Eldon Street can be ‘gateway’ to Barnsley town centre once again

The Glass Works, Barnsley Markets and library have all undergone a huge transformation recently, but the often overlooked street nearby is also being restored as the original gateway to the town centre.

Eldon Street has, over the years, paved the way for entertainment, commerce and even some relationships in the South Yorkshire town.

“The history of Eldon Street is bright and beautiful but tricky as well”, says performing artist Gemma Whelan of We Great Ladies (and not to be confused with the Game of Thrones actress of the same name, from Leeds), who has been part of Eldon Street’s regeneration project.

“I feel like it's one of those places where history has been captured, nurtured and all of a sudden they’re uncovering it and reawakening it.”

In 1840, architect John Whitworth helped to design Eldon Street into a wide street away from the mediaeval core with garden plots.

By 1850 however it had become “the gateway to Barnsley” when the railway station was built. By the 1890s it became a hubbub of commercial activity and places to socialise.

Gemma, who has been doing walkabout interactive performances on Eldon Street, said: “This marriage of history, brick, people and places. There's a living history still there with people who walk past you.”

At the time there were several female proprietors which was unusual in the Victorian era.

Gemma said: “It was built on an incredible industry of female proprietors.

“There was Anne Porter who had the first ever department store in Barnsley.

“It was called A Porters and Sons because they thought people wouldn’t want to come shop at a shop run by a woman.”

Leslie Francis Hairdressers is now on the same site, 58 Eldon St.

“They’ve been training hairdressers since the 1950s,” added Gemma.

Around that same period ‘Benj’ Benjamin Harral’s jewellers - which had expanded to taking over three shops at 32-38 Eldon Street - started giving couples engraved bread knives if they bought their engagement or wedding ring from them.

Gemma said: “My love story with Eldon St is around Harrals. I stopped a couple of old women to ask them their memories and they told me how they've still got their engraved knives but not their husbands.”

It was also the place where some people met their first loves in the range of entertainment venues from The Parkway Cinema to Dolly’s Bar and The Civic, formerly the Mechanics Institute and The Public Hall.

Gemma added: “One woman told me how she went on a date with a husband for the first time at Parkway.

“Another said he got drunk there on the Dolly Run.”

Not only does it hold memories for people in the town but, for anyone passing through, if you look up you can see incredible architecture.

One landmark remaining on the street is Benjamin Harral’s clock, which is outside what was the clockmaker’s shop.

“Benj” was first and foremost a clockmaker before becoming dubbed “Barnsley’s ring man” and the place where engaged couples went for their wedding and engagement rings.

Gemma said: “It (the street) kind of asks you to look up from street level and if you look above you can see things from the 19th century and 20th century. There are moments of beauty from the Art Deco era.”

Eldon Street was also the scene of tragedy, explained Gemma, when The Public Hall held its Penny cinema event.

Gemma said: “All the kids came for a penny to watch a film.

“There was a stampede and people were crushed.”

Overcrowding led to the death of 16 children and 40 others were seriously injured.

Later, Barnsley’s Mechanic Institute and Public Hall became The Civic, a cultural hub and theatre.

In 1998 The Civic closed but was later brought back to life in 2009. Its Eldon Street entrance however remained closed. The Civic’s website describes the entrance as a “ghost” of the building’s incredible past.

For a while, Eldon Street has seemed like a fairly unremarkable street to outsiders – until now.

Gemma said: “Eldon Street is coming back to life and there’ll be a grand reopening of The Civic’s Eldon Street entrance in September.”

Part of the regeneration can be attributed to the Eldon Street High Street Heritage Action Zone (HSHAZ) – a scheme aiming to help to restore historic buildings on the west side of the street which ran until the end of March, funding conservation repairs to key historic buildings through grants to building owners - a four-year partnership project between Barnsley Council and Historic England. Its one of 68 such schemes across the country, and one of only nine in Yorkshire and the North East.

Shining a spotlight on Eldon Street will complement the nearby £210m regeneration of the Glass Works and public library @ The Lightbox.

Matt O’Neill, Executive Director of Growth and Sustainability at Barnsley Council said: “Celebrating the reopening of Barnsley Civic’s Eldon Street entrance is a significant moment for our town.

"The redevelopment complements the ongoing revitalisation of our town centre over recent years, and we are proud to be involved. For too long, Barnsley Civic has lacked an active presence on Eldon Street.

"This work not only provides a vibrant cultural resource for our community but also honours and celebrates the unique heritage of this iconic building.”