Two piccys folks for your viewing pleasure one of Andersons Ironmongers and one of Shore Street.
http://www.caithness.org/photos/earl...ronmongers.jpg
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Two piccys folks for your viewing pleasure one of Andersons Ironmongers and one of Shore Street.
http://www.caithness.org/photos/earl...ronmongers.jpg
Fantastic keep them coming, love seeing this old photos.
Thanks so much once again, thirsaloon! :) I too love seeing old photos from past eras! Do you have any dates for these, and do you have more to share with us, please?
Andersons the Ironmongers photograph was taken in 1911. The building was built as the first Masonic Lodge. It was said to be the most modern building of its time during construction of the newly laid out Traill Street, part of Sir John Sinclair’s plan for the new town of Thurso. The foundation stone was laid in 1808 and the building opened in 1810. It was later used as the Town Hall for a period.
The Shore Street photograph was taken around 1912. In the distance you will see the horse and cart which has a huge load on it. The Turnpike has a date stone on it with 1686 and a marriage stone with the initials D.W.K.R. This means that someone with the initials D.W. married someone with the initials K.R. There are a few of them around the town, like at the corners of Jessie Allan’s shop etc (I know it has a new name but I have yet to re-program my brain to accept it!). Always worth looking up rather than straight ahead or down, it’s surprising what’s there is to be seen!
Bt the way, did you notice the signwriting to the left of the middle window advertising "ammunition" for sale. There is a door upstairs which has from memory "ammunition room" or "artillery room" painted on the door and its still there yet.
Thanks for that, I can remember when I was wee and going shopping with my mum, Andersons was still there, it is now Buttress's I believe if that is still there, its been a while since I was in town.
Seen these pictures of old Thurso, and in this week that the Viewfirth has been consigned to the quarry in the sky, thought I'd put this pick up
http://www.dynamicsoundsdisco.co.uk/...se/oldview.jpg
It is a scan of a picture that my grandfather had, but shows the place in its granduer.
Attached below are two photographs of Thurso Castle. This is the 3rd castle which was built at Thurso East. And the forth to have been built in Thurso.
Work on the castle in the photo's below was carried out between 1874 and 1876 when the previous castle was renovated by Sir Tollemache Sinclair.
The tower was 8 floors and 100 feet high but the founds were made for taking an tower 40 feet high therefore it was never going to last. By 1914 the tower had already started to lean and it was evacuated. Then a sea mine was washed ashore exploding, blowing out some of the windows. Although it was thought no structural damage was done. The castle then had to be abandoned in 1951 and the roof was removed the following year.
http://www.caithness.org/photos/earl...Castle1920.jpg
http://www.caithness.org/photos/earl...Castle1885.jpg
Another two piccys from 1911. Attached are photographs of W & G Dunnet cycle shop (where Mac Mowat served his apprenticeship) later to become Dunnets Garage and just along the road a wee bit was the Victoria Hairdressing Saloon. If you look in the foreground of the photo in front of the group of people at the cycle shop you will see some of the Thurso fish baskets that was used by fisherwomen to sell the latest catch from.
http://www.caithness.org/photos/earl...1/WGDunnet.jpg
http://www.caithness.org/photos/earl...ngSaloon_1.jpg
Thanks so much for your great piccies thirsaloon - I've never been to Thurso but am coming up early July to Caithness and it's great to see these!:)
Two piccys of the Royal Hotel. Built by Andrew Caskey when he noticed that Thurso was in need of a good coaching inn. The hotel had its own private well at the back, out of public view. I have been in to see it and although the well is no longer there you can still hear the water in the spring below the floor running past. In the same area is the old stables still intact and a flagstone table with a groove running around the outside edge where they would cut meat up and the blood would run into the groove and then into a bucket below. The hotel also had its own garden at the back where they grew their own veg for using.
http://www.caithness.org/photos/earl...Hotel1970s.jpg
http://www.caithness.org/photos/earl...RoyalHotel.jpg
yeh it was the mention of it being built as a masonic hall that sealed it for me, plus the facia hasn't changed much
I remember my granny saying that when her father bought fish from one of the fisherwoman with the baskets that they had to follow him back to his house. Once she got to the house, the woman was expected to clean and gut the fish for the customer. Quite different from shooping nowadays when we buy fish that has been filleted for us already.
Attached is a photograph of Lindsays which im sure many of you remember. This photograph was taken in 1910. The building was newly built replacing the much older single story building. If I remember I will take a look for the older shop and post it.
http://www.caithness.org/photos/earl...ndsays1910.jpg
Aye that used to happen, The women used to sell the fish from the Meadow Well, Olrig Street, Town Hall Square, Royal Hotel Corner. Some of them, like my Great Granny used make her way to the "posh houses" in Princess Street, Campbell Street, Rose Street etc at the top of the town and sell them door to door.
Two views of Thurso, the one with the women in the foreground is around 1890 the other is around 1875. You will notice the women in the foreground are ready to collect water from the springs in the park. Hence the name Springpark!
http://www.caithness.org/photos/earl...h-West1900.jpg
http://www.caithness.org/photos/earl...hewest1875.jpg
Good call, my memory is too bad, I seem to remember Andersons being further down the street. What was Buttress's before that then, I seem to remember it being an Ironmongers?
Also is that picture of Lindsays did it become Nappy Sinclairs, it kind of looks like it with its multiple doorways? Either that or is it what became Soutars, the one at the top of the precint across from Cardosi's?
Thurso Harbour with a three masted schooner berthed, around 1910. And Scrabster Harbour around 1880. If you look at the second building n the foreground of the Scrabster photo you will see the large doors of what was the original lifeboat shed. Opposite is the slip where the horse drawn trailor was pulled down with the lifeboat attached.
http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/a...arbour1910.jpg
http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/a...arbour1880.jpg
Below is the opening of the Ellan bridge on the 1st October 1960. It was opened by John MacKay who crossed the river for 50 years prior to work at the flagworks. You can see the Scout hut to the right and to the left is the old kiln which was then used by the Hydro.
http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/a...bridge1960.jpg
Here is the rear of the Gas Works, this piccy was taken from the rear of the Legion around 1980.
http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/a...sWorks1980.jpg
Traill Street seen in 1908. You can see how much attention someone with a camera has caused!
http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/a...Street1908.jpg
Below a view of the lighthouse and two masted schooners at Scrabster Roads around 1880.
http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/a...4schooners.jpg
Pipe band in the grounds of Thurso Castle in 1897. Notice the stack in the background from the flagworks.
http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/a...astleGroun.jpg
Below a painting of Robert Dick, the famous botanist and geologist who described himself as nothing but a humble baker. Robert was born in Tullibody in 1811. During his schooling he was regarded as a top level student having an inexhaustible thirst for knowledge. He learned Latin so quickly that his master recommended that he should be sent to college.
However this never came to pass and Robert served his trade as a baker starting at 3am and finishing sometime between 7 and 9 pm. He received no wages other than his bed and meals. Robert travelled to Thurso in 1830 and set up his bakery.
However the extremely modest and quiet baker was to achieve his unwanted fame through his knowledge of the natural world. He built up huge collections of insects, shells, geological and botanical specimens, considered to be the best in the country. Robert was to suffer when his order of flour along which contained some books and a microscope to help protect them from being knocked or damaged was lost when the boat carrying them sank. Eventually with no supplies to bake his business suffered. After being bedridden for two weeks he died penniless on Christmas Eve 1866 aged 56.
http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/a...RobertDick.jpg
Careful Thirsaloon, we don't want you to burn out too quickly :D. Naah seriously, although an incomer I find this all fascinating but could I ask when you're posting a photo of somewhere, can you also say what's currently there so us non-locals can visualise it. The picture of Lindsay's earlier I just can't seem to place.
Thats an amazing picture of Traill Street, is it possible to get a larger version of that, I'd love to print it off and frame it, its excellent!!!
For those intertested, if you right click on that Traill Street photo and set as background, it blows up into a beautiful desktop wallpaper. I love it!!!
Below Thurso harbour in 1864. This is one of the earliest views of Thurso as photography was only making its mark up here then.To the left is the stack of the Braehead pavement works. You can also see all mounds of flag chippings on both sides of the river.
To the right hand side you can just see a small black blob at the edge of the river which is a man with a fishing rod. In the foreground is the stepping stones which ran in a slight curved line. They were situated where the footbridge is now.
http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/a...oRiver1864.jpg
Below is one of the two flagworks which was on the west side of the river. You'll notice all the flagstones stacked up on end ready for exporting. Around the site of where the Council depot is now. Photo taken around 1900.
http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/a...ThursoWest.jpg
I remember my dad telling me about the stepping stones as he was told by someone older than him, some of them are still visible, thy are on the north side of what is called the Ellon Bridge. I can imagine a few people came a cropper falling off those on a wet day :Razz
I think that the plate on the bridge (at the scout hut end) says something about that too.
There was a short cut the kids from Springpark used to take between these two buildings. Once you came off the Ellon Bridge, you could get between the Scout hut and the Hydro yard fence and walk along until you came out in Robert Dick Place by the side of the Guide hut. I think that the gap was finally plugged after the Hydro moved up to Ormlie and the site was taken over by the Legion to build those retirement houses.
Thanks for the compliments folks, glad your enjoying the info and photographs. Would appreciate if anyone can add anymore photograph’s. I’m sure a lot of you may have photo’s that’s stuck in an old box or drawer.
Often the ones taken with a box brownie are every bit as interesting cause they show stuff that the professional photographers of the day wouldn’t look at. I’ll add a few more in the next day or so.
Oh and thanks for adding to my reputation bit on here to, very good of you! I’m sure I should get my own website the way this is going!!!:lol:
Alas, way beyond my pc skills! :roll:
Before and after shot of the corner of Olrig and Rotterdam Street. This should bring a few memories back. Remember let me know if you have any storys and memories relating to the piccys. Would be much appreciated.
http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/a...mstcolour1.jpg
http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/a...amstcolour.jpg
i cant seem to see any of these pics except the one of the veiwfirth...:(
Nice before and after pics of the corner of Olrig and Rotterdam Street, thirsaloon! I was surprised when I zoomed in on the "before" pic that the shop sign says A T Rolland. Any idea when that one was taken? I remember that shop as being Noble's the florist in the 60s and 70s. They moved to High Street in the latter part of the 70s, at the Grove Lane end, opposite Peterkin's the chemist. (Later known as the Co-op chemist?) The shop on the far left of the pic (next to the one painted a mustard colour), was a shoe shop. Gunn's or Williamson's, I think. The new buildings that replaced them were built in 1977 or 1978, were they not?
absolutely fantastic pictures. I love the way that you point our attention to a detail in a picture that we would miss.
You have inspired me to take another look at my scanner. Perhaps, if I gain your skill level I will post some old photos of Northern Ontario, Canada, where I am originally from.
thanks so much.
Rhonda.
Thanks for refreshing my memory, Buttercup! :) A T Rolland were painters and decorators, were they not?