Not all of us will remember the Gas Works in Bridge Street, those who do may remember it was a place where some mothers took their kids who were suffering from whooping cough. The child was given to the attendant who held it for a very short time in the gas chamber. that was supposedly a cure!!!!.
The "Toss" was situated also near there, behind the pub and bookies, large sums of money changed hands there.
donald

I remember the Gas Works on my way up the Back Lane to see my Granny. Also the Toss. The one I remember most was where we used to call The Hallow. It backed unto the houses and shops in Bridge Street and we used to find horse bones, all sorts of bones in the grass between the street and perhaps it was Connelly's butchers.

I well remember the old Gas Works as during the war I was often in there delivering a telegraph money order for one of the female employess from her husband in England.

There were several other places around town where they used to have the toss and punteen schools, notably "Laverys Lane" and "McClean's Lane both accessed from the Longstone and Moira Road,also on the old Golf Links on Sundays when no golf was allowed, in fact before the war I was on the Golf course with an older relative when we were chased by the police I must have been about eight at the time as they rushed past me after the older guys. Mauri

old gas works. when i lived with my granny in mckeown street a few of us had guiders. neighbours used to give us about sixpence to go to the gas works with a sack and fill it with coke ,no coal just coke and we were up and down bow street with the laden guider, no problem. i think a gas works employee filled the sack tom

Just realized I made a mistake in the spelling of Puntoon,obviously not Punteen I played it often enough so no excuse. Mauri

Tom
do you remember the meter men who came around regularly with a hand cart and emptied the gas meters of the pennies and shillings which they were fed instead of being read and bills sent? My gran used to have a shilling entered into the slot ready to turn when the gas went out. Sometimes I would sneak into the parlour where the meter was with a pair of pliers and steal it to buy 5 Woodbine. What sinners we were then. If only we could turn back the clock and repent what we did.
donald

yes donald. i remember the meter men emptying the meters.i think it was gas and electricity. and friday night was the insurance man, i think now that was for funeral money. also the tick man for the cheque money at christmas. then january or february the mothers had us up to menarys with the cheque for clothes for the rest of the year. how time goes?

Tom
I remember coming home once and my Gran, who after our Mother´s death reared us sitting very uncomfortable in the kitchen. She had asked the "Society Man" who as you say came on Fridays to collect the sixpence for burials how much she would be entitled to upon her death, He replied "Missus what you get would not carry you to the top of the street"! She immediately increased her subscription.
donald

I remember Davie Watson (RIP)the Provedent cheque man coming on a Friday night and the first time I got my own cheque and of to a shop in Belfast named HYMES's and buying this single breasted blue suit and a white shirt and red tie honest! Heading for the dance that night I put it on very proud and my Da looked at me and asked had my uncle given me his demob suit ,it put a slight damper on it, Ted

Ted
your contribution remembered me about that advertisement from the clothes shop Speckmann in Belfast. It was situated somewhere near the docks.

"When I was a lad I went with my dad
And always got clad at Speckmann´s
Now I´m a dad with many´s a lad
we all get clad at Speckmann´s"!

The name suggests Jewish and / or German origin

There was another credit draper who had a store in Lambeg over 50 years ago.

donald