Wigan Album

Those were the days my friend. We thought they'd never end.

Ron. Did Harry Walder get any public recognition for his very artistic work, as L.S. Lowry did?.

In my view, this shows far more talent, and "what the people want to see" than Isherwood or Major, but I have no doubt I will be shouted down by the art critics! However, we are all entitled to our own view. This painting is the Wigan we all remember, beautifully executed, in my humble opinion. Well done, Harry Walder.

This is the land of lost content, I see it shining plain, the happy highways were I went and cannot come again. Jackson's tailors, spent many times 'snogging' in that doorway waiting for the Standish bus.

I remember Harry Walder coming to get his paintings framed at the place I worked, in the early 1970s.
A very pleasant man, who lived in either Brookhouse Street or Spring Street, as I recall.

I worked with Harry Walder Jnr he told me his dad (the painter) sold some of these paintings to Smiths the newsagent on Mesnes St. Smiths copied them and made a fortune selling them on

Harry Walder was a true painter..no squinting to see the meaning,it's there in front of you..and this scene is the scene of my youth,living so close to the town center..it brings back memories of going to the cinemas,the Emp and of course going to the clothes shops with my Mam,who always asked "do you like that love" whenever I looked at something nice...I could go on forever with my memories of lovely Wigan town center as it used to be..

I apologies for the spelling of 'centre',it's this new i-pad. .Irene..they think we're all American.

These painting's are a true reflection of Wigan and should therefore be rightly respected by the borough well done HARRY WALDER.

I agree about Harry's paintings they are beautiful and I never tire of looking at them. I have three prints bought from the old Smiths years ago. I have them hanging on the stairway -they are the first things I see coming downstairs in the morning.

Can anyone tell me where I can purchase such prints?

Linda
You may have been "snoggin" me!! :O)
Jacksons...where for ten bob a week (50p) you could ge a bespoke suit made! Happy days!

Who could forget the copper on point duty?
I recall he was on a platform on top of Market Place brow!

he lived on Darlington Street East Mick, front of Dickinson's Bottlers, he had the outside privy for his art studio - true, also he told me he wasn't allowed to sell any of his paintings - not even to his own family due to the contract he had with the Smith's.

On point in summer you wore a light linen coat. In winter, it was a heavy rubber one, with shoulder covers. You breathed in more rubbish from the exhausts of the traffic, after it had chugged its way up Wallgate, than a collier on the coal face. No motorways then, and all traffic travelling north, came through Wigan. On a couple of occasions, when wearing the rubber coat, I got jammed in that rotating door of the pub, when called off point, was it the Red Lion?.

Albert - I remember John Lydon telling me the point duty coats were kept in a long cupboard fitted in the recessed doorway of a shop at the top of Library St.
I can't be sure now, but the shop may have been Crook and Edmonson's barbers.

Yes Mick you are correct, but it is so long ago,my memory relating to where the cupboard actually was, I just can't remember. The lamp above this point was installed, prior to me moving to Pemberton.

Johnny the shop in Hallgate used to sell them can't remember shop name