VICTORIA INN

The photograph at the top shows a Barrel organ player known as an ‘organ grinder’ with others outside Victoria Inn, Vale Road (Greenfield Place) c.1890. The gent in the bowler hat is out of focus; perhaps he hiccupped. The photo is from Gaynor Williams (was Jones) whose great grandfather on her father’s side of the family was Robert Evans, landlord of the Victoria Inn at the time.

The copy-of-a-copy-of-a photo of the interior was taken around the same time. The figures are not identified but I like to think it shows Robert and a couple of helpers. The Victoria Inn was demolished c.2000 to make way for the Brantano part of the £1.8 million Matalan development.

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TUE 21st JUN 2016 UPDATE: Mike Davies thinks that the organ grinder's name is Nicoline Gizzi.

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HUSH MONEY

Last week’s Denbighshire Free Press carried a front page exclusive headlined ‘Gagging Order’; no reporter’s name was attached. The story revolved around the sudden departure (at various times since 2004) of four senior Denbighshire County Council employees for unexplained reasons.

Three of the employees were connected with Education and the other was Chief Executive Ian Miller. All four left without the usual period of notice and are believed to have received pay-offs on the condition that they must not speak publicly about their exit. In other words, they were gagged.

You may take the view that Denbighshire's activities need to be investigated, but by whom? I remember years ago the 'inquiry' into a so-called legacy of debt left behind by Rhuddlan Borough Council, an authority which had been swept out of existence by changes in the Local Government Act of 1994.

Chris Ruane MP brought some fellow MPs to Rhyl Town Hall and they spent a day questioning people including the RBC Chief Executive Mr. Edwin Lake about the alleged ‘missing money’. The MPs went away saying they needed more information. That was the last we heard of the matter.

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THE TOLL BRIDGE

The picture (TOP) shows Foryd Harbour probably 1920s, taken from the Kinmel Bay side. Just about discernible in the distance is a toll bridge for vehicles and pedestrians. It was owned – surprisingly perhaps – by the Vale of Clwyd Railway Company which operated the Rhyl to Denbigh line.

The toll bridge was built in 1861 about a hundred yards south of the present bridge; it replaced an inadequate ferry service. Having to pay the toll was unpopular though, and not within everyone’s means. In 1891 a man drowned because he had no money and tried to wade or swim across.

The black-and-white photos are from George Owen and they provide a closer view of the toll bridge (again from the Kinmel Bay side) and an old shot from the Rhyl side of present Foryd Bridge which replaced the toll bridge in 1932.

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TUE 13th JUN 2017 UPDATE: Recently to hand is this image captioned New Foryd Bridge, Kinmel Bay viewed from the Rhyl side. The lone man and his precious bike make a stark contrast with the relentless churning of motors across the bridge these days.

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SAT 7th OCT 2017 UPDATE: Here is an unusual view of Rhyl from t'other end of Foryd Bridge, probably 1930s.
Click on it to see a bigger version.

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FAINT PRAISE

Now faded by age and possibly a hundred years old, the above postcard of St. Thomas' Church was sent from Edie in Rhyl to a lady in Blaenavon, Monmouthshire.

Referring to a singer she had heard recently, Edie says, “She wasn’t bad. I preferred her Italian songs to her Eng. ones. That doesn’t say much for her pronunciation does it?”

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TUE 10th JUL 2018: Just arrived here at Jones Towers, vintage shots of St. Thomas' exterior and interior by Rhyl photographer Rae Pickard -

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MORE FROM DAVE

Dave Williams our Rhyl F.C. correspondent sent the two big photos above and says:

“I have little information about them. The one at the top was taken in front of the old wooden stand which had gas heaters in it. The other was taken facing Grange Road before the ‘kop’ was erected. I think the building on the right is still standing in Botanical Gardens.

“The photos would be from the late 1950s/early ‘60s and the players would include Spencer Evans, Jimmy Logan, Don Spendlove, Jimmy Rogers, Eric Ferguson, George Scales, Tom McKillop, Bill Browning, Billy McMinn, Stuart McCullum and Paddy Cavennah.”

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MON 4th JAN 2010 UPDATE: Gaynor Williams has added these names: Jimmy Andrews, Roddy Gilmore, Les Donaldson and Phil Spruce. The chap with a shock of fair hair, crouching far left in the photo at the top and standing next to goalie in the other, is manager Billy Russell who brought key players with him from Scotland. Mr. Russell and his son - also named Billy - lived in Seabank Road.

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TOMMY'S GIRL

These are photographs of a wartime Rhyl May Queen (1943) Miss Eileen Margaret Roberts. They appear here with permission of her son Ivor Evans. Thanks, Ivor.

He says, “My mother was born in Rhyl. Her parents were Tom and Margaret Roberts who lived at 8 Knowsley Avenue. Tom was known as ‘Tommy Boiler’ as he worked for Grange Laundry in Grange Road, and he used to make a huge Guy Fawkes for bonfire night and parade it around the streets.”

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DISERTH / DYSERTH

The illustration above is a postcard of Dyserth Falls from my own collection. It is postmarked 1931 and was sent from H.J. in Rhyl to Rev. Pocock of Handsworth, Birmingham, and says, “They are building a new bridge here for buses that go on to Colwyn Bay.”

H.J. was referring to the present Foryd Bridge which opened in the following year.

George Owen has been in touch to draw my attention to the fact there is a website devoted to Dyserth, run by Peter J Robinson and it is jolly good. Please click on the following link to see:
http://www.dyserth.com/

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FRI 3rd SEP 2010 UPDATE: This old postcard (undated) has just turned up here at Jones Towers. Quite irresistible, despite the misspelling of Dyserth:


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MON 30th MAR 2015 UPDATE: The following postcard shows The Old Tombs, Dyserth:

TUE 5th MAY 2015 UPDATE: Below is a Dyserth image by eminent Rhyl-based photographer Rae Pickard, circa 1915:

Click on any picture to see a bigger version.

MON 6th JUL 2015 UPDATE: More Dyserth! A card postmarked 1904 followed by a picture of the waterfall which looks 1960s:

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WED 25th JAN 2017 UPDATE: What is the correct term - Dyserth Falls, Fall, Waterfalls or Waterfall? Today I passed by and saw a sign for Rheadr Dyserth Waterfall, Rheadr being the Welsh equivalent of the English word Waterfall.
Recently arrived here at Jones Towers is the following bucolic image of Dyserth. It is undated but feels pre-World War 1:

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