MANY T&A readers remember Busby’s, Bradford’s landmark department store that once dominated Manningham Lane.

Founded in 1908, Busbys' went on to become one of the best known department stores in Yorkshire, attracting thousands of customers until its closure in the mid-1970s.

But does anyone recall the Busby soldiers?

The nine foot-tall soldiers, decked out in their uniforms and model bearskin hats, used to stand above the canopy of the store. When this picture - sent in by Telegraph & Argus reader Ray Banyard - appeared in the T&A in 1973, there was just a single soldier standing to attention. But at one time there were 12.

Gerald Busby, a non-executive director of the store bought them.

He came across the soldiers in 1962 in the famous London department store Harrods.

“They were scrupulously accurate in every detail,” he said at the time. “And they were just what we wanted. They were for sale at £200 each and I wanted them, but alas I was told they had already been bought by an American who was going to ship them over there.

“But, quite unknown to me, the American deal did not go through. Some months later, I happened to be in the storeroom of a department store in Cardiff and there, believe it or not, were my soldiers. All 12 of them."

“I said to the manager ‘Where in the world did you get these?” and of course the whole story came out. I took them off their hands for £20 and they did yeoman service at the store for years.”

It’s a bit of a puzzle as to why the larger-than-life soldiers were chosen, as the busby hat should not be mistaken for the much taller bearskin, worn most notably by the five regiments of Foot Guards of the Household Division (Grenadier, Coldstream, Scots, Irish and Welsh Guards). The latter is clearly the type worn by the model soldiers.

Although around 1900 the word ‘busby’ was used colloquially to denote the tall bear and racoon skin ‘caps’ worn by foot guards and fusiliers and the feather bonnets of Highland infantry. This usage is now obsolete.

It is not known what happened to the soldiers.

Perhaps a T&A reader can throw light on the matter.

After Busby’s closed, the listed Victorian building became Debenhams department store. This later closed and the iconic building itself was destroyed by fire in August 1979.

Nearly one hundred firemen from all over West Yorkshire attempted to tackle the blaze, but sadly it was too fierce.

As thousands of people gathered, smoke and flames billowed high above the once bustling department store until it was reduced to a twisted pile of smouldering rubble.

For most Bradfordians all that was now left was a heart filled with fond memories of the store that had once occupied the stunning building from the 1930s until 1978.

*Do you know anything about the Busby soldiers, or know where they ended up? Email helen.mead@nqyne.co.uk