Old Leeds Firms

Bunkers, shelters and other buildings
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rooftop
Posts: 4
Joined: Tue 22 Jan, 2008 1:10 pm

Post by rooftop »

i chameleon.about w h howsons seacroft,i worked there for 29 years.maybe your dad as heard of me?rooftop was my nickname i worked in the dark rooms in no 3 factory.my son also worked there,we where on b shift .i started work in no1 factory.then moved to no3 factory.this was the old rose forgrove factory.i was present when the queen came to open it.good day for us all.agfa have it at the moment,not much of it left,like a ghost town.most of the plant is in china .regards rooftop.

sri130
Posts: 10
Joined: Tue 22 Jan, 2008 8:30 am

Post by sri130 »

jonleeds wrote: Hi Sri!This pub been run by one of Morley's plazzie gangsters wouldnt happen to be the Royal in Morley Bottoms would it? Infact I think last time I passed it it wasnt even called The Royal anymore, it had been given another cheesy name ala - LA's, The Foundry etc! WHat a joke, it makes me cringe... Hello again Jon,hmmm... I think you might be right matey! the reason for this assumption is because I did a Google search on the biggest plaggie gangster who was in 'morley hotels and leisure' and his name featured in some council text regarding opening hours etc for another local pub in Morley.... Funny that the pub was owned technically by 'morley hotels and leisure' and that this gangster was their representative at the meeting....

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chameleon
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Joined: Thu 29 Mar, 2007 6:16 pm

Post by chameleon »

rooftop wrote: i chameleon.about w h howsons seacroft,i worked there for 29 years.maybe your dad as heard of me?rooftop was my nickname i worked in the dark rooms in no 3 factory.my son also worked there,we where on b shift .i started work in no1 factory.then moved to no3 factory.this was the old rose forgrove factory.i was present when the queen came to open it.good day for us all.agfa have it at the moment,not much of it left,like a ghost town.most of the plant is in china .regards rooftop. From your description and what I remember of the old place, you may well have been there then, but I'm not sure you are quite that old - Dad was there as the assistant buyer in the 60's.It really was a 'family firm' then with, I was told, old Willy Howson a regular site all arround the place.Yes the new building on the Coal Road is almost deserted now - not sure what actually goes on there now.A shame really, after all the money that was spent on it and at the time significant pressure put on the planning department to get a number of imposed restrictions removed with threats of taking the factory elewhere. Of course they now have, albeit for other reasons. It is a massive site, bigger I'm sure than Elida Faberge (or what ever this week's name is!) - must be worth a significant sumof money these days.

fevlad
Posts: 455
Joined: Thu 07 Feb, 2008 5:47 am

Post by fevlad »

wasn't there a factory owned by the rank organisation in harehills that made gunsights for tanks?
I went down to the crossroads and got down on my knees

iansmithofotley
Posts: 558
Joined: Fri 28 Dec, 2007 4:10 pm

Post by iansmithofotley »

Hi fevlad,I think that Rank used to have premises on Harehills Lane (Roundhay Road end) which was called 'Rank Optics'. Ian.

fevlad
Posts: 455
Joined: Thu 07 Feb, 2008 5:47 am

Post by fevlad »

Trojan wrote: It was the post on evacuation and Avro that brought this to mind. My mum worked at Avro, she made tailplanes for the Avro Ansen trainer. I've also read a book called "Mother Worked at Avro" It was quite interesting. Apparently the actor Bernard Hepton worked at Avro too! My Mum who came from Hemsworth, started work at 14 and it was either the mill (girls from South Yorkshire used to be bussed to Bradford etc to work in the mills) or service. She took one look at the mill which frightened her and opted for service, and she left home to work as basically a scivvy in the better class houses in North Leeds, the wages were a pittance. So when she went to Avro and found that the wages were £6.00 per week which was very good money for those days she was quite pleased!When I was a kid we had a table lamp made from the propellor spinner of a Lancaster bomber, with perspex from the windows as a base. I'm not sure whether Yeadon counts as Leeds.The building which is still there alongside Leeds/Bradford airport was camouflaged to look like a hill from the air. I wondered if there were other memories of Avro?
I went down to the crossroads and got down on my knees

fevlad
Posts: 455
Joined: Thu 07 Feb, 2008 5:47 am

Post by fevlad »

sorry about that, not used to the forum yetthe anson wasn't a trainerit was a twin engined utility aircraftused initially for coastal patrol, then as a communications aircraft ferrying pilots and so on-it continued to do this until the 1970sit wasn't just avro aircraft that were made at the factory-the fairey swordfish was made there as well
I went down to the crossroads and got down on my knees

iansmithofotley
Posts: 558
Joined: Fri 28 Dec, 2007 4:10 pm

Post by iansmithofotley »

Hi everyone,Here are some more 'old Leeds firms':Greenwood & Batley at Armley (engineering)Hunslet Engine Company at Hunslet (engineering)E.J. Arnold at Hunslet (school stationers)Montague Burton at Harehills (tailors)Price's Tailors at Kirkstall (tailors)Marks and Spencer originally at Leeds Market (clothing)I am sure that we all have friends who worked at one of these firms.Ian.

wiggy
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Joined: Tue 26 Jun, 2007 9:39 am

Post by wiggy »

iansmithofotley wrote: Hi fevlad,I think that Rank used to have premises on Harehills Lane (Roundhay Road end) which was called 'Rank Optics'. Ian. THEY DID,YOUR RIGHT,BIG BUILDING,PART OF IT WAS GREEN AND WHITE.
i do believe,induced by potent circumstances,that thou art' mine enemy?

LS1
Posts: 2184
Joined: Mon 23 Jul, 2007 8:30 am

Post by LS1 »

Does anyone remember a firm called E J Gough. Cant remember for the life of me where they were, but I think maybe near EB Balmforths on Meanwood Road at sheepscar InterchangeI always remember it as a kid, it was a green sign in a similar style to the Balmforths one.

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