Bolton's Victoria Square was a home to elephant bus shelters

We have had some great reactions to recent photographs of Bolton town centre which we have featured in Looking Back.

It seems that we all love to remember what the town used to be like in times go by.

So, to stir up a few more memories we have unearthed this picture from our archives of a normal day in Victoria Square in 1969.

Back then, two-way traffic flowed past - and round - the town hall.

The ceremonial elephants were still on top of the two bus shelters in front of the town hall steps and fountains played either side of the war memorial.

Look at it closely and this picture offers something for everyone ranging from the Bolton buses in their traditional maroon and cream livery to the Securicor van which looks like it has come straight from an episode of the Sweeney.

If you have any photographs of Bolton town centre in days gone by, then we’d love to be able to share them with Looking Back readers along with your memories.

Source

I remember when those big rectangular buses were introduced, 1962(ish). They were called the Atlantean if I remember right. 
Used to catch them when I went home after school, Bolton County Grammar, in the middle of town, and caught the 39 to Lostock Junction. There was another one 10, or 15? that only went to Deane.
The good old days.

I used to catch the bus (the no. 1) home from town from the bus stop at the top of the picture - can't say I remember any elephants on the top of it though?

I remember that just by chance I was in Victoria Square one day when the happened to be filming a scene from The Family Way.

For anyone interested there's some stills of Bolton from that film on the link below.

https://www.reelstreets.com/films/family-way-the/

(Frightening to think it was over 50 years ago!)

Seems like yesterday, it really does.
I don't know how I managed it but I confused The Family Way with Alfie for some years. In mitigation  they were made in the same year.

I quite fancied Hayley Mills in the 60s - something about the clean living blonde image thing in the same way my dad fancied Doris Day on the quiet.

It looks strange to me to see cars going past the town hall, when was it turned into a square and pedestrianised?

Norpig wrote:It looks strange to me to see cars going past the town hall, when was it turned into a square and pedestrianised?

Based on just my memory I would say about late 1969/early 1970.

The bus I used to catch to and from home moved from the Town Hall to Moor Lane (or rather the street where the 'new' Magistrates court is (was? is it still there?)), going home I caught it outside the court building and arriving in town across the road, next to the grassed lawn type effort at the rear end of the arches at Le Mans Crescent (Cheadle Square).  

In fact I used to walk it more often than not over Marsden Way where the fire station was on the corner, up Vernon Street, where the dogs home was and up to Mere Hall Park were they moved the Registrars to, I think (it was a nursery school back in my time).

Indeed I even remember Le Mans Crescent being named something else before we twinned with that town - Howell Croft North and South it used to be called and it changed in 1974 - I had to look that last bit up though!

I never liked them. And why did they always sit next to me.