Eastgate Street

Eastgate Street, one of the main streets in Chester so very popular with locals and visitors alike. It is also one of the most iconic and historice streets to be found in our beautiful city. Eastgate Street, together with Northgate Street, Bridge Street and Watergate Street, is one of the four original streets built inside Roman Chester. All of these four iconic streets meet at the High Cross, and each one of them contains part of the world famous Rows.

Eastgate Street

(For more details of this digital artwork – have a look HERE).

That’s a very brief mention of the history of it all. In recent times Eastgate Street has been in the news in a rather unfortunate way. The hugely popular department store, Browns, first established in 1780 closed its doors for the last time in 2021. Once described as the “Harrods of the North,” the interior of the building contained many elegant looking features. Such as glass-domed roofs and elaborate plaster work while surrounding small chandeliers in the main entrance.

It always had a special feel about it when you walked through Browns with its old, creaking floorboard floors. A sad day indeed when Browns closed for the last time.

Not only Browns though.

Things That Go Bump

Also in Eastgate Street, we had Thornton’s Chocolate shop. You may think that’s there nothing spectacular about that as such. But, did you know that the Thornton’s building is said to be one of the most haunted locations in Chester. Many ghost stories have been told over the years. Some of these ghost stories began around 1968 and the stories include (amongst others):

• a jovial man wearing an apron who smiles politely at customers before disappearing in plain sight;
• a young lady by the name of Sarah. Sarah was due to be married but sadly she was “stood-up” at the altar. It was said that she supposedly hung herself within the upstairs of the shop. Ever since then, she has been blamed for supposedly pushing people on the stairs, and even destroying chocolate displays. Most notably the Valentines Day display in 1991. She is even said to have defended the store when it was claimed that she pelted a burglar with chocolates, subsequently driving him to flee in fear and leave fingerprints everywhere.

Indeed, two very noble and interesting buildings steeped in history.

Eastgate Street – A Plate Of Chips In Woolworths

There have of course been other great buildings and businesses residing in Eastgate Street that are sadly no longer with us. Who remembers Kardomah the aromatic coffee shop? It could be said that the chain of Kardomah’s were that era’s equivalent of today’s Starbucks or Costa.

One of my favourites when I was a young lad was Woolworths (aka Woolies). I can still well remember enjoying a plate of chips and gravy after attending the ABC Minors Club on a Saturday morning. The cafe was on the top floor and if my memory serves me right, a plate of chips and gravy were 9d. No, that’s not a mis-spelling. It should read 9d and not 9p. The princely sum of 9d is the equivalent of about 4p nowadays, or there or thereabouts.

And their plate of chips and gravy? Absolutely top drawer.

Oh, by the way, if you were wondering what the ABC Minors was, or for that matter, what we used to do as kids, then have a look HERE.

But let’s not forget today’s great businesses to be found in Eastgate Street. Hopefully we won’t have to wait too long before the old Browns site is reopened. There is still plenty to see though in Eastgate Street. And that includes of course, enjoying a cheeky pint or two in The Boot public house.

The Boot In Eastgate Street

The Boot is, on Eastgate Street Row, a more or less intact timber-framed building dating as far back as 1623. The pub has occupied the building since at least 1750, although the Row level “shop” has also been a hairdressers (was it called Derricks?) which meant that the pub was accessed by walking down a corridor.

One fascinating piece of history behind the bar is a stone shot which was found in one of the oak beams during a restoration carried out in 1986. This may have been embedded during the Civil War? Or it may be a home-made poachers bullet.

Way back in the day, it was said to have been Chester’s most notorious brothel. This was supposedly during the 1700’s through to the early 1900’s. Then in the early 1920’s it was a gentleman’s gaming club. Like so many historic buildings in Chester city centre, it is supposedly haunted with apparently occasional unexplained female moans and laughter, supposedly being of supernatural origin.

It is still a popular watering hole today. Why not pop in and enjoy a cheeky snifter or two. But, be warned, leave your mobile phone in your pocket or your handbag. That in itself is a different story.

Anyway, moving on.

As Seen From Eastgate Clock

In case you didn’t know, it has been said that the Eastgate Clock is the second most photographed clock in the UK, after Big Ben. Another significant piece of Chester’s history. You can have a good, in-depth read of Eastgate Street, including the famous Eastgate Clock by checking out this link HERE. There’s so much of interest to read about – way more than the snippets I’ve mentioned here.

I must say, I do like a walk along our famed Chester Walls every now and then. And why not act like a tourist now and then I say. When I do have an historic amble, I always like to stand alongside the Eastgate Clock and look out over Eastgate Street below. On one such occasion, I took a photo that, in my opinion, captured the very essence of a busy and vibrant Eastgate Street. With my creative juices and imagination in full flow, I then turned the photo into a piece of artwork.

In order for you to see what it may look like in a frame, I’ve added the image above. And having taken the photo and created the artwork, I have gone the extra step and set up my very own, first Etsy store. This photo, in digital download format, can be found in my new Etsy store in digital download format.

Looking ahead, it isn’t that long to go until Christmas. And, as such, I’m sure you will be looking for economical ways in which to spend your Christmas pressie budget. Now if only I could think of something that might be of interest to help you?

I’ve Had An Idea!!

Oh wait!! I’m not sure where this idea came from but what about a digital download of Eastgate Street as taken from alongside the Eastgate Clock and caringly created into an interesting piece of digital download? If you’re not sure what I mean, have a look at this HERE. Or, as they used to say on Blue Peter (here’s one I prepared earlier).

Seriously though, it may be something that tickles your fancy. You will be getting two downloads in two different sizes (ideal for two certain frame sizes) in two different formats – PNG and PDF.

Anyway, enough of the blatant…..ish sales pitch. Joking apart, if you do have a look at the artwork, I hope you like it. If you even go to the extreme of buying it, then a big thanks from me.

Are there any more pieces of Chester digital download artwork? Funny you should ask that. Watch this space as they say.

Chester Lifestyle Blog Posts

Thanks for reading my latest blog post. And thanks for visiting my Chester Lifestyle website and, if you have ventured over to my Etsy store, thanks for visiting that as well. Just in case you missed the link above and you would like to see my Eastgate Street creation – you can see it HERE.

To see all of my other blog posts on a variety of topics, then head on over to HERE.

Here’s another mock up of my Eastgate Street creation as it may look framed. I hope you like it.

To see even more Chester related digital artwork creations, have a look HERE.

Thanks again for visiting – it’s much appreciated.