Hi Margaret Good to know my penny's were going to a good cause in filling your relatives coffers <g> There were a lot of local firms with more than one branch but families had "their" branch Wraggs had several I know Shopping was a lot more personal back then, shopkeepers knew you, often by name and knew what you wanted (you might say before you did <g>) The shops and supermarkets we have today may give us much more choice but not the personal touch, but we have what we have due to market forces Melton road was another world until I was a little older and ventured over that side of the City One of my brothers lived on Brandon street off Belgrave so we did venture over there sometimes We did used to go across town to the Lido on occasion in the summer Nivard Ovington in Cornwall (UK) > North's Toy shop/travel agents was owned and run by my grandmother and > later by my uncle Fred North, as a child I was allowed to roam around > the stock room at the back of the shop. They had two shops the other on > the Melton road in Belgrave, that was the one I spent time in. Hynard > Hughes was also run by a family member, they also had two shops the one > my mum went to for the Christmas sherry was next door to North's on > Melton road. > > Margaret

I was born and brought up in Belgrave, I went to Mellor Street junior school and then on to Ellis Ave school so this was my stamping ground and we did not venture to the other side of Leicester very often, You are right Nivard it was far more personal back then and as a child if you were up to no good mum would soon hear about it. Did anyone else go to Cossington Street swiming baths? we all went on a regular basis and the big treat was to have a glass of warm orange squash after swiming. We did not do this too often as it cost 2p a glass. The library was opposite the baths and then the recky behind that many happy hours was spent there on the swings. Margaret On 17/02/2012 09:35, Nivard Ovington wrote: > Hi Margaret > > Good to know my penny's were going to a good cause in filling your relatives coffers<g> > > There were a lot of local firms with more than one branch but families had "their" branch > > Wraggs had several I know > > Shopping was a lot more personal back then, shopkeepers knew you, often by name and knew what you > wanted > (you might say before you did<g>) > > The shops and supermarkets we have today may give us much more choice but not the personal touch, > but we have what we have due to market forces > > Melton road was another world until I was a little older and ventured over that side of the City > > One of my brothers lived on Brandon street off Belgrave so we did venture over there sometimes > > We did used to go across town to the Lido on occasion in the summer > > Nivard Ovington in Cornwall (UK) > > > > >> North's Toy shop/travel agents was owned and run by my grandmother and >> later by my uncle Fred North, as a child I was allowed to roam around >> the stock room at the back of the shop. They had two shops the other on >> the Melton road in Belgrave, that was the one I spent time in. Hynard >> Hughes was also run by a family member, they also had two shops the one >> my mum went to for the Christmas sherry was next door to North's on >> Melton road. >> >> Margaret > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message > > > ----- > No virus found in this message. > Checked by AVG - www.avg.com > Version: 2012.0.1913 / Virus Database: 2112/4814 - Release Date: 02/16/12 > >

We also didn't venture to the other side of Leicester until I was older. Except for one time when my friend and I went, by bus, to her aunt in the Western Park area, living in a big house. The same aunt had visited my friend's family recently and was really glamorous with blonde hair in a curly style and lovely clothes. When we visited her, though, she looked just like my friend's mum with straightish brown hair and house clothes while she washed the stairs. Certainly heard "frit" used often among the kids and anyone not game to take part in some daring exploit was a "frit baby". We went into town on a Midland Red bus and on our very few visits back to Leicester they seemed to be there until the last time in 2007. By then the buses were all colours - except red! Re swimming baths, we were taken from school to Vestry St baths for the summer term of our first 3 years at Collegiate. We went to the small "ladies'" bath and we were 2 or 3 of us in each changing cubicle. I finally taught myself to swim at Spence St baths which were closer to home for me. Both of those had "slipper baths" which I later worked out were for people to have a bath in when they didn't have a bathroom in their house. I've never heard of Cossington St or its swimming baths before; must have been in a part of Leicester I didn't frequent. Our Midland Red bus (either L29 from Scraptoft or L31 from Parkstone Rd) always dropped us off at Humberstone Gate and I remember the building there - and the horse trough! Those, where they've survived, are now displayed as historic - like me I suppose! To my memory a "Corpo" bus - and tram - were maroon (burgundy if you like), except the last tram was painted white. Didn't see it but saw the photo of it in the Mercury and now have it in a book about Leicester. They got rid of the trams just as I was getting old enough to leave Mum and run upstairs. Only got the chance to do it once and someone had been sick up there, making it not too pleasant! Didn't go on trams very often; I think that last ride was to Abbey Park main gates (we usually went there by walking from St Margaret's Bus Station over the canal to the other entrance). A couple of years after that Mum's office closed down and she got a job with the Parks Dept. as secretary, at Abbey Park, working for the Parks Superintendent. That involved a free pass to the Abbey Park Show - great fun! Re transport, the Corporation Bus Depot was near her office and she had her dinner (lunch) there. Thanks, Suzie, for the website and I've seen now that the "Corpo" buses were later cream with just a band of maroon/burgundy - obviously the change was after I left. Re dinner and lunch, when I first started school, at Humberstone Nursery School, we were provided with "lunch" mid morning, sandwiches and our daily milk. Dinner was what we went home for in the middle of the day. Mum and I also went to Simpkin & James, just to buy some food of some sort. Never to the cafe - reckon I missed out there! Mum went to so much trouble to give me the things I would have had if my father was alive, including a holiday to the seaside every year, but those cafes obviously weren't in the scheme! Make up for it now, though! Jan in Oz ----- Original Message ----- From: "fabis" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Friday, February 17, 2012 8:56 PM Subject: Re: [LEI] Memories the Saturday shopping trip Narborough rd and into Leicester >I was born and brought up in Belgrave, I went to Mellor Street junior > school and then on to Ellis Ave school > so this was my stamping ground and we did not venture to the other side > of Leicester very often,