Riceman's Fire
Riceman's fire was Sunday 6th October 1963. I am researching a book on Deal's shops and have been given the local newspaper for that week. The front page banner headline is "Deal store destroyed by fire." And the introduction reads "Within 90 minutes of first being spotted, fire reduced Deal's largest departmental store, Riceman's, to a jungle of twisted steel girders late on Sunday afternoon ..."
A few weeks ago the East Kent Mercury headlines were of Deal's last department store closing, namely Laughton's originally Baldwins. Last week a headline was "Workers say farewell as Woolworths store shuts." Sad times.
I remember the pony and trap on the seafront in the early 1950s and have a photo of it somewhere in the family albums, taken outside the amusement arcade at the top of King Street. The Regent Bingo Hall, formerly the Regent cinema closed last week.
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RE: RE: Riceman's Fire
Indeed it is sad to see all the shops closing in Deal. I was especially sad to see the Regent going as my mum used to work there when it was a cinema and I have spent many happy hours there when I was a child. Incidentally, when I later went to secondary school it transpired that a girl who became one of my 'best friends' was actually the grand-daughter of the man whose pony and trap it was!
Comment from Margaret Geoge on Monday, 2nd February 2009.