FLASHBACK #32

These two photos were taken on the Dyserth branch line that operated 1869-1973 from Prestatyn to Meliden to Dyserth for the quarries.

Ah yes, the quarries. As a schoolboy on the Dyserth side of Rhuddlan I used to hear a warning siren followed by eerie silence, and then big boom accompanied by a chorus of dogs barking.

The mountain looked as if a giant’s spoon had removed a portion to eat. We took the disfiguring of the landscape by heavy industry for granted.

On visits to Wrexham area I joined the children playing on ‘spoil tips’ from the collieries until 1966 when a big one collapsed on houses and a school at Aberfan in South Wales and killed 28 adults and 116 children.

Our industrial past is less than glorious.

You can read about the Dyserth branch line, most of which is now a footpath, in Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dyserth_branch_line

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Mr. Gerald Turner, now of Canada, thought he saw a picture of Yours Truly and my pal Jill on this blog ages ago – and he has spent a long time trying to find it again. He didn't say what for!

Well Gerry, the pic was taken in 2015 by Lynn Roberts outside The Piazza Restaurant, High Street, Rhyl. It appeared as part of a temporary post and got deleted. Here 'tis.

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Colin Jones / email: rhyl.colin.jones@live.co.uk

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OTHER WORLDS

A surprisingly large amount of info and pix received here at Jones Towers is not about Rhyl but about towns and villages nearby.

Above: Bodfari railway station (opened in 1869). This shot dates from 1961, a year before the station closed down and is taken looking westwards towards Denbigh. Station buildings on your right were on the Chester bound platform. Last I heard the station was a private residence.

Below: An old image of  the present Tafarn Yr Heliwr/Sportsman's Arms on Denbigh Moors. The pub is in Bylchau near Denbigh or Llansannan according to whose directions you take. "You can't miss it," I suppose.

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Above: A lofty view of part of Dyserth village on a card postmarked 1937.

Below: In Dyserth Parish Church aka St. Bridget's Church – the 15th century Jesse Window photographed circa 1930.

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Above: Found in a batch of Prestatyn pictures, an image captioned Old Pigeon House, Talacre. I'm glad about the caption, otherwise I wouldn't have known what the hell it was.

Below: Fforddlas in Prestatyn. What shall we say – 1950s?  Fforddlas in Prestatyn is one word whereas Ffordd Las in Rhyl is two words often written mistakenly as one.

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Above: Multiview card of Towyn near Abergele, postmarked 1955. The church bottom right is (Grade II listed) St. Mary's consecrated in 1873.

Below: This is a memorial at St. Michael's Church, 1 Peel Street, Abergele. The inscription reads: "Sacred to the memory of 33 persons who names are inscribed on this monument. They perished in the railway accident near Abergele on the 20th of August 1868 and their remains are deposited within this enclosure."
Click on the image to see bigger version.

The family names are (top to bottom left):- Farnham, Chinnery, Berwick, Aylmer, Franks, Askin, Cripps, Edwards, Farrell, Holmes;
(top to bottom right):- Ingram, Kellett, Lea, Lund, Owen, Outen, Parkinson, Roe, Scovell, Smith, Stearn, Strafford, Symes.

For details of the accident see Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abergele_rail_disaster

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Recently I've had meetings with film maker Mike Theaker who is planning a new Rhyl project. Mike co-produced the most popular video on my YouTube channel where it is titled Rhyl 1960s: A Tale Of Two Seasons
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7l8SIqHvsw

Only the videos marked RhylTime are mine!

Colin Jones / email: rhyl.colin.jones@live.co.uk

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QUIZ QUESTION # 191

Below is a slice of Rhyl townscape photographed today by Yours Truly.
The question: What might you have found here in the 1960s?

No need to send me an email - just check your answers against mine on Sunday 17th September 2017 after 12 noon.

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These days  Tir Prince Raceway in Towyn near Abergele is the place for trotting races but the 1967 advert below harks back to similar events at Prestatyn Raceway.
Click on it to read the small print.

Night Trotting, eh?  We have that in Rhyl West – it's the druggies on a mission to pick up more stuff.

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BREXIT SCHMEXIT

Yesterday in London thousands of people marched in protest against the British government's plan to leave European Union. I am not surprised. Our European citizenship is too valuable to throw away.

If any future British government tried to interfere with workers' rights, consumers' rights and other protections conferred on us by the EU, we could see civil unrest on a massive scale.

We are not Americans, we are not Chinese, we are Europeans –  and now that barriers between European countries are down they must stay down.

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QUIZ ANSWER # 186

On Friday 5th May 2017, I posted a slightly doctored version of this old photo of a Rhyl hotel.

The question: What stands in that location now?

The answer: Front Room & Late Lounge, 91 High Street –

On that corner of High St and Kinmel St the chronology appears to be Dinorben Arms Hotel, followed by Alexandra Hotel (shown in old photo) which may have been the same building.

Then there was a rebuild in the form of Alexandra pub known confusingly to hospital staff as "The Alex". You can fill in the remainder.

[Off The Rails and Bar Blu were two names in use before Front Room.]

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Also posted was an edited version of this 1960s-80s postcard of North Wales pubs, only ONE of which is in Rhyl.
The question: Is it top left, top right, bottom left, bottom right, or centre?
The answer: top left - The Schooner aka Schooner Inn, West Parade.

For indexing purposes the others are listed here:
The Yacht, 1 Marine Road, Pensarn near Abergele /
The Railway (formerly Offa's Tavern), High Street, Prestatyn /
Jolly Sailor, Ffordd Penrhwylfa, Prestatyn /
Steam Packet, 70 Mostyn Street, Llandudno.

Let me repeat last year's message from the UK's chief medical officers. Research shows any amount of alcohol can increase the risk of cancer. There is no such thing as a safe level of drinking the stuff.

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QUIZ ANSWER # 135

Last Sunday I posted the right-hand-sides of two postcards: the upper one postmarked 1973, the lower looking 1950s. The question: Which is a Rhyl picture - the upper one or the lower or both or neither?
The answer: The upper one.
Here are the postcards in full. The upper one is Derbyshire Miners' Holiday Centre, Rhyl. The lower is Rainford's Camp, Gronant near Prestatyn:

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Also I posted a photo labelled 1973 but it may have been just a shade earlier. The question: Where in Rhyl is the bus standing?
The answer: Bodfor Street.
Here is a slightly wider view of the picture, that's Costigan's on your left:

Incidentally, Snow Goose Ices was the 'own brand' of Rhyl Amusements Ltd. It was sold at the fun fair and wholesaled to other outlets.

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You needed correct answers to both questions to score 1 win. Only Richard & Ceri Swinney managed that feat!

So with 25 more weeks to go before the end of the quiz the regular players stand as follows:
The Great Gareth 81, Jane Shuttle 72, Richard & Ceri Swinney 61, Sue Handley 56 and Dilys Bagnall 32. 
Well done if you doing half as well!

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FRI 9th NOV 2018 UPDATE: Here is another old pic of Rainford's Camp, Gronant . . .

Below you will find more Gronantry, all undated.

Gronant - general view

Gronant - Shore Road

Gronant with Coed Bell woods in foreground

Regarding Coed Bell, please note that's the Welsh LL and not pronounced bell as on front door. The phrase Coed Bell translates as the trees far away or trees over yonder.
In there is a woodland cemetery which –  if all goes to plan –  should be my final resting place but I'm not ready to go yet. Don't rush me.

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SIR Y FFLINT / FLINTSHIRE

Rhyl was part of Flintshire from the very beginning of the town until the mid-1970s. This book was compiled by staff at Flintshire Record Office (Hawarden) and published in 1996.

The 10 chapter headings are: Flint, Mold, Buckley, Prestatyn, Rhyl, St. Asaph, Hawarden, Holywell, Industrial Deeside, Flintshire Villages.

The Rhyl chapter runs to 12 pages containing 20 illustrations, of which the following is my favourite.
Click on it to see a bigger version.

Pictured is White Lion Hotel in High Street, Rhyl, c.1900. The White Lion was replaced by a Crosville Bus Station (whose fuel smells linger in the memory) and then by the present Jobcentre Plus.

This book's text has inaccuracies as in the companion volume about Denbighshire, but the pictures can be enjoyed for what they are. You would find both books in local libraries.

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These references are added here for indexing purposes: T Parry publican, Roberts bakery.

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MON 20th FEB 2017 UPDATE: Just arrived here at Jones Towers is this 1903 photo of White Lion Hotel's stable and coach yard.
Seems reasonable to suppose that the yard was in what we now call St. Helens Place and that we looking towards High Street:

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PRESS MY HAT IN

During school days Press My Hat In is what I used to call Prestatyn which is 4 miles I mean 6 kilometres away from Rhyl and not a town I know well.

The undated image above has a comforting Rhyl echo in the form of William Roberts coal merchants.

Click on any picture to see a bigger version.

Summer visitors tend to regard Rhyl and Prestatyn as almost the same place. From Prestatyn Holiday Camp (the one with the tower) here is a shot of the ballroom on a card postmarked 1959:

What lovely dresses and suits! Here, have a couple of badges:

Recently Prestatyn High Street was shortlisted in the Great British High Street contest, in the coastal category. Below: an early picture looking up the street and a later pic looking downwards:

Who remembers The Royal Lido ballroom and swimming pool complex? This is a card postmarked 1974:

Here is the scene in days of yore, probably around 1930:

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Anybody for Y Ffrith? The first of the following is a card postmarked 1937 and is interesting for its changing rooms/tents:

Yes I know, Rhuddlan Borough Council ruined the Ffrith. Don't start.

Since then Prestatyn has overtaken Rhyl as a regional shopping centre and the underlying rivalry has re-surfaced and made this 1995 soccer programme look prophetic:

The above was compiled by Ian Johnson. In 2000-2005, Ian and I worked side by side at Rhyl Community Agency. He was producing programmes while I was writing Rhyl history essays.

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These references are added here for indexing purposes: Prestatyn Trustee Savings Bank TSB, Prestatyn Town Football Club FC.

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WED 2nd DEC 2015 UPDATE: Dave Williams writes that Ian Johnson died about four years ago, circumstances not known.

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TUE 18th JUL 2017 UPDATE: More pix - Prestatyn Holiday Camp / Royal Lido x 2 / Y Ffrith Pleasure Beach and Prestatyn's version of  Happy Valley / Promenade.

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SAT 13th JAN 2018 UPDATE:

Every time I meet a certain Prestatyn resident he delights in reminding me that The Rolling Stones appeared at the Royal Lido Ballroom, Prestatyn, but not in Rhyl.
And every time I reply, "Really? I never knew that."

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MR. PICKARD IS OUT

From his base in Rhyl, photographer Rae Pickard visited frequently nearby towns and villages in search of good marketable shots; he understood that a lot of Rhyl's appeal lay in its surrounding countryside.

The following pictures of Denbigh Castle and Penrhyn near Llandudno are random examples. The latter is thought to be circa 1920:

Click on any picture to see a bigger version.

This is a photo of High Street, Newmarket (Trelawnyd near Dyserth) on a card posted in 1927.

Of the two below taken in Dyserth, the one of the waterfall is circa 1915; the interior shot of the New Inn Dyserth is remarkable for detail:

The following is thought to be a Rae Pickard even though not signed. It is circa 1912 at what looks like a ploughing contest. All the usual Pickardian hallmarks of quality are evident in this:

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MON 5th DEC 2016 UPDATE: A faded Pickard card postmarked 1912.

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FRI 3rd FEB 2017 UPDATE: Here is another Pickard of Newmarket (Trelawnyd) followed by his take on Highbury Avenue, Prestatyn.
The third pic is Maesydon in Llanddulas near Abergele, on a card postmarked 1918.

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6720. Additional image added in July 2020:

Rae Pickard's take on Llanrhaeadr Hall (he didn't quite get the spelling right). The hall still exists. It is near Denbigh, a care home now.

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