In Cheadle in 1957 with Derrick A Lea

Now I have to confess I am well out of my comfort zone, having only ever visited Cheadle twice in the entire time I have been in Manchester, which amounts to 44 years.

This I hasten to add is nothing to do with the place but just the way these things sometimes turn out.  

All of which is by way of introducing another of Derrick A Lea’s pictures.

I have written about Mr Lea on a number of occasions and despite appeals for information about him I know little more than when he was born who he married and the fact that he lived in Chorlton.

But he drew some wonderful pictures of the township and the surrounding area during the 1950s.

And just sometime he wandered further afield.  I have no doubt that he may have produced many such images but to date just a few have survived, like this one of the White Hart at Cheadle in 1957.

For me it is the period detail that draws you in, so while I have no idea whether farm horses were still walked along Wilmslow Road in 1957 I recognise the road furniture, the sleek car and the fashions worn by the passers by.

The scene today is not so different, although the pub has lost one of its tall chimneys and the large sign advertising Oatmeal Stout has also vanished.

Pictures; Cheadle, Cheshire, 1957, from the collection of Derrick A Lea