A walk up the Main Street
This part of our walk will take us back onto the Main street and up to the main roundabout and the entrance to Fraser Street.McTaggarts and Thomas Cook Building
The building where Thomas Cook is today housed many businesses over the years. Some include Birrells Sweet Shop, Liptons, Tandem Shoes, in 1998 Carlson World Choice, AT Mays and now Thomas Cook.
Next door was McMillan Butchers, then the Buttercup Dairy, Tandem Shoes, The Tartan Tea Room and now McTaggarts Estate Agents.
The two images above show today's businesses and also how the same location looked in 1911 with McMillians Butcher at the corner.
The photo on the left shows the Largs branch of the Buttercup Dairy shop which was located where McTaggarts Estate Agent is today
Few today would recognise the name Andrew Ewing the founder of the chain of Buttercup Dairies. At his peak he owned 250 shops across Scotland’s central belt and the company lasted more than 60 years.
Ewing was born near Stranraer in 1869. In 1894 he opened his first grocer shop and in 1904 his first Buttercup dairy. Soon he was opening 15 new shops per year including his Largs ,Gourock, Greenock and Ardrossan shops.
The dairy sold a range of high quality produce, including eggs, butter, margarine and condensed milk.
In time Ewing became one of the wealthiest businessmen in Scotland. He lived in a large house set within extensive grounds at Clermiston Mains in Edinburgh.
As a devout Christian Ewing decided that all eggs laid on a Sunday were to be donated to charity. Given the massive farm which supplied all his eggs this amounted to a staggering five million eggs per year.
The depression signaled the start of the decline for the business along with Ewings habit of frequently giving away large donations from his fortune to various causes.
By the mid 1930s the company was severely in debt. Shops began to close and by the 1950s less than 30 remained. Ewing died in August 1956. The last of the Buttercup Dairy stores closed its doors in Edinburgh in 1965.
Next door to McTaggarts was Nesbits newsagents, later in 1991 The Card Shop and in 1997 Largs Exchange.
The now empty Down to Earth shop was in the 1850s Miss Crawford Sweetie Shop, Toole's Hairdresser and in 1911 Crawford Confectioners. Later Largs Cancer Care, in 1994 Small World, by 1995 Largs Cancer Care and from 1997 Down to Earth.MaCaulay’s Pub
The top left image above shows Macaulay’s pub as it looks today looking good after its recent refurbishment. Top right photo shows Macaulay's when it was the Andrew Aitken pub, which dates from the 1850s, complete with a handy wee bike hiring shop next door.
That shop later was Miss Taylor Ironmonger and a grocers and tobacconist. By 1960s the pub was known as The Argosy and by 1975 renamed to Dee Jays. 1998 seen the name changed to Macaulay’s. Other names over the years have been Wee Joe's and Donald's.
As we head up towards the roundabout we pass the Key Centre shop. In the 1850s this was McKie painters, 1898 John H McKee decorator and house painter. Later The Wee Fish and Chip Shop, Jenny a Thing, Ross licensed grocer and McKays Clothing. In 1990 Ginas and by 1994 The Marie Curie Cancer Care
Next door which is now empty was from 1898 to 1911 James Rankine Grocer, 1991 Elfs Cabin Shoe Repairer and by 1998 The Key Centre.
The building at the end was once Gordon’s Dairy, before that was Bankhead Dairy which was owned by Robert and Mary McKellar. The flat above was used as living accommodation for the McKellar family then later as an office for Gordon's Dairy. Later in the 1980s upstairs used to be Jennifer's hairdressers. Later in 1991 A & A Ballantyne fruiter, 1995 Gardners, 1997 Car User Car Sundries and recently Glens Electrics.
Entrance to Aitken Street
We are now at the roundabout and the entrance to Aitken Street which was known in the past as Piper Row.
In its early days Piper Row was a narrow winding lane just wide enough for a horse and cart.
In 1893 the local official’s discussed a proposal changing Piper Row which would create a new street from Boyd Street or Lade Street into the Main Street.
The proposal was later changed to either a continuation of Boyd Street to Main Street or to simply widen Piper Row. For several years the "battle" raged between the 'Straight Street' Party and the 'Piper Row Widening Party'. Eventually in 1899, the Piper Row widening scheme was decided on by 5 votes to 3 and new plans were ordered to be prepared.The re-naming of the street came up for discussion in April 1901 and again in May 1903. New names suggested in these discussions were Trongate, Haco Street, King Street, Piper Avenue, Piper Quadrant, Arthur Street and Tron Street. Later it was decided to give the street its present name of Aitken Street after the name of the first Provost of Largs, John Aitken
The two photos at the top show the entrance to Piper Row with the entrance to Tron Place on the left. You can also see some of the old buildings which were located where Hallidays Chemist is today.
In the front of each photo you can see The Chanty Dyke.This was a walled animal pen used to keep animals which were in transit to and from ships at the pier or were awaiting movement to a local abattoir. It was demolished in 1894. The third photo ,above left, is the same view seen today. Photo below left is the entrance in the 70s. Photo bottom right is looking up Aitken Street about 100 years ago.
Frazer Brother's Garage
As we leave the roundabout and the entrance to Aitken Street lets have a quick look at an old business that was once located here.
The buildings which house Tescos, Superdrug, The Card Factory, Specsavers and the Red Cross shop was in the 1940s the location of The Frazer Brother's Garage.
The Frazer family's descendants used to run a black smith shop in Frazer Street. The street name was probably named after them.The garage specialised in Hillman cars but they also sold televisions, radios, bikes, vinyl records and sheet music. Later it became Henderson's record shop. It was demolished in the late 1950s to make way today's building which was built to accommodate the new incoming Woolworths in the 1960s.
The image top left is the site as we know it today. The top right image is an 1930s aerial view of the same located showing the garage. The image to the right is a Frazer Brother Advert taken from a 1950s tourist guide to Largs.
The photo below was taken from the spire of the Clark Memorial church. It must have been taken sometime between 1889 and 1894. The church was built in 1889 and the The Chanty Dyke is still standing which was demolished in 1894.
