Post Office Lane, Preston Village
Although the address of the property is number 28 Font Street, Post Office Lane took its name from the fact that, for much of the latter part of the nineteenth century, the building was the Village Post Office. W.J.Price ran a grocery shop from here in the 1880's, and was also Postmaster until Mr W. Pettigrew took over the concession some time before 1909 at number 24 Front Street. The grocery business, however remained in the Price family until 1924, when Richard Comb took over the shop. By 1938, John H Taylor was trading here and the shop remained in his family for a number of years. In 1984 after a decline in business the shop was closed. Its frontage was rebuilt in stone and the interior refurbished to create a private cottage which stands here today.
Keeping to the south of Front Street we arrive at Popplewell Terrace. Named after Alderman Matthew Popplewell, who was the Mayor of Tynemouth in 1853 and 1854. Beyond this can be seen the large car park adjacent to the Spread Eagle (see following pages). Which was laid after the demolition of three buildings in the late 1960's. One of the buildings was a stone cottage attached to the Spread Eagle known as number 2 Front Street. Number 3 Front Street stood on what is now the corner of Popplewell Terrace and Front Street and, in the 1940's, housed William Thompson's fried fish shop - the only "chippy" in living memory to have cast its delicious aroma over the village. Between numbers 2 and 3 Front Street stood another ale-house.