Wartime housing and shops

I know it may be hard to believe now Foxcote but a lot of small businesses didn't have a phone back then! I know for a fact the nearby Town Wall Tavern didn't have one. It may have been a local exchange problem because when we moved to Gosford Street a phone had already been installed but a friend's family who remained in Bond Street had to settle for a shared line.

Well that may have saved me some time thanks, I was just going to slog my way through 1961 and 2, till you booked in

Relating to early telephones, I found a company advertised in the Telegraph for 1893 W. Lant & Co. Lant's Mineral Water Telephone No 183 The bottling factory was in Bond Street, Coventry. I have seen a photo in one of the books, sure it said tonic water. I checked and the telephone was being used in 1882 but it appears not by the 'Willow Plate Cafe'

The subject of Lant's was discussed at length in the Old Coventry Firms thread

Oh thanks Dutchman, I can't think why I have such an affinity with Lant's, must be the gin I missed the Old Coventry Firm thread, must remember to check back more.

There was the PDSA charity shop, then the one that sold beds, rugs, headboards, the one furthest around the corner was a second hand shop, sold furniture, the one next to that was a second hand clothes shop, I bought a G Plan table chairs and sideboard from the furniture second hand shop, I use to buy clothes and trinkets for the house from the PDSA also clothes from the one around the corner.

Hi Morgana, Surely you remember 'Elizabeth's' cake shop in Broadgate, and I am not sure but wasn't Wilson's bridal shop mentioned being there temporarily once? I only remember Elizabeth's but once mentioned they will all ring the rusty bell!!!!!

Hi Dreamtime, I don't recall the cake shop nor the bridal shop in Broadgate even though Elizabeth's does ring a bell but can't picture the shop. I recall the buildings just a few by Martins Bank before they knocked them down but I couldn't tell you what shops they were, I recall them being by where they were being replaced with a wishing well, waking up with my dad carrying me coming from the top precinct towards Owen Owen, I recall Hertford Street. Can you tell me the name of the little boutique going down the top of the precinct on the left, was it Shades, for months I've been trying to remember its name, doubting myself because of Shades the nightclub. We used to have some great individual shops back then, not cheap but affordable, not uniform like we get now, we women love to buy things no other shop sells, as it's so embarrassing when you go out, weddings, etc and someone is wearing the same, which happened to my sister on her wedding day. Wasn't there also prefab shops by the Parsons Nose. I shall ask my older sister for you.

Hi Morgana, Yes, my weakness I am afraid - or rather was - at the end of the month, Jax used to be at the top of the Precinct, great selection of blouses, and then there were a few shoe shops to choose from. But regarding prefabs, I could not quite make out the names on the photo previously shown only the J Lyons shop. Alice Middleton's was I think my favourite ladies shop, there was always something worth saving for, but you had to go under the walkway at the side of Owen Owens and over the road at the back. Long gone now. I have spent hours just looking down the Precinct for clothes in my day (60's-70's) Then of course it would be children's clothes, probably 'Ladybird' brand.

Hi Dreamtime, no it wasn't Jax it sold all fashionable clothes when minis were in, it was just under by the first steps of the balcony on the left, yes Woolworth used to sell Ladybird, you can still order from Woolworth on the net. My sister recalls Elizabeth's cake shop but can't recall which shop it was in Broadgate, she recalls the big shops around the corner from Martins Bank in Broardgate and Lyons, she recalls when Woolworth was wooden, and Owen Owens, yes made of wood, she said in Trinity Street opposite where the Silver Sword is there used to be an abbatoir, the cattle used to quickly go up Trinity Street, her mother in law when she saw them coming she would run into the market, which used to be sited where Hamiltons and Fishy Moores used to be, her mother in law was born and bred in Coventry.

Trinity Street didn't exist back then Morgana. It was an area called the Bull Ring and Butcher Row which connected to Hales Street via New Buildings. To the west of New Buildings with an entrance in Hales Street was Smithfield Meat Market. It was all swept aside in 1937 when Trinity Street was constructed. This is the entrance to New Buildings as seen from Hales Street: Pictures of Coventry. The entrance to the meat market is on the right where the entrance to Trinity Street is today and so is easily mistaken for Trinity Street.

Yes I know Trinity Street didn't exist Dutchman I think it was a rough guide to the area, I shall inform my sister wrong place lol as her mother in law has long been dead, I do know her mother in law and my mum said there used to be figures of all the trades in Coventry but are no longer there, my mum used all the town up until 2000, in fact someone put a link on here of her in Hertford Street, a recent photo not back in the day.

A few more photographs of 'Temporary Shops' - McCarthy of Hertford Street and Singer

There used to be prefab shops in Bishop Street too I have the photos of it, shows Lamb Street being King Street on another photo with the pub on the corner.

Dear all, I'm new on this forum. I hope your knowledge about Coventry's history might be able to help me. I'm doing some comparative research on blitzed cities in Europe. Currently, I'm working on the various emergency housing schemes developed throughout Europe. In a town planning journal from 1944 I found a section on Coventry. It displays a street with temporary shops (Broadway?) and street with emergency dwelling (built with bricks). The captions say nothing about the location or the exact date. The pictures were provided by town councillor M.F. White and were published earlier in a Swedish journal on social housing in July 1943. Please find a photocopy of these pictures below (apologies for the poor quality). I'd be very grateful to obtain some more information from you. And in the best case, obtain references to higher quality pictures. Many thanks in advance, Stefan Couperus (the Netherlands).