Equity Rd

Bridget wasn’t yet 21 when she first came to England from Athy, County Kildare in 1956. In fact she had her 21^st birthday in London. Her father had come over to England after the war and was working on the building.  He was already living in Hammersmith but her Mum was unable to join him. Bridget was the first of a long line of brothers and sisters to come over.

She met her husband-to-be, Martin Fitzgerald in London. She used to work in a supermarket and the Irish lads used to come in and have laugh. She also remembers working in an Irish cafe for half a day: it was full of Irish builders.

Bridget and Martin married in the Holy Trinity church, Brooke Green, London in 1960.  Martin had family up in Leicester so they moved up here shortly afterwards.

Bridget and Martin Fitzgerald

Their first home in Leicester was on Equity Rd. They had the ground floor of a house and she remembers it as being very damp (perhaps because there was a cold storage unit near by!). After a few months they got a council place in the brand new Rowlatt’s Hill flats. Rowlatt’s Hill was built between 1964 and 67. By 1969 they had bought a house in Aylestone, Keenan Close, which cost them £3000.

Like many others, Bridget remembers being able to pick and choose jobs. While living in Equity Rd she worked at Byfords, operating a machine by hand that printed labels and invoices.

She worked at the Co-op offices on Union St (now part of The Shires).

While living at Rowlatts Hill she worked as Watkin’s on Green Lane Rd. This was a wood machinery tool place and she worked in the office.

Coming from London Bridget found Leicester confusing: she was used to using The Tube to get around and Leicester buses would change numbers depending on whether they were going in or out of town.  She used the Clock Tower as a reference point to find her way around. She didn’t like the market as she thought the fruit was often bruised and the stall holders wouldn’t let you pick your own.

When she was first over Bridget remembers going to look at a room. The room only had one bed so it was clear she would have to share a bed with a stranger. When she said she didn’t want to do that the landlady said “You Irish, you’re expecting too much”.

Her 2 sons, Martin Jnr. and Barry were born in Aylestone: Martin Jnr. in 1974 and Barry in 1977. They went to Holy Cross on Stonesby Avenue and later St.Paul’s. Bridget was a dinner lady a Holy Cross school in the 80s when the boys were there, and later The Newry,  which fitted in perfectly with the children. She also worked voluntarily at The General Hospital.

The new Holy Cross School, Stonesby Avenue, opened in 1966.

Once Martin Fitzgerald himself died in 1986, Martin Jnr. dropped the jnr. was THE Martin Fitzgerald.

Thank you to Julia Christy, Head of Holy Cross school for the photgraph.

 If you'd like to be involved contact us on 0116 276 9186 or pop in to:

The Emerald Centre, Gipsy Lane, Leicester. LE5 OTB

We're now also on Twitter: follow me on  @irishleicester or join The Irish in Leicester group on Facebook.

Click here to view a map of The Irish in Leicester.

Wharf St.

Previous posts told of the streets around Belgrave Rd: Garden, Orchard, Royal East and Wilton and the story of a family's life in that area. 

Wharf St 1966

Wilton St was not far from Wharf St, a bustling street full of shops and a cinema. However, for my friend and her siblings, as young children in the 30s, it was a no-go area: a slum area that their mother hated them going near. 

Around that area she remembers these shops:

Worthngton’s grocer’s:  they had several stores across Leicester.

Hillaird’s butchers: ham and pork, hocks and udders.

Manin’s: like an early M+S.

Palfreman’s: a pawn shop.

There were pubs on every corner but she especially remembers The Bolturner’s, Belgrave Rd and The Boot and Shoe club, Wharf St.

Wharf St /Eldon St corner 1966

Her Aunty  would take her down to the Clock Tower: this was an exciting place full of bright lights and shops. Thomas Cooke had a big, lit-up sign over the shop which went around the corner,  giving out the latest news

There was a tram garage inside the Haymarket, with tramlines running into the centre of town from Belgrave Gate, 

Leah's was on the corner of Humberstone Gate and Charles St (later C&A and then Primark).

The Bell Hotel was on the same side of Humberstone Gate nearer the Clock Tower and Lewis’ was on the opposite side.

She also remembers the Town Waites band playing trumpets up and down Belgrave Gate. A conversation on Rootschat.com asks

“Has anyone knowledge of the names etc. of the male musicians who were members of of the Leicester Town Waits band at the turn of the century 1800's x 1900's? I understand that the band was local authority organised and funded. One of their activities was to, for a fee, turn out during the evening at Christmas time and play carols outside of the fee-payers premises.”

Modern photos of Wharf St as is exisits today show some fabulous detail if only we remember to look up.

Did you or your family live around Wharf St? What was life like for you?

Thanks to Colin Hyde for the modern day photos: East Midlands Oral History Archive

Thanks to Dennis Calow at Vanished Leicester for the old photos.

Vanished Leicester is part of a fantastic resource, My Leicestershire , which is part of The East Midlands Oral History archive

If you'd like to be involved contact us on 0116 276 9186 or pop in to:
The Emerald Centre, Gipsy Lane, Leicester. LE5 OTB

We're now also on Twitter: follow me on  @irishleicester

Click here to view a map of The Irish in Leicester.

Jermyn St

Chris Moloney was born in County Limerick and came to Leicester in 1964. He had been working in London “in the shoe” but had two children and was looking for somewhere better to live. He was on 3 housing waiting lists in London and was trying to buy a house in Luton when his boss persuaded him to talk to the Company Director. At the time he worked for Curtis Shoes which, along with 6 other companies, was about to become part of the British Shoe Company and Chris was offered a job in Leicester.

He looked at buying a Jelson house off Braunstone Lane, with the promise that it would be ready by Xmas that year. It was not ready until March so the company set him up with temporary accommodation in Jermyn St, off Melton Rd and his wife, Kay, and the children joined him later. This was a shared terraced house and the family had access to the upstairs floor through a front corridor. BSC may have paid the rent for a couple of months to get them started and gave him £750 moving allowance.He only intended to stay in Leicester for a few months but the housing situation made it an attractive proposition. He remembers the lady downstairs offering to babysit so that he and Kay could go out and they went to see the Sound of Music at the pictures!

 He worked long hours and caught a bus into town to get the work’s bus up to the new factory at Leicester Forest East. The original BSC building had been built to provide work for the young women of New Parks and Braunstone He didn’t have the time to get to the barbers but remembers having a good crew cut that would last a while, somewhere near the Clock Tower.

Kay did know a little a bit about Leicester before they came up: she had come over from Leamington Spa and knew that Leicester had a Speedway and Banger racing. She worked as A Nursing Auxiliary at the Royal Infirmary at weekends and was working at Foxes Glacier Mints, Oxford St. when they moved up to Braunstone.

Chris would go back to London every 6 weeks to see friends.The M1 was still a dual carriageway and only reached as far as Luton. He remembers his 4 yr. old son calling it “Stinky London” and so decided that the family would stay in Leicester. They finally moved to the new Jelson Estate and have lived there for 22 years.

Chris remembers tea dances at The Grand Hotel.

He is a life member of the Braunstone Victoria Working Men’s club.

In the 70s Chris acted as an agent for a transport agency. He would be helping up to 3 families a week to move back home, mainly to Mayo and West Cork.

Mrs. Walsh ran a licensed boarding house, 47-49 Highfield St, facing the Catholic Club

Chris and Kay’s children went to Christ the King and Winstanley.

His grandchildren go to English Martyrs.

If you'd like to be involved contact us on 0116 276 9186 or pop in to:

The Emerald Centre, Gipsy Lane, Leicester. LE5 OTB

We're now also on Twitter: follow me on  @irishleicester or join The Irish in Leicester group on Facebook.

Click here to view a map of The Irish in Leicester.