Buying a car in 1960

[Stunmon]

My father bought a Ford Popular in 1960, apparently from a garage at Broomhill? Does any one remember any car sales garages at that time? There weren't many people around who owned a car!!!

[Snozzle]

There was a Kennings at Broomhill on Peel Street.

[Lysanderix]

Was it new.? If so, the odds are that it was bought from a Ford agent and I can’t remember Kennings being one of them.

[Richard Vessey]

Presumably there wasn't a T.C. Harrison branch up there?

[Lysanderix]

Or Autoways or Brooke Shaw?

[Snozzle]

[Stunmon]

It would have been second hand so possibly Kennings on Peel St. Thanks!!!

[Edmund]

The business at Peel street was the Broomhill Motor Company in 1960.  After the owner Frederick Sampson Moulson died in 1962, the business was sold to Kenning Motor Group, who had a new showroom built on the site by Ackroyd and Abbot, and was a BMC dealership.

A.F Hancock Ltd. at 486-488 Glossop Road (next door to Broomhill Tavern other side of Peel Street) sold Ford cars and were also taken over by Kennings (after 1965).

[paulhib48]

Our first car was a Morris Oxford that my dad bought from Monty’s somewhere on Middlewood Rd in the late 50s.

His pitch was just a house and a garage and a handful of cars 

We lived at Totley and at that time there wasn’t another house with a car anywhere near us 

 

[Wallsy]

I remember going with my dad in 1960, I was only 8 years old, to pick up a new Vauxhall Cresta from the car showroom. It was in Sheffield and I somehow think (maybe wrongly) that it was around the Wicker area.

[Edmund]

14 hours ago, Wallsy said:

I remember going with my dad in 1960, I was only 8 years old, to pick up a new Vauxhall Cresta from the car showroom. It was in Sheffield and I somehow think (maybe wrongly) that it was around the Wicker area.

[Wallsy]

Thanks for the info, It seems it was Bentley Bros. I can always remember the salesman telling my father that reverse gear was up and forward on the column change!

[southside]

Bought my first car from a showroom on Abbeydale Road in 1968, can't remember the name of the dealership, it was in the building that later became a Gym, I think run by the boxer Prince Nassem?

I paid £395 (£13 month) for a 1963 Midget, sold it for £150 in 1971 in exchange for a wife, mortgage and 2 kids. Had to wait over 10 years to afford another car.

[paulhib48]

On 08/08/2023 at 11:27, southside said:

Bought my first car from a showroom on Abbeydale Road in 1968, can't remember the name of the dealership, it was in the building that later became a Gym, I think run by the boxer Prince Nassem?

I paid £395 (£13 month) for a 1963 Midget, sold it for £150 in 1971 in exchange for a wife, mortgage and 2 kids. Had to wait over 10 years to afford another car.

I remember that showroom but can’t think, for the life of me, what it was called 

I also aspired to a green MG Midget around that time 

Sadly I was informed that, as I needed a vehicle to transport goods to my retail business , it probably wasn’t entirely suitable .

I ended up with an uninspiring grey mini van 

 

[Edmund]

4 hours ago, paulhib48 said:

I remember that showroom but can’t think, for the life of me, what it was called 

I also aspired to a green MG Midget around that time 

Sadly I was informed that, as I needed a vehicle to transport goods to my retail business , it probably wasn’t entirely suitable .

I ended up with an uninspiring grey mini van 

 

In 1969 715 Abbeydale Road was occupied by F. Lownsbrough & Sons Ltd, Motor Car Dealers. Apparently the firm is still operating, now out of Turners Lane at Broomhill, though they seem to keep a very low profile.

[Hopman]

Abbeydale Pharmacy is 713 Abbeydale Road, so I assume 715-717 would be the former gym. 719 is the newsagent and 721 is the building up for sale at the moment.

Check Google Streetview.

[southside]

Just had a look on Google Earth Hopman.  Yes that's the place where I bought my first car.  Shame it's been left to get into such a sorry state!

Edmund is right with the name of the dealership F Lownsbrough and Sons Ltd. Seeing the front of the building again did make me wonder if it was purpose built as a car showroom and how old the building is.

Kelly's 1957 directory shows it in the hands of Dale Motors. Any one know anything about the location of the building, did it replace house's damaged during the blitz?

[Edmund]

Number 715 seems to have been used as a joiners workshop from 1901 when James Wilkinson was there. Four years later Ethelbert Senior was a joiner there. In 1911 Thomas W Barnsdall was there working as a joiner. In January 1918 Garforth Lewis Marsden who had used the premises for joinery, was killed in action and his joinery stock was sold off in February of that year.

By 1939 Wrights Motors were using the building for car sales. Maybe the frontage was changed when it became a car showroom?