Nos. 133-136 included on a general view of the west side of Stockton High Street, looking north from Dovecote Street. No. 133: Westons (c1955 – 71), No. 134: Timothy Whites and Taylors Chemists (1954 – 63) also W.H. Smiths (1930 – 73) and Stead and Simpson. No. 135: Benefit Footwear Ltd (1954-63), No. 136: Midland Bank Ltd
Picture Stockton Archive 
Does anyone remember Smith’s on Stockton High Street 1969 selling records
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Gunners was upstairs above the Maynards sweet shop in the High Street
between the Ladbrokes bingo hall and Exchanges pub. Gunners later became Mr Trims.
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Yes I remember Lennie Robinson’s barbers, my Father used to take me there for a short back and sides. Sometimes we went to Gunners – can’t remember whether that was on the High Street or upstairs just near where Maynards was on Dovecot Street and also to Les Willis which was down Silver Street, he later moved to Harper Parade in Hartburn.
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Does anyone remember a barbers shop on Stockton High Street run by a Mr Leonard Robinson – I went there around 1964, he was my uncle and his brother, Frank Robinson, was my father. His famliy also owned the Robinson fish and chip shops.
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It is amazing now to see what developers were able to get away with in the 1960″s and 1970″s. That was the era of T.Dan Smith and John Poulson. There were probably other economic factors involved in the decline of the High Street but ravaging the block centered on the Vane Arms certainly didn”t help. The High Street used to have some fairly high class shops and the market was unparalleled in the N.E. I haven”t visited for several years but on my last visit I found it totally depressing.
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it makes my blood boil when in see the result of updating stockton high street ..Why couldn”t the planners leave at least the front facades of the shops,, much better than the present ugly,characterless building that replaced them.. What ever happened to the old gentleman who used to weigh people with his scales in the market remember him ?
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A trip to Stockton Market was always a treat before it was “regenerated” in the 1970s I/ve been to-day , Wednesday 2nd August , 34 stalls, with gaps not the 120 of the 1960s I know we”ve got to move with the times but Stockton once the Queen of the Northern-open-Air Markets , never deserved its present demise Regarding the derelict rear of the East side of the High Street, many eminent architects stated that there was no need to destroy the 1800 frontages as building towards the river were viable. Ask any person over 40 and they all now say “On the bus, quick shop, Home. Im still proud of my Town but most was taken away from me in the name of Progress
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There is no comparison with the old and new Stockton High Street. The old buidings were a part of the High Street. The backs of the shops could have been made tidier with extensions instead of knocking them all down and replacing them with concrete. When we were children it was a pleasure going into Town, especially the Odean Cinema Club on a Saturday morning. We then went into the Market where my Grandfather Jackson Walker had his Vegetable stall. All home grown veggies. Where do you see that now? We would get a treat off him such as an apple or an orange. We then met my mother at Buttery”s sweet shop at the beginning of Dovecot Street where we picked our selection of sweets from the Wartime sweet coupons. Quarter of a pound allowed each week. The Market in those days had a catchment area into the villages of Durham and the way the stalls were set out down the middle of the High Street was much better than the way the stalls are strewn about the Town now. Those were our good old days but when talking to our parents the Town was even better in their days. The stalls would not close until everything was sold and it could be midnight before my Grandfather got home on a Saturday. This used to be the best Market Town in the North of England. Not any more.
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Yes Benny I think Martin is outnumbered. Stockton was much better years ago. All the market stalls went straight down the centre and there was more variety, where is the wool stall and the china stall, not forgetting the Farmer”s Friend. All those lovely buildings gone. Glaswegians say that Edinburgh is a wee town outside Glasgow, as far as I”m concerned the same could be said of Middlesbrough to Stockton, I don”t think I have been to Middlesbrough this year yet, and only about twice last year, and that was only to meet someone off the bus.
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Well, I”m old enough to know old Stockton. In fact I was born in Stockton in 56, a stone”s throw from the High Street. What I remember as a kid some of the buildings around the High Street were in poor condition, and I think some them buildings could been saved and restored. But then it”s too late, the damage is done.
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I do not know how old you are Martin but I must disagree with you about Stockton High street being a better place now than the old days. Ged got it right when he said it had more class in the old days than present and I heartily agree with him. What has been done to the High Strret is a total disgrace. Some very tacky buildings have been erected where Heritage buildings once stood and some of the Two Bob Cheap shops are an eye sore, Stockton Market is not a patch on the old Stocktom market.
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In them days, there was no such thing as junk food and canned/bottled drinks. No pigeons then and what do the pigeons feed on now. There is much more going for the young generation, a better choice of clothing than when I was in my teens. Do the young people of today take it much more for granted. I must admit Stockton is a much better place than it was 20 years ago, though it got a lot of catching up with Middlesbrough, shop-wise.
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I don”t think you will get any flack Ged. If anyone of the younger generations i.e the twenties, thirties and forty year olds compare dress and attitudes between 1955 and the present day they surely will see the difference in not only dress and general cleanliness but people cared more for not only their appearance but also the shop fronts and street surfaces. Nowadays I am sick of seeing shell suits and trainers being “de rigeur” for shopping etc. It”s a general loss of pride . Oh dear I”m starting to sound like a Grumpy Old Man!!
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Yes I agree, people were indeed much better dressed in those days. They had “Respect” for their appearance. Wore smart polished shoes. Good old Timothy Whites Chemist and other goods was a very popular shop, as was Blackett’s the department store across the other side of the High Street. People mostly lived on their earnings, not credit cards. The streets were cleaner as people did not just drop their rubbish.
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This is how I will always remember Stockton High Street. To me it seems to have so much more class than the present day High Street. I don`t know whether I am biased, but does anybody agree with me that the shoppers in the photo appear to be better dressed than their modern-day counterparts. I`ll probably get some flack for that comment.
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