Anyone remember Blanchards dept store, infirmary road

[meganmia]

can anyone remember the Dept store blanchards on infirmary road, my dad used to be a van driver for them.

 

Blanchards was a large Dept Store that belonged to Henry Wigfalls. It was like the store in Are you being served. I worked as a saturday girl at 14 and when I left school I went to work there full time. It sold everything from clothing to funiture and you sent cash up in metal containers up a shoot, no tills then. Provident checks were big and everything on the tic. Those were the days.

[darra]

Mum used to take us there every year to get our clothes using the afor mentioned provident cheque

[stpetre]

I am sure that Blanchards also had a branch at Firvale in the 60's cant remember a branch being at Hillsborough. Everything you bought was wrapped in brown paper and tied with string, no fancy bags.

 

'Banner's' had a branch at Firvale, not 'Blanchard's'.

[samssong]

We were having a look at the building today and sad to say it needs some love and attention .

[stpetre]

It could well have been the one, I seem to think it was where the Bradford Woollen used to be.

 

'Lacey's was the place on West Bar that used to be a hostel (building is still there). 'Bradford Wollen' was on the other side of West Bar but nearer town centre almost opposite the courts. That place is now called 'Armadillo' and years ago the same building was (I think) the 'Don Cinema'.

[jean1955]

also on West Bar was another big store called Weston Seniors think they also accepted provident checks used to get kitted out there in the 40 s for whitsun clothes

[jaffa1]

also on West Bar was another big store called Weston Seniors think they also accepted provident checks used to get kitted out there in the 40 s for whitsun clothes

I don't think it was in the 40s as the place that was used was the old Don picture house which is still standing, it closed as a cinema in the late fifties I think, must have been after 1954 because that's when my dad took me to see The Cruel Sea, Jack Hawkins.

 

There was a Bradford Woolen Company on Scotland Street /Snow lane where we used to get our Whitsun clothes from ,on the corner building that belonged to the church.

Edited August 28, 2016 by jaffa1

[darra]

Witsun Clothes when did all that die out? Going round to your Grans and grandad to show them and get given some money

[cookingfat50]

Yer I do my mum used to buy my sister and my new school cloths from there and our new whitsun cloths as well there was an out fit for whitsunday and another for whitmonday I remember money going up a tube on the wall then coming back half hour later with the change I remember mother bought it all on tick. I hated having to try them all on all the cloths were bought a size to big ma saying we would grow into them, and not to scuff the shoe toe cap or there would be trouble when dad got home the good old days so they say Steve belk

[Jax1]

I remember Blanchards. They also sold clothing, most of the women bought clothes from there with a paget's cheque. There is a chapter regarding buying Whitsuntide Clothes in Blanchards in my novel... The Girl with The Emerald Brooch. It's set in Sheffield during the 50s and 60s, and covers the Hillsborough and Owlerton areas. You can find out more here:

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01CRIXFZ4