Bolton's Newport Street once boasted an 'elephant clock'

It was all happening in Bolton town centre when this photo was taken in 1959.

It shows major works taking place on Newport Street where a new block of shops was nearing completion.

You are looking towards the town hall and Victoria Square and at this point traffic still flowed in both directions past the town hall and along Newport Street.

The road was clearly being resurfaced causing a few problems for motorists.

Does anyone remember the impressive clock on the right on the photo topped by a Bolton elephant? Which shop was that part of? And what what happened to it?

Source

I remember the clock, or at least 'a' clock similar to that on the same side of Newport Street.

The thing I most remember about it though was that it was 'stopped' and not working - indeed iirc, there wasn't even any 'hands on it (both sides)!

I often wondered why the shop simply didn't take it down as clearly they were never going to repair it, as it was left like that for years and years.

I've no idea what the shop was but it would be a fair guess that it was at one time a shoe shop - I think every other shop on that stretch of Newport Street seemed to be a shoe shop at one time!

I also remember the was once a bookshop on that side of Newport Street but nearer to the Town Hall end of Newport Street, where I use to buy Biggles book.  Used to love reading about his WWI adventures in his Sopwith camel fighting the German Fokkers.

Happy days.

Sluffy wrote:I remember the clock, or at least 'a' clock similar to that on the same side of Newport Street.

The thing I most remember about it though was that it was 'stopped' and not working - indeed iirc, there wasn't even any 'hands on it (both sides)!

I often wondered why the shop simply didn't take it down as clearly they were never going to repair it, as it was left like that for years and years.

I've no idea what the shop was but it would be a fair guess that it was at one time a shoe shop - I think every other shop on that stretch of Newport Street seemed to be a shoe shop at one time!

I also remember the was once a bookshop on that side of Newport Street but nearer to the Town Hall end of Newport Street, where I use to buy Biggles book.  Used to love reading about his WWI adventures in his Sopwith camel fighting the German Fokkers.

Happy days.

Can't bring that bookshop to mind. There was a Sweetens in Deansgate that got a fair chunk of my money, but a lot of the town is a fuzzy memory these days.

It was there a long time before Sweetens opened, I was in short trousers back in the day when my parents used to take my brother and I to the bookshop on Newport Street.

In fact it was my brother who first got me reading the Biggles books, he had the first 'set' those which were all WW1 based (the picture of the book above was one that he had and handed down to me), I just started collecting the newer books thereafter.

The bookshop was wide open, it didn't have a shop window and a door to go into, it was open fronted and had books on racks that you browse whilst stood on the pavement.  There where two aisles that led into the shop.

I guess they must have pulled a shutter down at night when closing?

I'm wondering if the shop was W H Smiths before it moved to the frontage of the then newly built Arndale Centre facing the Town Hall?

I think it may well have been.

I remember the bookshop in Newport Street back in the 50's.

It was a stationers as well.

The children's section was downstairs.

There was a private library there too.

I think it was called Reeds, seriously.  W H Smith may have taken it over much later.

I spent many a happy hour in there, wondering what to spend my book tokens on.

That sounds about right Cajun.

I seem to remember Smith's taking over Reeds (the name rings a bell) just before they moved into the shop where they are now.

Wasn't it John Read. Dad got his pens from there I think.

Yes, I'm sure you are right about the name now.

Yes, they always had a lovely selection of expensive fountain pens.

Cajunboy wrote:Yes, I'm sure you are right about the name now.

Yes, they always had a lovely selection of expensive fountain pens.

I was always puzzled at my dad's love of fancy pens. He was a butcher, with fingers like sausages, and it always seemed rather odd.

Christmas morning would find him ensconced in his easy chair, clad only in pyjama bottoms and a string vest, cracking nuts on the hearth with a 4lb lump hammer, whilst perusing my Beezer Annual.

But he was a different animal when he got his pen out.........

Elephant clock.   Carry on.