1965 Donshu footwear Ltd fire
From: ArticlesSome articles about a large fire at Donshu Footwear costing thousands of pounds and over 70 firemen. Dave Bowers a retired fireman remembers as a boy ”it was on a Saturday afternoon and attracted large crowds including me, and it was on the site of what became Neale’s scrapyard ”
Date of creation
February 27th 1965Date of coverage
1960sPlace
BlackburnContributor
Lancashire Evening TelegraphReference number
BP/BP5/2/0003/0001/0022Tags
Bowers.Dave (46)
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Comments about this page
This was my Uncle Donald’s factory and where my father and other members of my family.
At the time I was only 10 and I remember Uncle Donald’s son in law Graham Howson, coming to our house in Rishton to tell my Mum and Dad about the fire.
Dad and Graham then drove over to Mill Hill and watched the factory burn down.
Dad said afterwards, that Uncle Donald just stood there watching the fire whilst, quietly whistling!
My father and uncle worked here for years and I vividly remember the large mill with its steep stone steps.
A very foreboding place for a young person.
The business was transferred to Rishton.
The site then became Les Neales scrap yard
Saturday 26th February 1965 Donshu Footwear Ltd Blaze, Donald Davidson died 1991 Firmee Suticliffe died 1976 & Kenneth Sutciliffe deid 1997 Owner Director’s Moved to Rishton and alas closed down in 1983
Uncle Neil worked there,and i was on the first fire appliance that attended the incident.It was a Saturday just before 12 o’clock.Fiona’s Dad.
Mum worked here
It was a Saturday just after 1200, I was on the PE Fred Heyes was driving and Bill Butcher was on the back with me. Bill said, ‘it’ll be nowt.’ We turned the corner onto Havelock St and drove into smoke.
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