Down the Tramway
Bristol, England, (there are 10 or 12 Bristols in the USA), is my home City.
The Bristol of my childhood and youth was yet recovering from the “Blitz” of World War II. And it had not one, but perhaps four centres.
First, there was Old Market Street and Carey’s Lane. From our home in Devon Road we would take the single decker # 83 ‘bus to Carey’s Lane. The #83 was my favourite route - after all it passed our home on Devon Road. The earliest ‘buses I remember had wooden seats, created in the War when fabrics were at a premium.
On Carey’s Lane was the old Empire Theatre - a grand building, at that time owned by the B.B.C. as a Concert Hall and Recording Studio. There, when I was 10, encountered my first urinal when my Eastville Junior Mixed School choir under Mr. Richards, recorded some singing for the B.B.C. Dad explained the urinal to me later.
Across the street from the Empire was the “Tatler Cinema” known for showing naughty movies. I snuck in there once to see a film about life in a “Nudist Colony” - all volley ball and no “below the waist” shots!
Around the corner on Old Market Street was (and is) the famous “Stag Inn”, site of a medieval market court “The Pie Poudre Court” - which survived even to my day. Opposite was the “Methodist Central Hall” , a lovely but fading auditorium style building, where Mum and Dad had attended concerts and educational courses before the War.
Second, there was “Broadmead”, the newly developing centre. It was never very lovely with its post WWII bland architecture, but it was fun to walk through the “Arcade” - a glass covered walkway from pre-war years, (with for me an exciting and sexy men’s underwear store); and also to visit the “New Room”, John Wesley’s first meeting house.
( http://www.newroombristol.org.uk/ )
Nearby was the third “centre” - the business centre on Corn Street.
There was the Guildhall, the wonderfully Bank buildings for Lloyd’s Bank; Barclays Bank; and the bank for which I later worked, The Westminster Bank at 32 Corn St.
Also on Corn Street were (and are) the Nails (see picture) where for many years business was transacted - hence “paying on the nail”.
Fourth, and finally was “the Tramways” (as the older folks would say - “I’m going down the Tramways”). Here was the true Centre of the City, which had been the main point for the “Bristol Tramways and Carriage Company”. BT & CC had a mock Tudor building with an outside Clock - hence we would say “I’ll meet you at the Tramways' Clock”.
Dad and Mum remembered the days when there were real trams at the Centre
At the “Tramway” was/is the fine Greek Renaissance Church of St. Mary the Virgin (R.C.); the wonderful Northcliffe created “Evening World” newspaper building; the statue of Edward Colston - a Bristol benefactor and slave trader; and a fine sculpture of Neptune (Bristol was a seaport City). And if we were not meeting at the Tramways' Clock, we might be meeting at Neptune’s Sculpture.
Now they say “the Centre”. But I’d love to meet you at the Tramways!
The Bristol of my childhood and youth was yet recovering from the “Blitz” of World War II. And it had not one, but perhaps four centres.
First, there was Old Market Street and Carey’s Lane. From our home in Devon Road we would take the single decker # 83 ‘bus to Carey’s Lane. The #83 was my favourite route - after all it passed our home on Devon Road. The earliest ‘buses I remember had wooden seats, created in the War when fabrics were at a premium.
On Carey’s Lane was the old Empire Theatre - a grand building, at that time owned by the B.B.C. as a Concert Hall and Recording Studio. There, when I was 10, encountered my first urinal when my Eastville Junior Mixed School choir under Mr. Richards, recorded some singing for the B.B.C. Dad explained the urinal to me later.
Across the street from the Empire was the “Tatler Cinema” known for showing naughty movies. I snuck in there once to see a film about life in a “Nudist Colony” - all volley ball and no “below the waist” shots!
Around the corner on Old Market Street was (and is) the famous “Stag Inn”, site of a medieval market court “The Pie Poudre Court” - which survived even to my day. Opposite was the “Methodist Central Hall” , a lovely but fading auditorium style building, where Mum and Dad had attended concerts and educational courses before the War.
Second, there was “Broadmead”, the newly developing centre. It was never very lovely with its post WWII bland architecture, but it was fun to walk through the “Arcade” - a glass covered walkway from pre-war years, (with for me an exciting and sexy men’s underwear store); and also to visit the “New Room”, John Wesley’s first meeting house.
( http://www.newroombristol.org.uk/ )
Nearby was the third “centre” - the business centre on Corn Street.
There was the Guildhall, the wonderfully Bank buildings for Lloyd’s Bank; Barclays Bank; and the bank for which I later worked, The Westminster Bank at 32 Corn St.
Also on Corn Street were (and are) the Nails (see picture) where for many years business was transacted - hence “paying on the nail”.
Fourth, and finally was “the Tramways” (as the older folks would say - “I’m going down the Tramways”). Here was the true Centre of the City, which had been the main point for the “Bristol Tramways and Carriage Company”. BT & CC had a mock Tudor building with an outside Clock - hence we would say “I’ll meet you at the Tramways' Clock”.
Dad and Mum remembered the days when there were real trams at the Centre
At the “Tramway” was/is the fine Greek Renaissance Church of St. Mary the Virgin (R.C.); the wonderful Northcliffe created “Evening World” newspaper building; the statue of Edward Colston - a Bristol benefactor and slave trader; and a fine sculpture of Neptune (Bristol was a seaport City). And if we were not meeting at the Tramways' Clock, we might be meeting at Neptune’s Sculpture.
Now they say “the Centre”. But I’d love to meet you at the Tramways!
Comments
Post a Comment