F.W. Woolworth. Store 69.
F.W. Woolworths, Store 69, was established in Fore Street Devonport in June 1916.
It was destroyed in the blitz of WWII, on the night of 22nd/23rd April, 1941. The company
continued trading into the late 1950s in temporary premises a few yards away, on
the corner of Fore Street and Morice Street. [1]
These two images, courtesy of
Steve Johnson's CyberHeritage, show the inside of Woolworth's temporary
store. It was stepped all the way through. The top image is looking down the store,
with the exit to Fore Street at the bottom. The lower image is looking up through
the store. Look at the number of staff! There was one to each counter in those days.
In March 1946 F.W. Woolworth’s applied to redevelop the bombed site of the Royal
Hotel in Fore Street, but their application was turned down as the Admiralty required
the land.
Woolworths opened their new shop at number 9 -11 Marlborough Street in September,
1960. Mr D.C. Davies was appointed as manager to the Marlborough Street store in October, 1969. [1]
Woolworth's ceased trading at Marlborough Street and vacated the
store in ? (believed early 1970s? Does anyone know exactly when?) The building, shown below, is currently in use by Iceland.
(Do you have any stories to tell about Devonport Woolworth's? We'd love to hear from
you).
[1]
The New Bond. House journal of of F.W. Woolworth’s and Co, Ltd. June/July 1970. Volume 29 number 3
page updated 7 May 2011