[Retlaw]

Originally Posted by Margaret Pilkington

John, I know that area well.
My grandma lived at 188 Higher Antley Street.
I can put some names to some of the shops....there was a bread and cake shop (probably across from where you lived..at a guess) that was Mona's.
The papershop where you were a paperboy..might that have belonged to Harry Littlefair?
He had a second one at the corner of Nuttall Street and wellington Street.
Thornbers Chemists was on the corner of Higher Antley St and Ormerod St.
There was Ducketts grocers....corner of Major St and Richmond Hill st.
at the other corner of Richmond Hill street was Frank Greenhalgh's grocers...he had a bit of green grocery too...Woodnook Inn, Old Band club.
There was a green grocers on the 'odd side of Higher Antley St and Major St...but I can't for life of me remember who that belonged to.
I used to beg onion sacks from this shop so that my grandma could make peg rugs with them.
Daniels Coal Yard was at the back of my grandma's house...and there was a selling out shop at that end of her street too(that name escaped me as well)
It was a real community way back then...and neighbours looked out for one another.
I have vivid memories of the rag and bone chap coming round, and the milk being delivered directly from the churn into a large pot jug(my grandma had a beaded crochet cover to keep the dust out) both these used to have horses and carts....and Birtwells ice cream on a Sunday afternoon...custard yellow with raspberry vinegar dripping down the cone.
Sweet, sweet memories..but as you say Accrington has changed and not for the better.

Ecky thump Margaret, tha dusn'd ayf bring back memories, my grandad Fenwick lived on Higher Antley St, only a door or two away from thi Grandma, Daniel's coyle, think he moved to Lee St an took oer a pub, cake shop at top end of Major St, facing back Higher Antley St, they med some right gradely Parkin, A thowt ice cream man were Clemson, delivered in a horse drawn milk float.
I used to do me Grandads shpping for him during last war, armed wit basket, ration books, an money, you could get every thin you ever needed in shops in Woodnook, last stop were for his tobacco, fromt shop on Nuttall St, he always gave me a brand new penny, aypenny for that, and I was too watch closely as grandads baccy was cut off a large coil of black twist, an balanced the penny, aypenny. Dusnd thowts like thad start you ramblin thro time, ell fire near 75 years since. And tha geet punced eyut o skoo wen tha wur 14 an all.