, Margaret Short.

I Used To Live In Linney Street And Went To St. Catharines School

Joe where in Linney St? My Great Grandparents Molyneux lived at no 37 with their five children, Grandma Florence, Gt Uncles John and Joe and Gt Aunts Annie, and Nellie. What dates did you go to St Catharine's school? I was there from 1954 until 1960.

used to live afgan st off silver st

mum lived on hardybutts between union st and greenhous row one family in front of the house and a diffrent family in the back , amazing stuff .

I am not an architect nor do I have any experience of calculating “housing density” but even I realise that to consider the old Scholes with present criteria would be a nonsense. I think I’m safe in assuming that under present requirements Scholes as it was then, could never be built with so many houses in such a confined space, if today’s housing density requirements were in force.
Nevertheless when you consider the numerous favourable comments on this site, by people who actually lived in these housing conditions it makes you realise that despite improved regulation something was also lost as laws were changed.
I’m not for one second recommending a return to 19th century regulation but it does make you wonder how things could be “improved” so that in years to come people will look back fondly to their years being brought up in an area, as they seem to do when they lived in Scholes. Or am I being too naive?
Just for the record these are a couple of guidelines used today by planners - “In assessing housing density the main concern will be the volume and extent of the building mass in relationship to the building plot and surrounding developments” and “The need for schemes to retain existing site features, including mature trees, shrubs, hedgerows and soft amenity area to maintain character of the area.”
Can’t recall many soft amenity areas, hedgerows, nor trees come to that, when I lived in Scholes.

I lived in John St during the fifties and as you said Ben there wasn't any greenery unless you counted indoor plants! Nevertheless, our neighbour at one side did have a tree growing in their yard...I thought they were very posh indeed!! Yet no one can take away the memories of such a wonderful community - the likes of which I doubt I will ever see again in my lifetime.