Another mystery which we would love some assistance in solving! This photograph came to the Archive with a request for any information; is Red Lion Place in Redcar? There is a Red Lion Street, which links to Lord Street and was opposite a linking street to the High Street, so named by the Red Lion Hotel which was on the other end corner to the High Street; perhaps this shop was close by? Who is the young lady in the shop doorway and does anybody have an idea as to the date?Peter Sotheran suggests: ” Red Lion Place – was this at the southern end of Red Lion Street on land that is now a turning point for vehicles and close the the railway line?” Colin Brown has assisted with: “The Woman at door is Mrs Tompkins, it was her Sweet Shop.”Joe Doe assists with: “When I lived at Railway Terrace off Regent Street, where the telephone exchange is now was Wardman’s Dairy.”
Image courtesy of Lynsey Peart, thanks to Peter Sotheran, Colin Brown and Joe Doe for the updates.
The title of this images gives a hint of the link to another image on the Archive of the ‘First House in Dormanstown’, Geoff Kitching brought this image to the Archive with information regarding possible use for the caravan; the reverse bearing the annotation: “Caravan dwelling at 1st house to be built”; whilst Bill Kitching advised: “Workers would come in to work and possibly hire a caravan as accommodation as there would be limited places to stay and it would probably be cheaper”. As the Kitching family had information about a relative; Arch Aubrey who worked as a plasterer for the company erecting the Dorlonco houses, he was visited by his parents and unidentified children, they are believed to be the people in the picture. Alfred Aubrey and his wife Annie, had four daughters (Grace, Ruth, Gwendoline and Winifred) which the Archive can only suppose they may be those in the photograph. The picture must have been taken early in 1918 as there do not appear to be many other houses visible.
Image and information courtesy of Geoff Kitching, additional information via Ancestry and Find My Past websites.
This image has the comment on the reverse: “First complete steel and Hy Rib house” at Dormanstown; known as ‘Dorlonco’,the design was named after Dorman Long the steel company at Warrenby to house the workers for the steel works, they were designed by Architects: Stanley Davenport Adshead, Ramsey and Albert Abercrombie. The builders were Jones and Sons of Westminster and Costain Brothers of Liverpool; Arch Aubrey uncle of Geoff Kitching’s father worked on these houses when they were first being built and evidently took this image. Owing to a shortage of bricks the houses were built with steel frames and clad with concrete, but were modestly elegant affairs in the Georgian style. The first 300 houses were built in two styles: kitchen houses for manual workers and parlour houses for clerical staff; Gas was supplied free to every house. When completed in 1920, Dormanstown housed 342 families. The last of the ‘Dorlonco’ houses were demolished in 1979; the streets of Dormanstown still carry names linked to the builders, Architects and even the steel works manager (Ennis Road; which was the original line for the light railway that was built to carry materials on the 850 acre site).
Eamann O Ruairc tells us: “The man standing in front of it is my grandfather, Michael (Mick) Magee. He began working as a driver, but since he was a very skilled mechanic (he had served his time as a motor mechanic and had spent World War I as a driver in the Army Service Corps on the Western Front) he was soon put to work as a mechanic in the depot in Dormanstown. During his stay in Redcar; Mike became deeply involved in trade unionism and in socialist politics. At some point he became the chauffeur of a Fabian MP. Whether this was a full-time job or a part-time one I do not know. Mike may have worked for the Transport Workers Union and was also very active in the organisation of the 1926 general strike. In 1930 he emigrated to Detroit where he became a key figure in the trade unions in the Ford factories”. Craig White tells us: “Looks like Redcar Lane Cemetery chapel in background , so this would be Thwaites Lane running up to the Racecourse stands”.
Image and information courtesy of Eamann O Ruairc; Eamann is also seeking further information about United Bus Company in Redcar in the early 1920s. Thanks to Craig White for the update regarding location of this image.
Sandringham and Buckingham Road in Redcar occupy the site of the once famous Pleasure Park in Redcar; this amusement park which opened in 1924 included rides such as ‘River Caves’, ‘The Whirlpool’, ‘The Scenic Motors’, ‘The Autocars’, as well as a skating rink, ‘Hilarity Hut’ and ‘Noah’s Ark’. The main ‘event’ was the wooden roller coaster known as the ‘Giant Racer’ which is shown on this postcard by A. E. Graham of Redcar and dates from 1930s. The park closed in 1938 when the 15 year lease lapsed, the Racer was dismantled and moved to at Sheerness; but its life was short-lived owing to the outbreak of war.
A postcard view of The Ship Inn Marske, this popular village amenity is a Grade II listed building and described in the Listed British Buildings as: “A very complete example of an Inter-War, Roadhouse type public house.” The building was dating from 1932, although this was a site on which have stood a succession of similarly named buildings. The mock Tudor timber framing originated from the battleships HMS Collingwood and HMS Southampton; the two battleships being scrapped between 1909 and 1912 by Hughes-Bolckow in the north east of England.
This postcard view of West Terrace is radically different today; ‘The Royal Standard’ which briefly was renamed as ‘The Standard’ is now long gone; whilst the road is for buses only. The clock tower dedicated to Edward VII still stands at the end of the High Street, it is a Grade II listed building and a valued part of Redcar heritage.
Yes it’s the skating rink at Redcar, pity it isn’t still there, but with ‘elf and safety’ now you would have to wear helmets, knee pads, elbow pads; too tired to skate by the time you had got ready. This postcard view from the late 1950s or early 1960s, shows plenty of use. Fred Brunskill tells us: ”The roller skating rink was on the site of the old outdoor swimming baths in the Coatham Enclosure and were built at a cost of £ 10,000 and opened in 1951 to commemorate the Festival of Britain.” Alan Franks tells us: “I remember it well, I used to go skating in the early to mid 1950s here as a lad. We used to skate as fast as we could round and round trying to impress the girls. It didn’t really work.”
Image courtesy of Iris Place and many thanks to Fred Brunskill, Alan Franks and Alan Collins for the updates.
Marske beach is halfway on the long stretch of sand from Coatham to Huntcliff. Not as popular as Redcar or Saltburn, but still busy in this 1930s postcard image by J. Johnson (newsagent and photographer in Marske); it is little changed today. It is a pleasant beach, with boats pulled up to the slipway. No candy floss or ice cream stalls, nor bingo; just a lovely and unspoiled family beach.
We posted an image believing it to be of the Convalescent Home at Coatham; based on the ‘REDCAR’ heading to the ‘cropped’ postcard. This provoked many comments and we are grateful to Fred Brunskill, Dave Cusson, Mick Mavin, and Craig White; but our saviour was Carl Conway who correctly identified the building as the Felix Hotel, Felixstowe. Several of the comments were suggesting that it might be the cloisters of the Sir William Turner’s Grammar School.
To that end we havefound and posted in the space this early tinted postcard view of Sir William Turners, which shows the aforementioned cloisters. Many thanks for all who contributed and another mystery solved.
Image courtesy of Mike Holliday and other sources.
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