A "milk bar" on Cherry Lane in the 1950s

[Jamie79]

Hello folks. A very long shot here, but I just wondered whether anyone with a good memory who grew up in the Walton/Clubmoor/Anfield area remembers Cherry Lane in the 1940s/50s and a confectioners/bakery or "milk bar" (as was the US-inspired fashion at the time I believe) run by a lady named Annie Stewart and her mother Louisa? I recently received a copy of the photo below from a second cousin who remembers visiting the shop on a visit from Glasgow in the '50s and even helping serve behind the till. I'm afraid I don't have the exact address but I think it was part of a little parade of shops.

I would be bowled over to hear from anyone who might remember the place itself, or at least a flavour of the surrounding area around that time. I've been told that my grandparents Bill (Annie's younger brother) and Enid (daughter of William and Ellen Pert who lived at 4 Alleyne Road) may have actually met there shortly after the war. Sadly I never had the chance to get to know any of these people at all as they all passed long before my time but I'm enjoying piecing together something of the Liverpool they knew through my family tree research. Any contributions would be warmly welcomed.

[Jamie79]

P.S. I don't know whether the person behind the camera was having a laugh putting my g.grandmother and her sister-in-law in front of the poster in the window that reads "battle axe" right over their heads... I'm reliably informed that this description would in no way apply to either lady!!

[MaryA]

Thank you for posting your photo Jamie, lovely people and the advertisements, apart from Battleaxe of course, takes me back to the days of old corner shops. Unusually I don't believe I have ever seen CocaCola advertised so long ago.

[Jamie79]

Thanks Mary. Not sure of the exact date but this was definitely taken some point between 1950-1954.

[Tina]

Hi Jamie, my friend has 1958 Directory
279 Cherry Lane
Misses L & A Stewart, Milk Bar.
Not there in his 1955 or 1962
I hope this helps with your time frame.

[Jamie79]

Hi Tina,

Thanks so much for that, brilliant! I hadn't even thought of looking into whether they'd have listed the business anywhere at the time. Interesting they're not in the 1955 directory as the photo features my great grandfather Dugald Stewart who passed away in Feb of '55 so the shop was clearly already run by the family by that point. Perhaps once they'd become more established they were able to budget a little more for advertising! Interesting also that it is listed specifically as a "Milk Bar", I was told this was something of a post-war fad in Britain inspired by US soldiers who had talked about such establishments back home. Always brings to mind something of a 'Happy Days' image when I think about it... wonder who would have played The Fonz on Cherry Lane in 1958?!!! Thank you again for the info!

[Tina]

You're welcome Jamie. I will ask my friend to look for Dugald Stewart in 1955 most of which would have been recorded in 1954.
Cheers

[Tina]

Lo tis me again, my friend couldn't find Dugald but did find in 1927
Dugald Stewart whitesmith 37 Crete St N
which in my 1938 is between Gt Homer St & Netherfield Rd, Lpool 5.
Dugald is at 39 Lambourne Rd Lpool 4 whitesmith.

Private member in Ancestry has more photos.

[Jamie79]

Thanks for that Tina, I knew the Lambourne Rd address as the family were there for a long time. I think I may have seen the Crete St record before and I knew 'Duggie' was a whitesmith by trade and as far as I know the shop was always his daughter Annie's business. His parents (my gg gramps) and siblings all moved to Glasgow for good circa 1900 and he is recorded there as a metal worker in 1911. He was back in Liverpool getting married in 1915 and in a career switch actually ended up as Hall Keeper at the Liverpool Empire in later years - I know also that the family often provided room and board to artists who were performing there. I only recently managed to trace living cousins on the Stewart side in Scotland and with their help I've made great strides on this side of my tree in the past 18 months or so. A lot of the pieces of the jigsaw had been hard to nail down because of the regular flitting north and south of the border by the family over a period from around the 1850s onwards. Needless to say, that Ancestry member with the photos will be me

[Tina]

Thanks Jamie, very interesting about the Empire connection.
They would have boarded some amazing people back then.

[scoey]

I lived in Graylands Road, not far from Cherry Lane but cannot recall the "milk bar". From your description, it may have been at the junction of Cherry Lane & Utting Avenue as there was a small parade of shops there. The Clarence pub was opposite.

A railway ran at the back of Cherry Lane, a great interest to me as a small boy - Walton & Anfield station was at the beginning of Cherry Lane, near Walton Village.

Does anyone remember Ellis's fish & chip shop? Also Rowley's next door - they later took over Ellis's and made a bigger fish & chip shop. The son of the Rowleys played for Liverpool FC.

There was a great toy shop on C L called the hut and next door was Ashfield Farm Dairy.

I have more memories if anyone interested.

Scoey (my nickname at school - I was at Florence Melly & Alsop)

[MaryA]

Hi and welcome to the forum. Thanks for jumping straight in with your memories, I'm sure some others will remember the area too.

[Barbara Bonney]

Great Memories, I lived on Cherry Lane, I remember the Milk Bar it was on Cherry Lane at the junction where Cherry Lane meets Cherry Avenue (facing the gates of Anfield Cemetery) next door was a Ladies hairdresser. A few yards further along was a building that made and sold boiled sweets, the smell was wonderful when you walked past, it was called Arnold's Sweets.

[MaryA]

Can you pinpoint the year Barbara?

[Jamie79]

Thanks so much for sharing those memories Scoey and Barbara! I'd be fascinated to hear any other recollections you might have. My family lived on Lambourne Road for many years from circa the 1930s I think until my great grandmother died in 1981.

[Barbara Bonney]

Mary, I remember it from the late 1940's onwards, I moved away in 1963 and I think it was still a Milk Bar then.

[Jamie79]

Those years do match up pretty much perfectly Barb. I have been told that my grandparents (my grandad Bill Stewart's sister Annie ran the place with their mum Louisa) may well have met there and they married in Oct 1949, so it was clearly up and running at some point in the post-war years. I know that Annie married in 1955, but never had any children so perhaps would not necessarily have given up work, although I believe her and her husband Sidney Bruce did move away from the immediate locality. I'm afraid I've no idea as to when it would have either have closed down or been sold on.

[steveflan]

Great Memories, I lived on Cherry Lane, I remember the Milk Bar it was on Cherry Lane at the junction where Cherry Lane meets Cherry Avenue (facing the gates of Anfield Cemetery) next door was a Ladies hairdresser. A few yards further along was a building that made and sold boiled sweets, the smell was wonderful when you walked past, it was called Arnold's Sweets.

I lived in Crosgrove Road, just opposite the junction of Cherry Lane and Cherry Avenue (1977 to 19997) and remember those shops well!

The Hut is now closed, but I used to get my sweets, ice creams, etc from there all the time when it was open. I think the hairdressers is still open. Arnold's Sweets is now Frames Snooker Club.

[scoey]

My memory has failed me badly - thank you Barbara for pointing out the exact location of the Milk Bar. I should have remembered it especially as I would visit the area for shopping (mainly the Co-op on Cherry Avenue) for my mum & aunt, going to the local cinema the Victoria, also on Cherry Avenue- does anyone recall going to the children's' matinee on Saturday afternoons? I remember watching films such as Don Winslow of the USA navy, The Clutching Hand (quite scary), Gene Autry Hopalong Cassidy etc.

We would also pass by on our way to watch Everton going through Anfield cemetery gates which Barbara mentioned. I remember Arnolds sweet factory, my friends & I enjoyed their pear drops!

One of the contributors mentioned Crosgrove Road. One of my friends lived, I think, there, his name Reggie Pye.

That's it from me for now but it's great reading all the comments. I'm eagerly awaiting more tales from the past.

Bryan (Scoey) Membership No 8616

[scoey]

Apologies to Barbara, re not mentioning her name re Crosgrove Road. Which schools did Barbara go to? Does anyone recall the Crescent Congregational Church on Queens Drive at the Atheldene Road junction. I was a Cub, there. Sadly the church was demolished quite a while ago.

Bryan (Scoey) 8616