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I am sure these ads will take you back in time

Some are national and others local to Leith

Lilian Graham: Portobello:

You've done it again John - brought memories flooding back of shopping for my mum in most of them at one time or another! Thank you!

Cathy Welch: Canada:

Duncans: Worked there for a short time when I had my first child then had to leave when I was expecting my second child as the aroma was making me quite ill. Nearly put me off Walnut Whirls but not quite!

Janis Hogg: Northumberland:

Thornton's Sport Wear: I remember going to Thornton's in 1959 with my Mum, and sister, Heather to buy jackets for our ski-ing holiday to Saas Fe in Switzerland with DK School. Heather was at Leith Academy, but came along to make up numbers. Don't know how my mum could afford the two of us to go, as she was a widow, but she did, bless her.

Believe it or not I STILL HAVE the jacket and it is in mint condition - can't get into it of course, lol, but it's certainly vintage (like me) don't you think? Rest of adverts bring back lots of memories of childhood....great!

Norma Ross nee Dorward: Lochgilphead Argyll:

Patrick Thomsons - we used to call it PAT's. That was a fantastic department store where you could by nearly anything. I even remember having my hair cut there.

I went up the Bridges in the bus the other day and was disappointed at how tawdry the shops looked. I liked J & R Allan's and wasn't there also a Peter Allan's?

Do you girls remember when these stores used to have fashion shows? My aunt used to take me - all the women sat wearing hats and drinking tea out of china cups with saucers (I think all my saucers are in the attic LOL - just use mugs now!).

Webmaster: Yes Norma, there was a Peter Allans. They obviously didn`t take an Ad out in the L.A. Mag. lol.

Christene Richardson(Donaldson): Waterdown Ontario

Leith Provident

When my sister Joyce left school she worked for the Provident in the stocking department that's when the stockings were all in drawers with glass fronts and she would take the stockings out of the packets so I could see the colour.

I would look down at my skint knees and think well I"ll never be able to wear these my knees were always a mess. I would run everywhere I still do. Does anyone remember her?

Anne Maguire: Melbourne, Australia

Moffett the Baker

My father worked there. Fridays were great as he always brought home cakes after work. I seem to remember that they only made cream cakes on a Friday. He also brought in fresh bread every morning when he came home for breakfast. It was the best.

Norma Ross nee Dorward Argyll, Scotland

Smiths Bakery, Hawkhill

Is there still a Bakery at Hawkhill where Smiths used to be? A wonderful aroma of fresh bread was always in the air, I remember there used to be a sports field behind the bakery where the Edinburgh inter-schools athletics events were held. I did the high jump then - 55 years ago but don't think I could even manage the 7 step run up now LOL

Connie Newman, Tonbridge Kent

The memories certainly DO come flooding back! I worked at PT's after leaving school - in the Model Gown Department (very posh) for a couple of years before I went to Gibsons. I remember packing dresses to send out on appro. Customers would contact the store to ask for a selection of dresses - giving size, colour & style preferred. We would then go round the rails & pick out 3 or 4 & pack them in tissue in PT boxes!

Bob Moffat, Bonnyrigg

It bring's back so many memories just seeing the names, one thing did alert me and that was the amount of shops we had in Duke st, I did not realize this before, especially when you look at Duke st now, nothing much there, and Norma the bakery is long gone, it is now houses.

Graham Whyte, Harrogate

Leith Provident...Having worked in the main Bakery for a few years something really does come to mind about being there. Every day a full rack of Mince Pies were left so all employees could eat as many as they wished. The management must have realised what they were doing... It wasn't too long before you realised that you would only have a few each day.

The other underhand thing some of us did was steal 2 plain loaves at the end of shift at 3pm by getting someone to take 4 loaves into the loft and throw them down to the other then once we got them, run home as fast as possible, cut a 2in heel off and then get some spread on so it melted with the heat still in the loaf..THE BEST TASTE EVER!!!. There are few smells that stay with you for life like fresh-cut grass,and Tarmacadam but the best is, FRESH BREAD..

Alistair McIntyre, Chichester

Moffett's the Bakers, Ferrier Street

Love the ads, they bring back lots of memories of Leith.

I used to live in Glover Street and delivered the store milk (Leith Provident) from the store at the bottom of Easter Road for a while. I delivered to the bottom of Ferrier Street and Glover Street and as a favour I used to deliver some bags of rolls for Moffett's and in return got a bag of the day before's cakes. Some mornings I'd eat a cake then go back to bed for a kip before getting up for school. My last job before leaving school was delivering rolls for Smith's the bakers at the corner of Lochend Road and Primrose Street. I had to make up all the bags of soft or well-fired rolls in the bakehouse. The smell was fantastic. I then delivered the rolls with a little wooden barrow. I also remember the baking smells from Smith's of Hawkhill. We had 2 periods a week of "field" (sport) at Hawkhill when I was at Leith Academy Secondary. Ah...... the memories!

Andrew Gibson, Bridge of Don, Aberdeen

Leith Provident.

I was brought up in 45 Bangor Road, the last tenement before the gates to the store bakery. The smell of fresh bread was always around the house. Unfortunately there was still horse drawn delivery vans so there was always a smell of manure as well, but happy days.

Rab Dickson, Australia

The Bisto Add We have a Bisto fridge magnet we bought in Edinburgh on holiday.Had to have it because

our Aussie Grandkids have heard us say Ah/Bisto many times after a good cuppa and now they even say it

They are all very good adds thank,s for the memories