Some shops that no longer exist

Worked at Maypole grocers early 60s in Rickmansworth still smell of bacon made me feel sick first thing in morning. i was waiting to start apprenticeship on British rail. i always gave a bit extra to the older folk.

Remember buying Ben Sherman’s from Countdown. Oliver Summers Sports shop, buying northern soul records downstairs at Rumbelows. My Auntie had Marsden butchers on Schofield Lane next to Conroys green grocers.

I worked at Margarets Dress and Hat shop Makinsons Arcade Wigan. Lovely years and always a happy place to work. I emigrated to Australia with parents in 1960. Born in Ashton and miss my school friends from Ashton Secondary Modern School. So proud to have been a Wiganer.

I remember Mr and Mrs Vagon owned a newsagents and general store that used to be open until 9 or 10 at night. Does anyone else remember this shop?

Mortons the grocers on Wigan was on the corner of Wigan Lane and Charles Street. Next to it was what I think the Post Office and next to that was an old stone barn/shippen which with other farm buildings had been converted into a car showroom of sorts , garage and petrol filling station in Lord Street at its junction with Wigan Lane. This whole block was demolished in the early 1960's together with at least one house in Charles Street for John Plumptons filling station. This in turn was demolished later to form a row of commercial premises with parking at the rear. A video shop stands where Mortons grocers shop was and an Italian restaurant on the other corner at Lord Street. I have happy memories of the little cafe in Plumptons filling station with its coffee machine but a less happy one of an incident which took place whilst it was being built. One of the houses in Charles Street which was demolished was occupied by an old man living on his own. He used to stand on his doorstep and smile at the kids playing in the street, he seemed to enjoy watching us having a kick-about, unlike other people who used to clear us off since football wasn't popular for fear of the ball being put through a window. He apparently went into a care home over in Bottling Wood and one day we saw him just stood staring in Charles Street at the gap where his house had been, speechless. He apparently went in a home over in Bottling Wood and one day we saw him just stood in Charles Street staring at the gap where his house had been, speechless. Eventually someone came and picked him to return him to the home and we never saw him again. An automatic car wash was built on the space where his house had been. I don't know the circumstances surrounding the purchase of the house that he lived in but it certainly seemed to have destroyed him. Does anyone else remember the former farm buildings on the corner of Lord Street and Wigan Lane?

I remember W F LYON LTD bakery at 208 Gidlow Lane, it was the family bakery .I have lots of fun / great memories of working with my dad, brothers and uncle/aunt. Sadly it is no longer a shop and has been converted into dwellings. I wish I had kept some of the items we used every day like loaf tins and pie tins !!! Anyone got any out there ??????

MORTON’S ... my Grandad, Frank Lewis managed, perhaps owned Morton’s, a grocery shop in Wigan. I have super memories of being very young, maybe 8 yrs old, and going with Grandad to the shop for a full work day. I stood on a stool in front of the old scale and filled sugar bags from a big sack until the bags weighed one pound, I think ! Also remember descending to the cool cellar where the huge wheels of cheese were stored along with lots of other items to be kept cold and fresh. I remember cutting these wheels of cheese with a taught wire secured to a board ... probably for each individual customer ?! There was a “boy” who worked there too perhaps a delivery boy. He was a teenager, the name Harry comes to mind, but I’m really not sure of that. Does anyone have any memories of this shop, or know what happened to it ?

Lowe's department store. Upstairs they had glass and china for sale in glass cabinets. I bought some green Wedgewood here, probably late 1970s or very early 1980s. The floor boards must have been a bit uneven because when you walked across them the cabinets and china rattled a bit.

Was it R O Laces that used to make the most delicious Damson tarts. Never tasted one as nice since.

I remember a beauty shop in the centre of Wigan I think it was near a shoe shop. I remember I used to go in at the weekend in the late 1950s I thought it was called the body shop. However my daughter said it could not have been because The Body Shop only started up in 1976. Can anyone help

my great great grandfather Denis whittle had a shop on hallgate wigan. Denis whittle confectioners early 1900s.i am doing some family research and would love more info or anyone's memories of this shop. I am told there was once a fire in the shop where twins perished.i cannot find any info on this in the archives can anyone shed any light??

My shopping list from my Mother always included Mark William's for a loin of pork, vanilla slices from R.O Lace and minor groceries from the Maypole. This was during the years 1945- 50. When I have returned to Wigan my first stop was at the Scotch bakery for their delicious pies.I loved shopping at these stores and remember all the others as well. Lowes was a favourite of my Mother's and I was lucky to have my clothes bought there.My favourite was the small arcade where I once bought matching shoes and handbag. Very posh in those days.

Was there once a jewellers called Peter James? Maybe in the 60s. My mum got her wedding ring from there. I'd love a picture of the store

It was the White Lion..my gran and grandad had it during WW2. The Lion is on the wall in the parish church close, on the back of Lowes.

My nana took me to Wigan each week on market day. We had lunch in the UCP. It was on the corner I think behind BHS facing the bus station near the fruit and veg market.(it was 60 years ago). I also have photos of my brother and I visiting Father Christmas in Pendleburys. Happy days before town planners took over.

I used to work at the Public Library in the 1950's Lived in Beech Hill and remember the old wooden St Annes church. I went the the Girls High School. I also used to go to the Saturday morning flicks in the Gidlow Lane cinema. Flash Gordon was one of my favourites. I also remember a fire at the Pendlebutys shop one evening.

My nana Jenny taking me and my sister to Toy And Hobby toy shop on the high street to choose a little something and then to Ma Bakers for lunch where I used to love the self service and hamburger! Very happy days!

I went to Wigan High School and I enjoyed selling broken biscuits in Woolworth's during the holidays.0

does anyone remember the cattle market down frog lane and the butchers/slaughterhouse.

Does anyone remember chinny from maximes, or the starburst Cade? If so what happened to him

Dose anyone remember nora webster hairdressers she was upstairs in lowes next to the caff.My first job was hairdressing iworked in Hindley and my firend worked at nora webster's and when i was off on holiday insted of having a rest i worked my two wks hols helping them.That was in 1968.and its not change much im still working and working most of my hols.Do you remember MISS WINKELMAN she had a dress shop, it was way out.In 1969 i worked on a stall in the market called Morgens,dose anyone remember that stall it was allways kneen deep with customers

i used to work in the bakery W.F.Lyon on gidlow lane can any any body remember

i used to work in the bakery on gidlow lane in the 70's

I used to go to All Saints school in frog lanel,late 50's to 64, my twin brother Alec was on the boys side of the school. We went to St Thomas school in Caroline St before that and I got married in the church there 1966. Does anyone remember the corner shop in Caroline St called Nolan,s you could purchase clothing and shoes and pay for them weekly. I lived at no.12 Caroline St and the butterworths lived at 10, I have a photo of me and my brother with Jenny their son. Does anyone know anything about the chip shop we had in chapel St we only had it open a short time but I remember going to bed with fish and chips I was only small at the time so I can't remember when it closed but we still lived there after it did.some mentioned the doctors in wallgate Dr hall & Dr Rosser they were our family doctors and you could sit and take to them in those days,today they are writing a prescription out the minute they see you.the butcher/pie shop on Chapel lane was a must when I was married we came from Hindley Green every Saturday for the pies and took a jug for the gravy we still visited the shop when we moved to Manchester in the 70,s. Anyone remembering our family from those days?

Pendlebury's, so posh that I cringed when mum took us in but with dad's robust attitude to class we walked in with our heads held up in time. Lowe's: mum got material to make our walking day dresses. The Chemist shop opposite the bus stop near the Park Hotel Gidlow Lane where I got my first pair of glasses and thought I was in heaven, being able to see clearly after a bout of measles. The row of tiny shops going up Gidlow Lane from the Park Hotel with a newsagents where we had penny chews and granddad bought the Daily Express. The bakery shop at the corner of Throstlenest Avenue where on Saturday mornings I would run across the road on an errand to buy fresh steaming bread then butter melting and awful tummy ache after! The cinema in the middle of Gidlow Lane! seems impossible but it was definitely there and on Saturday mornings we would go and watch westerns mainly. Is the café still in Mesnes Park with a statue at the bottom of the steps leading up to it where we used to rub the bronze toe for luck? And before we started our Sunday walk to Haigh Hall a sweet shop at the top of Wigan Lane where mum bought us Fry's chocolate cream bars, then into the Shop(seemed like a wooden structure you climbed up the steps and mum sorted through cut-offs from bolts of cloth), then on to Haigh Hall with dad carrying my sister on his shoulders while I skriked at having to walk!)

I was invited to come to Wigan 1984 by Alan Walley. He had a fish and chips shop in the Market Street, opposite of The Golden Lion Pub. Alan was married with Sheila and have three daughters; Linda, Audrey and Jane (i'm not sure) Does anyone know what s become of this marvelous family?

hello i am searching for the name or pictures of my grandad old shop he had it open in 1950-1960s his surname was topping we think thst what it is called but no idea please if you no any information email me scott.topping1012@gmail.com

Does anyone remember Margarets Dress Shop one in Mesnes Street and one in Makinsons's Arcade. I worked there until 1960 before amigrating to Aust. with parents.Very happy memories but no one seems to remember these shops

Pendlebury's and Oxyley's

As a teenager in the early 70's one of my favourite things to do Saturday's was to listen to a record in the booth downstairs in Rumbelows. Look at the makeup in Woolworths and then have a 'frothy' coffee in a glass cup and saucer in the 'Wishing Well' cafe in Hallgate........ Simple pleasures

I spent a lot of time with my mothers aunt in higher Ince. Her Brother Uncle Bill used to take me for baby chicks in the wiend . I also worked at Pendleburys which was really Debenhams. Uncle Bill had a daughter Winnie either surname was Hickey or Markland.

shaun Edwards always having a big lolly from the shop were the rugby shop is now

If anyone remembers Margaret Razaq's and has a story to share I would love to hear it. My Aunty Marg used to tell me all sorts of tales but unfortunately she passed Iin 1999 and I am not done listening :) If you have a story to share I would love to hear it please email me on meegordon@gmail.com

Does anybody remember gus near mesnes park

mc.gregors decorating shop,in commercial yard.1966.i worked there in 1966.

Does anyone know of a shop (maybe a grocers) in Wigan with the name "Marshall"? It may have gone way back in the 19th century for all I know but may have gone more recently.

Does anyone know the name of the large jewellers that was on the corner of Crompton Street? Think it may have began with a P

My nan had a chippy on Darlington street wigan. Ada's does anyone remember it.

in the 1970-1972 my friend and I were regulars at the beer Kellor and around the pubs in Wigan. We also used to be regulars at the cafe in Lowes on a Saturday afternoon. I started my working life at Brian Nichols who also had the Venetian Blind shop at the Seven Stars in Wallgate. I remember serving Errol Brown who was the singer out of Hot Chocolate and yes he ordered Chocolate Brown Blinds. Used to be regulars at the Saddle cafe at lunch time as my husband worked for MA Peters. My mother worked at Barbara Whites in Newtown and also the dress shop at the top of Makinsons arcade but at this present time I cannot remember the name, she also worked at the dry cleaners opposite C & A My Auntie also worked in Woolworths upstairs in the food area and was alway on the till at the top of the escalator. not been back to the UK for a long time I suppose it has changed a lot, did have some happy memories

Who can remember 'Phillips Parr' chemist shop in Wallgate ? my sister worked there in the early 1960s

O & G Rushtons, used to go there for groceries, most things in brown paper bags and cheese etc cut on request. Large scales to measure dry goods. No pre packaging.......great

alice pearson, (hasilden). did you know tony, bobby and jimmy platt from ince? they all emigrtaed to Canada? their sister mary ann Platt was my grandma. during the sixties they all came over to wigan to visit when I met them for the first time. i remember those visits so well. I was born in 1950, the 3 men I mention were my great uncles and are sadly, now deceased but they were all lovely people.

Does anyone remember going to see the school dentist on Liverpool Road Hindley in the fifties,he had the worst brown teeth I have ever seen and he always had a senior service hanging out of the corner of his mouth. As he was traumatising us with his awful breath and rubber mask;cig ash would be falling like snow all over the place. To this day I am scared to death of the dentist.

My First Day at Work. By Tom Walsh . I leave home in a very nervous state,I've been awake half the night, wondering what the day held in store,would the men be nice,would I be able to come home at dinner time(lunch for southern cousins). My Mother made the morning more anxious, "Have you got a clean handkerchief ", "Have you cleaned your shoes", Have you got your dinner money,(Interpretation time again,lunch)."Mam"I yell back, "Stop fussing I'll be alright if you'll just stop fussing,please",I'm not bothered at all,about going to work,it's just you keep going on"which of course is a complete lie, I don't think I have ever felt so scared in my life. I start my journey into the new world. I had secured a job,at Lowes , a very posh department store,a week before,as an apprentice carpet fitter,considered a very good trade in those days,I felt very fortunate to have landed a position in such a prestigious establishment. I think this sentiment was shared by most of my family,and by all of my teachers, I hadn't performed well at school, spelling being my biggest drawback,(Thank God,for spell check). In those unenlightened times ,poor spelling consigned you to the scrap heap. As I nearer the emporium,I start to think I wish I hadn't been so fortunate, I think a less posh place of work would have suited me better. I'm from a mining family,but from my earliest days it had been drilled into me," your not going down the pit ", my Dad had been hurt in a pit fall,and my maternal Grandfather had lost a leg in similar circumstances, but if not there,where?. The world certainly wasn't my oyster. In the mile or so walk from home to shop,I convince myself once again,that I am indeed fortuitous. On reaching the Market Square, I look up at the imposing edifice,that was Lowe's Victoria House, a Cathedral to poshness. Even though I caught the bus for school immediately outside there everyday for four years, I had never dared enter its portals,until I went for interview,Mr.Lowe said my well written letter had impressed him, and got me to the interview stage,I had enough nous not say my sister helped me,in truth she had written it,and I merely copied the missive . My Mother likewise had never entered the hallowed halls, nor I expect had the vast majority of my extended family,far to grand for the likes of us !. As I gaze up,awaiting the courage to enter,I start again to ponder again my suitability for the position,and wished I hadn't answered the advertisement a fortnight earlier. I would surely have found something less daunting and better suited to my background, but here goes I must face the consequences of that much pored over letter,that has landed me in this predicament . On the day of my interview,I was told my start time would be eight o'clock,but on the first day I would be meet b Mr.Marshall,Furnishing Workroom Manager,at nine o'clock ,and he would introduce me to the staff and show me the ropes.I enter the building just as the Parish Church clock chimes nine.A tall distinguished looking man approaches me."Are you our new recruit" he asks in a decidedly officer type accent."Yes Sir" I mumble,trying to keep my voice as low as possible,it rises three octaves when I'm in a stressful situation. "No need for sir ,your not at school now ,Mr.Marshall will do nicely" he says in a firm abrupt way,I find out in the years ahead was his style of speaking. We take the lift to the top floor, I relived that we don't use the stairs,as I imagine everybody is looking at me,and wondering how I'II fit in,worse still if I'II fit in. We reach the workroom,it's all very formal,as was everything at Lowes I shake hands with all the carpet fitters,seven in all.and the four lady seamstresses . The ladies are all lovely ,and do everything to make me feel at ease, one in particular seems to take a shine to me , Betty , who I discover lives near to me ,we walk home together everyday,and she becomes a confidant ,and trusted adviser on workroom politics. We are great friends to this day, a few years latter we are to share the same surname when she marries my cousin Jim,a small world !. All the men seem very friendly and welcoming,apart from one,who whilst he shook hands,seemed anything less than pleased to see me, I shan't name him in case he still roams the planet,although I doubt it,as these events are over fifty yeas ago,and he appeared to be in his forties then. I learn later that it was nothing personal,he drinks heavily ever weekend and is in a foul mood on Monday mornings. The formality of the first day, and my time at The Cathedral has stayed with me for the rest of my life. I can but wonder why many younger people clap each others hand in the sky,so to speak,I learned only recently,this called a high five,and is in the modern day equivalent of the handshake. I am relieved to say I have never been offered a high five,and hope the occurrence doesn't present it's self in my lifetime, how's that for being "stuffy",sorry, don't blame me,blame Lowes. The formality of the meetings continue as I'm coached in shop etiquette. In the unlikely event ,in the first few weeks at least,I should need to speak to a female customer she should be addressed as Madam,a gentlemen as Sir,the second would come easier as I'm used to that form of address at school, and whilst I had to use Madam,I didn't feel totally comfortable with its usage. After Lowes was taken-over. I addressed female customers by their surname or in absence of that knowledge, by the much less formal Miss. That first day seemed everlasting,my first duty was to go for toast to The UCP(United Cattle Products)they had a cafeteria at the back of the shop,a strange combination ,when you come to think about it, tripe at the front ,and tea and toast at the rear,however that's how it was,and I was to become a frequent customer in the years ahead,going for morning snacks for all the workroom. On this first visit I had got flummoxed (what a good word,spellcheck has just confirmed it as being in the dictionary,hitherto I had always thought it slang) ,and as you may of guessed the biggest mixup was with the fitter with the hangover,who seemed in an even more aggressive mood as the day goes on ,he threatens to thump me if I ever get his order wrong again. "He's only joking he's a soft as my pocket underneath "says Betty trying to reassure me. I'am not so certain, he has a mean look on his face and I imagine that a smile has never visited his thin angry looking lips . I remember thinking I hope he doesn't frequent his local again this week,and that his disposition changes with sobriety. Whilst he appeared slightly more approachable on days other than Mondays,he was always disagreeable and once carried out his threat to punch me because I got his order wrong from Millgate Chippy. I've never seen him since leaving Lowes , and I feel I would prefer a meeting with Lucifer than an encounter with him. Please forgive the hyperbole. Mr.Marshal greets me as I enter the shop bang on one o'clock , on my first day I had decided to go home for lunch,the poshness is rubbing off already, until that day I had always used the more northern term dinner. Mr. M.as the workroom staff always refer to him,tells me in no uncertain manner that one o'clock start means just that , in the workroom not the front door of the emporium, "sorry sir, I mean Mr. Marshall" I utter in a pitch as high as violin,nerves doing their best to make me look,and sound ridiculous. " Don't let it happen again or you'll be looking for another job" he says in the brusque way that was his want. I half expected him to follow it up with and you'll leave without references,so Dickensian did he and whole store seem on that first day. It was that very attitude that I later I came to accept, no, I actually came to like ,and traces of this old fashioned way of doing things are with me to this day!.

I remember Oliver Summers in Mesnes Street...went in there one day with a 3d oin and said will it buy anything ? He gave me a little toy knife whose blade would retract back into the handle when you pretended to stab someone.....bless him !

Lots of happy memories. If you want to read more about the rock and roll scene and the local clubs have a look at lankybeat. You will not be disappointed.

My first job when I left school at 16 was in cash & accounts at Lowes Department store. The bus from Ashton dropped me off right outside and I worked in the office in the Toy Department in the basement. The cash was sent down to us via air pressure tubes where we stamped the receipt added any change & sent the tube back to the Dept. Happy memories

My mum and dad used to have a confectioners shop in Lower Ince, noted for the pies made on Wednesdays. I remember there being long queues waiting for the shop to open on pie day. Does anyone else remember Lyons Confectioners on Warrington Rd.

I remember Oliver sommers gun shop, where the coffee shop is now on mesnes street just before standish gate, rumbelows was facing it I think (now subway. I was forever in the gun shop, always wanted to be a gunsmith.

i was born at number 7 bankes street off cambridge street,close to hardybutts.i can't believe hardybutts as been split in two.it makes the place look so dull and dissmal.the place as totaly lost its character.shame on whoever authorised it.