Steel City House

[Flying_Porke]

Eric Newby in his book "Something Wholesale" refers to a department store in Sheffield that he called "Throttle and Fumble". He describes the store as being in an Edwardian building "shaped like a hunk of cheese".

 

This seems to be consistent with Steel City House. Indeed there is the faded shadow of lettering that can just be seen that would be consistent with the name of a department store.

 

My research indicates there was a bank and a telephone exchange in the building. But who were "Throttle and Fumble"? In part of the book he writes, "...most of the sons looked despairing and lost. None was as awful as young Mr Fumble of Throttle and Fumble."

 

Can anyone help?

[me-and-pippo]

Eric Newby in his book "Something Wholesale" refers to a department store in Sheffield that he called "Throttle and Fumble". He describes the store as being in an Edwardian building "shaped like a hunk of cheese".

 

This seems to be consistent with Steel City House. Indeed there is the faded shadow of lettering that can just be seen that would be consistent with the name of a department store.

 

My research indicates there was a bank and a telephone exchange in the building. But who were "Throttle and Fumble"? In part of the book he writes, "...most of the sons looked despairing and lost. None was as awful as young Mr Fumble of Throttle and Fumble."

 

Can anyone help?

Wouldn't have thought the building was Steel City House on West Street,

Cole Brothers that stood on the corner of Fargate & Church Street fits the description.

[hillsbro]

Steel City House was formerly Telephone Buildings, which did indeed contain a telephone exchange, a branch of Martins (later Barclays) Bank and various offices including a post office, but there was never a department store there. Here is a link to a photo on the picturesheffield.com site of the original Cole's building, and another view is here.