“There were girls that were friendly with me who lived up in the East End, they used to shout to the Americans, Give us some gum, chum!”
“See when they started to build supermarkets it spoiled it for everybody. See the wee individual shops, they were great. We could get all our shopping in Ann Street. ‘Cos we didinae have fridges you’ve got to remember.”
Streets
The streets provided the backdrop for much of the bustling life taking place in Broomhill. From street games to walking en masse to work, carrying out the daily shopping or stopping for a blether, the pavements record the daily life of Broomhill’s past.
With the class, we looked at the some of the most significant buildings that lined the streets, including the Drumfrochar Road flats with their well-documented ‘bell tower’ roofs, demolished in 2016.
The Greenock Blitz was also a key point of reference in discussing the streets. With many factories and flats hit by the bombs in Broomhill, the air raid had a considerable impact on the shape of the streets, arguably changing them forever.
The post-war regeneration began in the 1960s with the demolition of the tenement flats along with the last remnants of the once-thriving industries and the small local shops. The high and low flats you now see today went up in the late 60s as well as the all-important Broomy Bar.
Mario's chip shop.
Folk outside the Broomhill Tavern
Bomb damage on Broomhill Street, 1941
Broomy boys relaxing in the sun after work