Is That My Dad's Car?

A Memory of Corby.

This is Corby Town Centre as I will always remember it. Long before the pedestrianization of Corporation Street, and long before a new building on Market Square obliterated the social heartland of the town! This was a town centre that was alive, moving, vibrant.

As I look at this picture, there are many memories that come flooding back. In 1960 I was barely two years old, so I don't recall much from this year, although something in the image has me very intrigued.

Take a look at the second vehicle on the right. It's a Ford Zephyr Six. Even in those early days my Dad was drumming the makes of cars into me. He was a car enthusiast and always took pride in his vehicles, and he wanted his son to follow suit. I was identifying every car on the road by age four (which is why I remember nearly being hit by another Zephyr as mentioned in another memory on this site).

Anyway, back to the Zephyr in this picture. It just so happens that in the early 60's my Dad had a Zephyr Six. Also around that time he was managing the John James electrical shop which sat just about where the car in the picture is parked. My Dad's Zephyr had a spotlight on the left side of the grille, so does the one in the picture. My Dad's Zephyr had a roof rack on it, and again so does the one in the picture. These were accessories, not standard items. So I find myself luxuriating in the question, "Is this my Dad's car?"

The only thing that causes me hesitation is the shade. In the two black and white pictures that have survived of Dad's Zephyr, the car looks distinctly lighter in shade, almost closer to the smaller car in front in the picture shown here. So is it all just a matter of co-incidence? Or, is it a matter of photographic exposure? There are more than a few white cars this wonderful image, and I think Dad's might have been off-white or cream. So, it might just be possible that when seen against a truly white car, it takes on a darker shade. Sadly, in the end I cannot be sure, and maybe it is wishful thinking! BUT what a great evening I spent comparing this picture with the few remaining family car shots from that era.

Now, another couple of memories. To the right of Woolies is what I seem to remember as Boots the Chemist. Does anyone else recall an ice cream parlour in that building? When I was about five or six, Mum used to treat herself on rare occasions to an "American Cream Soda Float" which I think might have been in that shop. I can't remember what I had, but she did not let me have fizzy drinks as a rule. Can anyone confirm the existence of such an operation (whether ice cream or just refreshments in general) in Boots, or in an adjacent shop beside Woolworths?

But, the most enduring memory is of the Christmas lights. I loved the way they were strung between the lamp posts along Corporation Street each winter. You see, I used to take the bus from the old village school (circa 1967-1968) via a tour of the Exeter estate, right through to the bus station. Well, sitting upstairs on those smoke-stenched old double deckers, I rejoiced in the sight of the Christmas lights sweeping colourfully down to my eye level as they reached their lowest point between posts. An incredible memory of a time now almost five decades in the past.

Thank you for posting this image.

- Kenneth J. Kerr, Saskatchewan, Canada.