York, Micklegate, Warriner's Motor and Cycle Shop c1910 - Sepia Saturday

York, Micklegate, Warriner's Motor and Cycle Shop c1910. George William Warriner (1864-1949) had this shop at 138 Micklegate, York, close to the 14th century Micklegate Bar. In the modern Street View below, 138 Micklegate is the blue-fronted shop. It is now a knitwear shop called Bill Baber. In the old postcard view you can see a gramophone horn on display inside the shop. I think it was not unusual for early gramophones to be sold by engineers rather than music shops. Eagle-eyed viewers may also be able to spot a 'His Master's Voice' poster. I am not expert enough to tell you the make of the motorcycles in the window or outside, but if anyone can identify them it may help to date the picture more accurately. It looks like the motorcycle in the window is priced at £37. In the 1911 census Warriner described himself as a 'motor and cycle engineer', but in the 1901 census, when he was living not far away in Price Street, he was a 'bicycle maker'. In the 1891 census he was a guard on the railway. Both Warriner and his wife Annie were born in York, but curiously their daughter Dora was born in 1898 in Texas, U.S.A. Perhaps the Warriners spent some time in the U.S.A. while Warriner honed his engineering skills. This postcard was posted in 1910. Click to enlarge.
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