Photo-a-Day  (Friday, 2nd April, 2010)

Great photo Dave what a beautiful building.

Beautiful architecture. Why has Wigan Council allowed it to remain standing ?

Is it under threat? The Swan & Railway pub is listed Grade II.

Sorry. But it is a typical Victorian monstrosity .They liked their terracotta ,I don't. Most people think that if it is old it must be good .How wrong they are . Nowt wrong with the photograph though .
The pub design is a little better. A bit of style about it.

There is a vast cellar area under the Masonic Buildings that was at one time a Billiard Hall, looks like the Masonic Hall on the first and second floors is now to let, future apartments maybe. Is Sam Holding still the landlord of the Swan & Railway?

I like your comment Alan and how very true, as the council has demolished some very fine buildings down the years.

Flatten it a build a car park i say....

Cyril, Sam Holding left the Swan about fifteen years ago. Good lad Sam, remember him when he had the Balcarres at Haigh.

Was Pools Pie Shop originally in one of the shops in the photograph?

..nowt wrong wi' building, jus paint the window frames an it'll look great!!

Sorry Ron D, maybe you don't like terracotta, but one thing is for sure, the old buildings stand the test of time, which is a lot more than can be said about todays rubbish buildings, apart from being plain ugly, they're ready for falling down, in no time at all...Everything today is built as cheap as possible and not a craftsman in sight..

Wigan IS Terracotta, there are some fine buildings all they need is some TLC

Thanks for all your comments and opinions folk,they are what makes this section of wiganworld so interesting.

To Gem, your right Wigan has always been a brick town, brick does not outlast stone. Dave, Pooles Pies was a little further to the right of the Fish and Chip shop nearer to Wallgate Station.

When was there a billiard hall there Cyril?

Hello Roy, I was doing some work in the cellar a long time ago, and Kath Cooper who then had the Words bookshop was telling me about how there was a billiard hall down there at one time, I don't know when but maybe someone on WW will know.

At the back of that building, years ago,was a builders yard.I remember getting sand and cement there.Is that correct or not.

You're right Alby, I think it was Peck's Builder's Merchants or was that the tarpaulin maker.

I work at the taxi place on the photo. There was a builders yard behind it, now a car park owned by the son of the builders yard!

A very nice picture of a nice set street scene. It wouldn't take much to clean these up, mainly needs the vegetation removing! A few tree saplings along the path would be nice to to breathe a bit of life into the town centre, but no doubt drunkards would snap them in no time :(

anybody got any pics of the fag ash up stairs at the swan and railway pub