Childhood Memories of Totley Rise

by Joan Sutton

I will start my journey in 1934 when I was six years old – a long time ago – at Dore and Totley railway station – a very busy station, with a station master and two porters who kindly helped us safely on and off all trains, then carried the luggage out of the station for you. On the platforms were chocolate bar, chewing gum and cigarette machines. Outside in the yard was the bicycle stand where we left our bikes unchained all day and they were still there at teatime – wonderful! Mr Wint ran a taxi service to meet each train. He had a cabin alongside W.H. Smith’s stationers shop in the yard – now a car park to the restaurant.

Coming along Abbeydale road were two wooden shops on stilts - the land behind was a steep drop into a rough field. The first shop was a watchmaker. The second belonged to Mrs Eaton (sweets and lemonade shop). At the bottom of Twentywell Lane was Mr Bookless’s garage for many years, until he retired and various motor companies have since owned it.

Moving along to the bottom of Devonshire Road was Mr Naylor’s garage. His sister Vera served the petrol. They retired and eventually Tesco now has it. The telephone building was next door, which then became Totley library and is now a hairdressers. Mr Gibson owned the next shop – solely a tobacconists with no sweets! Rogers had it through World War 2, then Vincent Martin bought it till he retired, and Jimmy, his son, had it for many years. Now it is Seasons gift and coffee shop. A Mr Pearson had the next shop, until the Bradshaw family took it over, and they made a great business of it. Gerald and Bernard, the sons, used to deliver Friday and Saturday until 9:30 pm, and were always last to come to the dances at Totley Reformed Church! The corner shop was always known as a Bushey Wood Stores, owned by the Wint family for many years, Ormes of Bakewell took it over. It was subsequently Gowers and Burgins, and then Spar and is now Lush bathrooms.

Before the dual carriageway was made, Baslow road had a huge S-bend from the bridge, and the then Baslow Road was where we all parked cars outside the shops. The path outside the shops wasn’t properly paved for many years, which made it very difficult pushing our big prams, plus negotiating one big step halfway up, and two big ones just before the Post Office.

Mr Bainbridge kept the first shop on the corner of Back Lane, before the two new properties were built. He was the newsagent. The steps to the shop were steep and at the side. He ran a penny-a-week library. When he retired the shop was extended to the next house above, and a Mr Topham owned it, and then Peter Swift – now, I think, back to a private home as most of the properties were then. Mr and Mrs Shaw kept the fish and chip shop. Mrs Shaw had a very strong beautiful singing voice and she could be heard right up the Rise - everybody loved it! Mr Chambers had the wet fish shop. He always put a bunch of parsley in with the fish we bought. His son Donald had it later.

The chemist was always there - a Mr Thompson owned it then. Mrs Greaves the draper came next - with a huge polished wooden counter with a brass measuring tape fastened on to it, and two wooden doors to get into the win-dow, and always a chair for the customer to sit on. She sold materials – wool, pins, ribbons, patterns for dressmaking, etc. A lovely lady! It’s now the Indian restaurant. Next was Mrs Millett’s shoe shop – I’m not quite sure when she moved there; and the Barges kept the small bakery and cake shop – now the Deli. I almost forgot Mrs Spring’s sweet shop - famous for her penny and halfpenny trays! It took us children ages to spend our Saturday pennies. She was a very artistic lady and the shop reflected this: her little window at Christmas was a child’s wonderland!

After the first big step up we came to Otters hardware – a small shop. Most of the shop-owners lived in the rooms behind the shops, but all have been pushed through nowadays. Their shop stocked everything you could wish for in hardware – pots and pans, screws and nuts they had them! Mr Tym kept the first butchers shop and was there for many years. Reg Damms had the cobblers, and a hairdressers was up the stairs in the same building. Next came another grocers, but I can’t remember the name – until Arthur Davies of pork pie and sausage fame took it over after the second world war. Colin Thomson was next – another butcher who also had the pig farm on Back Lane (now a housing estate) which always flooded years ago. Up the two big steps to the post office – owned by Mr and Mrs Jackson – with a long counter the whole way along the left side of the shop. A string line ran above the counter and pinned on were transfers which we used to buy and stick on our arms, so not much has changed in that way! Mrs Jackson licked all the postage stamps we left to post - she must have been a very thirsty lady by the end of the day, particularly by Christmas! Mr Jackson was the postmaster and the sorting office was next door.

The top shop was a beer-off, owned by a Mr Mariatte and then the Gratton family took it over before it became the newsagent we know today. Across the road and up the steps were two hairdressers – one on either end of the row – a fruit shop, a painter and decorator, an electrical shop and a bank, and now we have the doctor’s surgery, offices and Pomade the hair salon (very nice, friendly efficient people). 

The Rise on Saturday afternoon was a hive of people, all doing their weekend shopping. The shops closed at 5.30 or 6 pm and were always closed on Sundays.

In case I have forgotten anyone, I apologise, but time has moved on and I’m now an elderly lady. The help we had then in the shops is still there for us today, so please in this fast changing world keep up the good service which we all appreciate very much, and to the people, please keep these lovely welcoming shops open - use them as much as possible!

Joan Sutton

June 2017