Onchan District Commissioners
1954 - TT racing Clypse Course
In 1954 the ultra lightweight TT was held on The Clypse Course which principally ran through the parish and village of Onchan. The same year sidecar racing was reintroduced into the TT and this also ran around the 10.79 mile course. The grandstand on Glencrutchery Road was used with the bikes turning right along Ballanard Road, up Johnny Watterson to Cronk-ny-Mona, onto the Hillberry Straight and up to Creg-na-Baa. From there it was out the Creg-na-Baa Back Road, down past Conrhenny to the top of the Whitebridge, through Onchan Village turning up the side of the Manx Arms, past the Nursery Hotel to Signpost Corner, down to Governors Bridge and back to the grandstand. In 1955 the lightweight (250cc) race was added to those on the Clypse Course. Races on this circuit continued up to and including 1959. Lead riders from the time included Carlo Ubbiali, Tarquinio Provini, Bill Lomas and Eric Oliver. In the final year, 1959, Honda entered its first ever team of 125cc riders, gaining 6th and 7th place. In 1955 the Clubman Race took place on the Clypse Course but who is the rider in this photograph, provided by an Onchan resident?
In the background is the Blue Dragon Café and Snack Bar in a building that at one time belonged to Henry Bloom Noble but which for many years was a grocers shop run by C. Dibb and Sons. Just after the Second World War it was taken over by Harold Richmond who ran it as a milk bar. The shop stretched across the front of the property with a servery at the Isle of Man Bank end and a kitchen in a lean-to outlet at the rear.
In October 1948 Harold Richmond had plans drawn up by J.P.Lomas the architect to greatly alter the premises. This included a large two storey flat roofed extension at the rear in place of the lean-to outlet. The outlet was to provide a kitchen, bathroom and lounge for a flat on the first floor and a proper commercial kitchen and scullery for the downstairs café. The shop front was to remain as it had been, double fronted but with a solid stone wall and sliding sash window on that part of the frontage nearest to the Isle of Man Bank. Work commenced but then Mr Richmond had a change of mind resulting in revised plans being submitted in February 1949. This provided for all the existing front wall to be removed and replaced by a steel beam set on a cast iron column so the shop front could extend for the full frontage. The café was also to be divided into two unequal parts, the larger occupying about two thirds of the frontage and the whole of the new outlet, whilst the narrower shop was to have a staircase leading up to the flat above.
This was carried out and after about six months work on the property Vincent Shimmin opened his haberdashery shop in the large unit and the narrower section became The Blue Dragon which was later tenanted by Joseph Brian Webb. By 1954 Vincent Shimmin's shop had been taken over by Dennis Corrin who continued the business which included ladies clothing and "Ladybird" children's clothing. In the mid 1970s when road widening was taking place on the other side of the road to make way for Elm Tree House, Wm. Quirk and Sons the bakers moved into Corrin's shop and the blue dragon was a dress shop called "Peg's Popin". This building and its neighbour Kermode the baker's were both demolished with other properties to make way for Bounty House.
In this picture, Teresa who ran The Blue Dragon, which operated as much as a sweet and cigarette shop as much as a snack bar with limited seating, is sitting in the doorway on somebody's knee so consequentially it looks as if she has three legs. This picture appeared in the local press with the query if anybody remembered Three legged Teresa. Immediately behind her is George Clague of Auburn Road who used to play for Onchan AFC. The tall man in the door recess is Ken Astill of Central Drive brother of Gordon Astill the bandmaster.
1954 - TT racing Clypse Course
In 1954 the ultra lightweight TT was held on The Clypse Course which principally ran through the parish and village of Onchan. The same year sidecar racing was reintroduced into the TT and this also ran around the 10.79 mile course. The grandstand on Glencrutchery Road was used with the bikes turning right along Ballanard Road, up Johnny Watterson to Cronk-ny-Mona, onto the Hillberry Straight and up to Creg-na-Baa. From there it was out the Creg-na-Baa Back Road, down past Conrhenny to the top of the Whitebridge, through Onchan Village turning up the side of the Manx Arms, past the Nursery Hotel to Signpost Corner, down to Governors Bridge and back to the grandstand. In 1955 the lightweight (250cc) race was added to those on the Clypse Course. Races on this circuit continued up to and including 1959. Lead riders from the time included Carlo Ubbiali, Tarquinio Provini, Bill Lomas and Eric Oliver. In the final year, 1959, Honda entered its first ever team of 125cc riders, gaining 6th and 7th place. In 1955 the Clubman Race took place on the Clypse Course but who is the rider in this photograph, provided by an Onchan resident?
In the background is the Blue Dragon Café and Snack Bar in a building that at one time belonged to Henry Bloom Noble but which for many years was a grocers shop run by C. Dibb and Sons. Just after the Second World War it was taken over by Harold Richmond who ran it as a milk bar. The shop stretched across the front of the property with a servery at the Isle of Man Bank end and a kitchen in a lean-to outlet at the rear.
In October 1948 Harold Richmond had plans drawn up by J.P.Lomas the architect to greatly alter the premises. This included a large two storey flat roofed extension at the rear in place of the lean-to outlet. The outlet was to provide a kitchen, bathroom and lounge for a flat on the first floor and a proper commercial kitchen and scullery for the downstairs café. The shop front was to remain as it had been, double fronted but with a solid stone wall and sliding sash window on that part of the frontage nearest to the Isle of Man Bank. Work commenced but then Mr Richmond had a change of mind resulting in revised plans being submitted in February 1949. This provided for all the existing front wall to be removed and replaced by a steel beam set on a cast iron column so the shop front could extend for the full frontage. The café was also to be divided into two unequal parts, the larger occupying about two thirds of the frontage and the whole of the new outlet, whilst the narrower shop was to have a staircase leading up to the flat above.
This was carried out and after about six months work on the property Vincent Shimmin opened his haberdashery shop in the large unit and the narrower section became The Blue Dragon which was later tenanted by Joseph Brian Webb. By 1954 Vincent Shimmin's shop had been taken over by Dennis Corrin who continued the business which included ladies clothing and "Ladybird" children's clothing. In the mid 1970s when road widening was taking place on the other side of the road to make way for Elm Tree House, Wm. Quirk and Sons the bakers moved into Corrin's shop and the blue dragon was a dress shop called "Peg's Popin". This building and its neighbour Kermode the baker's were both demolished with other properties to make way for Bounty House.
In this picture, Teresa who ran The Blue Dragon, which operated as much as a sweet and cigarette shop as much as a snack bar with limited seating, is sitting in the doorway on somebody's knee so consequentially it looks as if she has three legs. This picture appeared in the local press with the query if anybody remembered Three legged Teresa. Immediately behind her is George Clague of Auburn Road who used to play for Onchan AFC. The tall man in the door recess is Ken Astill of Central Drive brother of Gordon Astill the bandmaster.