IMAGES TAKEN NEAR TO
Gosber Road, SHEFFIELD, S21 4BZ

Now a private House

Looking along Southgate, which continues towards the right, with the Royal Hotel on the corner with Station Road.

Compare with Image and Image The house was up for auction the week after this picture was taken but it failed to sell. One assumes it has been sold now as when I went past in August 2020 wrought iron gates had been fixed across this entrance. The 2018 Streetview picture shows the house encased in scaffolding and there was also a planning application in 2018 for a change of use to residential and installation of the gates. Another photograph will follow in due course. In 1963 before we sold it to Derbyshire CC the house had over 2 acres of garden but now it only has what we called the Front Drive and the Yard at the rear. The Bottom and Top Lawns now have a Residential Care Home built on them. The Yard had Wash House and a Coal House with The Pond on top. Those building appear to still be there in some shape or form but I doubt there is still a pond! The Coal house had an arched brick roof and then the sides were extended upwards to retain the water of The Pond which sat on the brick arches. It seems a long time since we had one of our regular family and friends parties at Southgate House with 20-30 people there. One time we included fireworks in the Front Drive one October evening; I noticed the local PC standing on Southgate watching the display and when all was finished and we had all gone back inside he came and knocked at the door and told my mother off because it was illegal to set fireworks off that near to the Public Highway; she was not to do it again or else! He said he had enjoyed the show though!

Eckington Market Street became High street just behind where this photograph was taken from. Pinfold Street did not intersect High street at all but following demolition of a Methodist Church and Gardshaw's (Mr Bradshaw + Mr Gardner I believe) Foundry a join to High Street was achieved and the lower end of Stead Street alongside the white building was eliminated. The white building was used as the foundry office. Charlie Freeman's motorbike shop was to the right. Multimap shows this piece of road as High Street.

One of my big brothers had a holiday job with Turner's Ice Cream of Mosborough. He called in at home when he needed a break during the day which was very popular with myself and the neighbours' children. In the picture are my mother and children of 2 of our neighbours. Ice cream was served by the scoop from dry ice freezers (which could not cope with very hot weather). No chimes, the ice cream man had a piercing whistle to blow. My brother was very popular, much to the annoyance of the opposition, as he would do magic tricks including occasionally finding 3d behind a child's ear if they had no money for a cornet! This was one of the "new" vans operated by Turners made in the 1950s. The "old" vans were from about 1930 and had the accelerator pedal between the brake and clutch.

By Pilkington's Yard, a proper old-fashioned shop.