Teatime Tales From Dundee by Maureen Reynolds

Author:Maureen Reynolds
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781845026738
Publisher: Black & White Publishing
Published: 2013-03-25T04:00:00+00:00

20

Market Days

Dundee is a city of markets, going back to Lady Mary’s Fair and the Greenmarket which were held in the shadow of the Vault, a medieval collection of houses and shops that the building of the Caird Hall has long since erased.

In its heyday the Greenmarket was a mecca for the shopper looking for household goods or any other item of bric-a-brac, from chipped ornaments to items of furniture. My grandad sometimes had a site here but what he sold was never recorded. What was recorded was my mother’s annoyance at having to look after the collection of items on sale. I recall her telling me that she hated having to haggle with any potential customers and keep an eye on any would-be pilferer, not to mention having to sit out in all weathers, as this market wasn’t undercover. Goods for sale were laid out on the ground and customers could take in at a glance what was on offer and a lot of it was either tatty or well-worn. I don’t recall if she ever mentioned her brother, my Uncle Charlie, taking a turn. But knowing grandad, he more than likely did.

The Greenmarket finally stopped trading in 1934 but as one site closed down, another popped up somewhere else.

A great trip on a Saturday was to the stalls at Mid Kirk Style, a narrow lane that ran between South Lindsay Street and Tally Street, and was bordered on one side by the wall of the Old Steeple. This was a popular place to be because this market was home to the famous Buster Stall, that ambrosial dish of chips, peas and vinegar.

Like the Greenmarket, vendors just placed their wares either on old wooden barrows or on the street. Some enterprising sellers had the foresight to have a piece of tarpaulin over their goods but more often than not, they were left out in all kinds of weather, rain, snow or wind.

This market closed down in 1957 when the Overgate was demolished, but before this happened, another small market was held on spare ground beside Long Wynd. I loved this market because it sold a mixture of really old things and brand new items.

I read somewhere that one vendor regularly sold old spectacles from a large suitcase. Customers tried them out by looking at a newspaper and if the print was readable then a purchase was made. Where was the sense in paying for an eye test when there were so many spectacles to choose from the suitcase?

Nylon stockings were very difficult to get after the war but by the early 1950s they began to appear for sale. On one occasion I was at a stall with scores of packets of nylons on sale. There was a huge crowd of women all clamouring to buy these wonderful sheer stockings and I was one of them.

I was sixteen with very little money but the salesman, a man with a glib patter and his eye on making a quick half crown, persuaded me to part with my hard-earned cash.

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