Independent Mortgage Advice
17 Station Street is now Independent Mortgage Advice although it is not clear if the business is still operating. They appear to have been at number 17 since at least April 2021 although, in September 2020, the property looked empty.
Woolcott Opticians
From 2008 to 2019, 17 Station Street housed Woolcott Opticians.
Dorothy Littlewood
In 1941 and 1942, it housed Dorothy Littlewood, an Ophthalmic Optician. Littlewood Opticians appears on Jacques’ List of Station Street retailers circa 1920-1940.
F C Davison
Davisons appears to have been the ophthalmic optician there in the sixties.
Davison’s in Family Diaries
Davison’s are mentioned fairly frequently in my family’s diaries, see Chapter 78. Most of these mentions relate to opticians. For example, in November1960, grandma bought glasses from Davison’s in Station Street.
In November 1962, grandma knocked a lens out of her glasses while pruning a plum tree. Davison’s fitted it back for her.
Later, in May 1963, Mr Wilmot of Davison’s advised my grandmother that she should not be driving because of her poor vision.
F C Davison’s a Chemist
However, I also found mention of a chemist of the same name on Kingsway and Victoria Road in the Kirkby official guide of 1950, the Carnival magazine from 1953 and the 1969 Directory, see Chapter 78. I assume this was the same firm? They are also listed in the 1969 Directory’s ophthalmic list (p63).
Adams
In the eighties, there was an optician there called Adams.
A Watchmaker
Earlier than this, in 1928, there was a watchmaker based there, William Henry Simmons. He may have also been based at other premises on Station Street at different times, at number 19 in 1911 and number 80 in 1901.
Recollections of a Jewellers
Edith Searson, in her book(let) “I Also Remember” recalls Simmonds Jewellers. I wonder if this is the same William Henry Simmons listed as a watchmaker in the 1928 Kelly’s Directory. She notes that she did not recall much about the business except that they auctioned their stock when they closed at the end of the 1920s. She recalled that it was near to the time of her wedding and someone bought her a cake dish which she still owned in the 1980s.
Residents of 17 Station Street
The Greens
No-one was registered living at 17 Station Street in 1939. However, in 1941, according to a newspaper article I have, Harold, Edith, Cliff and Beryl Green were living here.
The Simmonses
William Henry Simmons was living at 17 Station Street with his wife, F C, in 1921 according to the census. He was listed as a jeweller and watch maker. Interestingly, his name has been transcribed as Simmonds in the archive I accessed (Find My Past) but the original is clearly Simmons. In 1911, the Simmonses were living at 19 Station Street. There, his wife’s first name is given as Flora. Again, this makes me wonder if the premises in Station Street were renumbered between 1911 and 1921.
Charlotte Graves
According to the 1911 census, Charlotte Graves was living at 17 Station Street with her three children – Rose (b1902). George William (b1906) and Connie (b1910). They also had a boarder, Harry Arrowsmith, a boot trade salesman.
The Attewells
In 1901, John and Jane Elizabeth Attewell were living at 17 Station Street . He was described as a hosiery hand. With them was their son Montague (b1879) and presumably his wife Mary Ellen (b1875) who is listed as the Attewell’s daughter-in-law. The Attewells’ married daughter, Sophia Harrison (b1876), is also there with her son, John Bernard (b1897). Three other daughters-in-law are listed but I think this is an error and that these were the Attewells’ daughters. They were Georgina Madaline (b1881), Origathia (b1889) and Jessica Ophelia (b1892). Georgina Madaline was a hosiery hand and Montague was a coal miner hewer.