MORE OLD ADVERTS

The advert above is from Issue No.2 of the newsletter Catholic Life sold at St. Mary's Church (Our Lady Of The Assumption), Wellington Road, Rhyl, in December 1957 when Canon Collins was Parish Priest assisted by Father Breen and Father Brennan, 

The following ad for J.B. Worrall, Bodfor Street, is from same newsletter:

Presumably Mr. Worrall was a member of the congregation. His shop was next to the Bee, where Station News is now:

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The following advert for Jay's Cafe, Market Street, is from a souvenir booklet of the Royal Floral Hall early 1970s.

Click on any item to see a bigger version.

Jay's Cafe is still marching on but not: "until 11 p.m."

[Generally, these days catering places in Rhyl close early. My pal Jill and I have found even 4 p.m. is too late to get a cuppa in some of 'em!]

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From the same Floral Hall booklet comes this advert for Mival's Garden Centre, Rhuddlan Rd, and their shop at town end of Wellington Rd:

Their Rhuddlan Road site has gone. The Wellington Rd premises are still owned by the Mival family and currently occupied by Sassy (clothes and accessories):

From same Floral Hall booklet , and still on subject of horticulture, here is an advert for William Roberts Ltd whose Rhyl shop was in High Street with a branch in Prestatyn:

On the William Roberts corner now is The Games Exchange selling computer games, DVDs and CDs.
Oops, sorry Officer I didn't see you coming!

The colour photos in this post were taken last month by Yours Truly.

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

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MON 11th JAN 2016 UPDATE: David Thomas reports that earlier this month the shop Sassy closed down and moved out.

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THU 11th JAN 2018 UPDATE: Regarding William Roberts (Rhyl) Limited, a photo of the company's registration form dated 1925.
Click on it to see more clearly.

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QUIZ QUESTION # 113

Here is a detail from a photo taken this month by Yours Truly. Above the window is a rather unpleasant carved face.

Click on it to see a bigger version.

The question: Where in Rhyl would you find a row of windows like this?

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Below is a detail from another photo taken this month by Yours Truly, showing an exterior wall plaque. 

The question: Where in Rhyl would you find this plaque?

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There are two questions, and you need two correct answers for 1 win!

You have until the end of Saturday 17th October 2015 to send your entry.
Second tries not accepted.
The result will be published on Sunday 18th October 2015 around Midday.


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

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QUIZ ANSWER # 112

Last Sunday I posted the first page of a Rhyl Mini Guide published in 2002 by Denbighshire County Council's Tourism Unit.
Click on it to read the small print.
The question: What is wrong with it?

The answer: It invites readers to take a stroll on the pier.
The pier had disappeared three decades beforehand.

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Also posted was this early shot of Rhyl sands with colour added at a later date. The question: Is the scene east or west of High Street?

The answer: West.
I was trying a double bluff but it didn't fool any of you.

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Also posted: the following photo taken this Summer by Yours Truly, with a place name blanked out. The question: What is the missing name?

The answer: Cae Gruffydd.
It is off Rhodfa Maen Gwyn which is a name I have always liked - it translates as White Stone Walkway.

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So, with all three correct answers for 1 win are: Sue Handley, Jane Shuttle and The Great Gareth.

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BABY, BABY, WHERE DID OUR CLARKS GO?

In Parc Prestatyn opposite Marks & Spencer, Next and others, is a newer building occupied by, left to right: T.K.Maxx (clothes & accessories), Sports Direct (sports wear), Clarks Shoes, and Carphone Warehouse (mobile phones etc.)

They are not all open for business yet. 

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RAE PICKARD

Postcard collectors would tell you that the Rhyl name to look out for is photographer Rae Pickard. Some of his work appears in previous posts in this blog – and sometimes uncredited because not all of his pictures carry his trade mark.

Here is one attributed to Rae Pickard circa 1914 and coloured at a later date. It shows the steam packet St. Elian at Foryd Harbour:

Rae Pickard was a Kentish lad whose real name was Harold Ashby Norris. He came to Rhyl in the early 1900s and stayed with his brother Jeffrey Norris who was Clerk to the Rhyl county court.

Some fine details in Mr. Pickard’s work gets lost in translation to Internet but the following item showing the boarding house (unlicensed hotel) Moseley House, 66 West Parade, run by Mrs. S. Rowlands circa 1915 illustrates he was a cut above other photographers of the day:

Rae Pickard’s first studio/shop was in Queen Street, and later he moved to High Street. The following shot of the sands and promenade is undated, must be later than 1908 because Rhyl Pavilion is there. At the bottom on your right is the Pickard trade mark:

Click on any picture to see a bigger version.

Next is Queen Street on a card posted in 1913 to Mrs. G. Nicholls of Maids Moreton, Bucks, from daughter Rose. On the corner Parr's Bank is now the NatWest:

In late 1930s Rae Pickard passed away after more than 30 years of producing work that is still admired. In a later post I will present some of his photos of other towns and villages in North Wales.

Meanwhile, here are two more of his Rhyl gems – a picture of the Women’s Convalescent Home at Morfa Hall undated, and one that was taken under tricky lighting conditions at the children’s sea water bath in Royal Alexandra Hospital circa 1920:

I am obliged to Llanddulas Hidden History for some of this information. Please click here to see the site:
http://www.llanddulashiddenhistory.co.uk

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SUN 28th FEB 2016 UPDATE: Recently to hand came this Rae Pickard photo of the Children’s Lake (paddling pool) and West Parade from the late 1920s or thereabouts:

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MON 15th OCT 2018 UPDATE: The Rae Pickard picture below seems to fit here. It is captioned Rhyl Shore and shows a pleasure boat returning to the beach, with Pavilion and pier in the background.

This is a card postmarked 1920.

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Additional image added in July 2020:

This is a card postmarked 1926.

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TIME ON OUR SIDE

Rhyl Shopmobility, a charitable business, hired out and sold mobility scooters and wheelchairs so disabled shoppers could get around town. The snapshot above was taken in 2009 on the premises by Yours Truly catching proprietor Mark Webster in happy frame of mind.

Since then Shopmobility experienced financial problems and Mark's wife Coral who ran the project with him, passed away in tragic circumstances. Reluctantly, Mark let go to a new owner who continued the same line of business with Mark helping out occasionally.

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Today when I passed the premises (at the foot of High Street near Cob & Pen or Dudley Arms as was) I noticed there is a new occupier, the clock maker Dayclox & Tideclox. Sad to think of no more Shopmobility but let us welcome the new company:

At a time when some companies are abandoning Rhyl it is good to see this one coming on our side. You can get further info via this link:
http://www.dayclox.com/

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QUIZ QUESTION # 112

Above is the first page of a Rhyl Mini Guide published in 2002 by Denbighshire County Council's Tourism Unit.
The question: What is wrong with it?

Click on any image to see a bigger version.

Here is an early shot of Rhyl sands with colour added at a later date.
The question: Is the scene east or west of High Street?

And now a photo taken this Summer by Yours Truly, with a place name blanked out.
The question: What is the missing name?

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So, three questions - and you need all three correct answers for 1 win!

You have until the end of Saturday 10th October 2015 to send your entry.

Second tries not accepted.

The result will be published on Sunday 11th October 2015 around Midday.

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

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QUIZ ANSWER # 111

Last Sunday I posted the above, a Rhyl cul-de-sac photographed last month by Yours Truly.
The question: What is its name?
The answer: Bridge Street.
If it were not a cul-de-sac, Bridge Street would lead to Ellis Avenue.

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Also I posted the trio of Rhyl buildings shown below and said that one was never a school.
The question: Is the one that was never a school at the top, in the middle or at the bottom?
Click on any image to see a bigger version.

The answer: At the top:

The building is a purpose-built hotel named the Marine Hydropathic or Marine Hydro which included a sea water spa. Later it was renamed Marina Hotel, and currently it a block of flats named Marina Apartments.

The picture is from Trefor Thompson's book 'Old Rhyl' and originally from the Harry Thomas Collection.

In the middle is Arcville College, a private school for girls in Russell Road. That may be Grosvenor Road on the left side. Eventually the school moved to 87 Russell Road (now Dolanog care home).
This picture is from Trefor's book and originally from Clwyd Record Office.

At the bottom is The Grange, East Parade, which now lies in ruins after a fire a few years ago. Well, back in the days when the building was named Moranedd it hosted for a while Blencathra School.
The pic is circa 1960s when called The Grange Private Hotel and is from my own collection.

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Also posted was the photo below, showing an exterior wall plaque on a Rhyl building, taken last month by Yours Truly. The plaque refers to Mr. Robert Jones, a ship builder at Foryd Harbour.
The question: What is the name of the building?

The answer: Salem Chapel or Salem Centre, Warren Road. The plaque is to your right of the main door. The building is now under the wing of Ahmadiyya Muslim Association: 

Their slogan is Love for All, Hatred for None. I'll raise my glass of rosehip tea to that, and it would help if countries - including UK - stopped bombing Arab nations, creating chaos and lawlessness, giving rise to more terrorist and revenge groups, and helping to promote civil wars that cause torrents of refugees.

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Scoring 1 win for any two correct answers, or 2 wins for all three are:

Richard & Ceri Swinney 2, The Great Gareth 2, Jane Shuttle 2.

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I felt sorry but not surprised to hear that Clarks Shoes is or are about to move from White Rose Centre, High Street, Rhyl, to Parc Prestatyn following in the footsteps of Marks & Spencer. Shops that target families of similar income tend to to cluster together.

As soon as key areas near the centre of Rhyl were allowed to fill up with comparatively poor people from the cities the writing was on the wall for our "retail offer". New and more carefully-balanced housing policies are needed to restore the town's social diversity.

It's all about politics.

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