Description
Bicycles outside the West Ward Labour Club. The bicycles are on Back Ruth St, which leads on to John Brown St. The doorway and sign for the Labour Club are visible at the back of the photograph. This photograph was wrongly identified as being a back street near Burnden Park by former observer Harry Gordon in the book of Humphrey Spender’s photographs ‘Worktown People’.
Humphrey Spender took two photographs of this scene at different times (the other is 1993.83.27.26).
Me and brother Dennis reckon the two men were part of Humpthrey Spenders gang.
This is a particular favourite of mine having grown up in this part of Bolton Right at the back of the picture is Union Mills in Davenport Street To the left of the picture is back Conrad Street where on this side of the back Street were about five houses and the larger building at the bottom of the picture was a wood works where as a boy i used to fill sacks with wood shavings which were used by my grandfather for his hens he kept on his pen Now the two men on the right of the picture i would say looking at them they look like part of the Mass Observation team i would go as far to say the man near the wall is Humphrey Spender also there are other pictures in this collection with men dressed similar to this who for one reason or another are part of the team who had their pictures taken
I like the idea that there may be photographs with Mass Observers in the street scenes. It’s a pity we can’t see the faces of the two gentlemen in this picture.
Can you please correct the date on this picture I think it should say 1937 thanks
Thank you Dennis – the formatting was wrong so it was displaying incorrectly.
None of the bikes are locked.