As plans go in for a new Aldi in Norton’s Commercial Street, Howard Campion looks back at the street's history.
ALONG with Wood Street, Commercial Street is the widest of Norton’s thoroughfares.
It was once home to a whole variety of commercial and social activities.
But these have now somewhat narrowed in their scope.
It may soon be home to supermarket chain Aldi which has submitted a planning application for a new food store following huge local support.
The store would occupy a large area off Commercial Street, once the site of Ivy House which provided library services, as well as being a tyre depot and a dealer in agricultural equipment.
Meanwhile, it should be mentioned that Norton’s once major store the Co-operative was situated in Commercial Street in retail units leading up to number 27 from Church Street.
These buildings are shown in an image from the 1950s and are now home to the Woodhams Stone Collection.
In this general area was also the Coronation Rooms. A poster from 1922 shows a ‘Long Night Dance’ planned for the August bank holiday there that year.
Looking in the other direction in the street, the boundary wall at number 29 is seen.
It’s been said that this wall was once part of the structure of the original number 29 building – and it certainly looks that way.
Number 29 was the bakehouse for number 31 when this was a popular restaurant.
About 60 years ago number 29 was demolished and rebuilt further across the garden.
Until the early 1950s number 31 was also a barber shop upstairs – called Barber Browns – with its tea rooms downstairs.
Further along Commercial Street at number 25 was a plumber who diversified by offering bathing – an advert for this has been loaned by Roberta Acaster.
It’s interesting to contemplate what competition there was between this establishment and the ‘slipper baths’ that were most likely available at the swimming pool just down the road.
- Howard Campion a trustee at the Malton and Norton Heritage Centre
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