And the wall came tumbling down...
There can be few people who have done more to record Shrewsbury of yesteryear than veteran photographer Bernard Cross, who has sent us some pictures with a little story behind them.
Mr Cross, who is now 96, has moved to North Yorkshire, and has come across the photos which he says were taken at the time the old cattle market in Shrewsbury was dismantled and the area developed.
As one of them shows the new Mardol clock tower, which was built during 1965, his images are from around that time or soon after.
"There is quite a story attached to them," says Mr Cross.
He says that when the old car showroom was knocked down, along with the abattoir and so on, a large part of the old town walls was revealed behind the top of the Mardol premises. The wall at one time continued behind Pride Hill.
"On my way back from a job I noticed this wall, so took a few pictures and sent them in to the Shrewsbury Chronicle, which they published, perhaps unwisely, for this 'ruddy wall' was an inconvenience for the developers.
"What to do? The wall itself was in excellent condition. There was much controversy, some acrimonious, in the local press by various bodies. Knock it down? Out of the question.
"Then someone, I don't know who, had a bright idea. They moved a very heavy digger alongside the wall, which of course put pressure on the soil and the wall cracked.
"There was wailing and gnashing of teeth. The wall would have to come down. It wasn't safe!
"The wall is not shown on the photograph very well I'm afraid. Only the top of the wall can be seen, and that is covered in dust and rubble. I did try to get a picture from the bottom of the site which had been cleared, ready for development. The foreman would not allow me to access to obtain a good picture, and advised me in no uncertain terms that 'the 'b***dy thing was coming down anyway!'"
The Cross family was in business in Shrewsbury over two centuries as W.G. Cross & Sons in Mardol.
Mr Cross and his late brother Bill took photographs for the record of every building in Shrewsbury town centre in 1960, and the record was repeated by Mr Cross in 1980 and for the millennium – although he had retired in 1985.
