A CENTURY of shopping in Peebles was uncovered at the weekend.

Work on the Eastgate shop frontage of Forsyth's Bakers uncovered signage from one of the premises' previous occupants.

It is thought that WE Hebenton Bootmaker moved into the Eastgate shop before the First World War.

The business moved to larger premises on the High Street, now occupied by Rogerson's Footwear.

Local historian John Swanson told us: "The Hebenton sign was previously uncovered four or five years ago and got people talking then as well.

"It's a great piece of local history. From the maps I have the business wasn't there in 1906."

The daughter of Mr Hebenton the bootmaker, Agnes, celebrated her 100th birthday on September 3, 2014.

In an interview Agnes, who retired to Montrose with her teacher husband Robert Leithead, revealed that she trained as a chiropodist and had a practice within her father’s shop.

After Hebenton bootmaker's moved to the High Street in or around 1938, the Eastgate premises were taken over by Sam Ferguson (grocers).

Forsyth's, who already had a well-established butcher's, expanded into the shop with a bakery business in 1982.

Hebenton's became the town's main shoe shop in the post war years.

As part of the recent 1000 Years of Peebles project, Anne Derrick recalled shopping during the 1950s. She stated: "Hebenton’s shoe shop occupied the large shop still run as a shoe shop by Rogerson’s .

"Inside this shop was an x-ray machine for checking that children’s shoes fitted correctly. I don’t believe these machines are allowed any more, for obvious reasons! Our shoes were, of course, sturdy lacing shoes or traditional sandals with wellingtons for winter – shiny black for the girls, and thick treaded soles for boys."