John Bedford & Sons Ltd, Mowbray St. Neepsend

[neil memmott 10]

Hey Gritman,

You have just brought back two names i.e. Jim Hamilton and Ernest Dawson and your right on both counts. As I was in sales the Tool Room was'nt an everyday visit for me but the characters around the place made it that everyone seemed to know everyone else. Ernest Dawson as you say was in training and employment and generally worked out of an office up the road, what did they call that place? it was where the Bright Bar Dept., was located, just tucked in after Slack Sellars and before Wigfalls service Dept. (Eh, were goin back a pace ere lad).

Do you remember Mester Baggley, had is office in the yard opposite the time house, big fella, so much so he leaned forward and the little one armed guy in the timehouse who sold fags and things, I can't remember his name at the moment but he was pretty sharp no matter his impediment.

 

Nice to speak to you again and look forward to the next time.

 

regards

 

neil memmott

[neil memmott 10]

Marion C,

 

How are you dear? Can Pete fill in a couple of gaps office staff wise i.e. There was Pete, Gier Keys the Norwegian (what was the name of that sandwhich shop in Harvest Lane - it was the other side of the Shell petrol station bang in the middle of a row of houses) but I remember Gier used to love potted meat breadcakes from there with would you believe Piccalli, how Norwegian than that can you get. Anyway, I digress, me making up the male side of things but what about the female side of the office, we had Lynn Heppenstall ace typist, Ann with a big mouth who would rather talk than work, she got married and eventually left to go into the licence trade with hubby, then there was Elizabeth from Hillsboro who was OK but there was a fourth member who I can't pinpoint, who was the 8th member? Any clues?

Were you there when Astrid Koskins the Lithuanian or Latvian had a spell with us, she used to bring jars of that pickled herring into the place, stick a fork into it and ate it till it was gone, we had some funny people in that office and there's still a question mark over thee me old love:-).

 

Hasten slowly

 

N

[MarionC 10]

Hi Neil

Peter can't remember the name of the sandwich shop, but he does remember the guy in the weighbridgewho had one arm.

Jean Langford, my sister Kate who did a short spell with you. Me, I only ever wondered in to wait for P occasionally )

M

[neil memmott 10]

Hi Marion,

 

Jean Langford of course, how could I forget Jean. I don't remember your sister though, probably after I left. My then sister in law had a short spell with us. She was useless so I sacked her. That went down like a lead balloon with the in laws. The weighbridge man was called Birkinshaw and it was George Baggley with his office opposite. I woke up about four this morning thinking about this lot.

There's so many names I remember which says something about the people we worked alongside, J Arnold Wade was one. We used to call him "The Jaw" after his initials either that or "The Manor Park Lip" after where he lived at that time and his harrassed assistant Ernest Oldfield aka "Longdrop" he was a tall un' was Ernest.

Another character was Ron Toseland with his red and gold trucks, he had some nice equipment (so to speak) had Ron.

 

N

[jamtart27 10]

any one know geoff nuttall

[Grit Man 10]

any one know geoff nuttall

 

The name does ring a bell but can,t remember which dept he worked in.

[Gerry 10]

Does anyone remember a girl called Wendy who worked for John Bedford & Sons around 1950.

[neil memmott 10]

Like Grit Man, the name is familiar but I can't put my finger on him yet.

[neil memmott 10]

Before my tome, sorry Gerry.

[neil memmott 10]

or would you believe "time"

[KJ_VENOM 10]

My dad used to work as a furnaceman at john bedfords right upto the time it was taken over by padley and venebles. I was very young but can remember going to his works with my mum. His name was Harold Russ

[neil memmott 10]

KJ, How you doin'?

 

I did'nt know your dad personally because if he was a furnaceman I think he must have worked in the rolling mill at Effingham Road/corner of Bernard Road. Wonderful mill that, it ended up being one of the only mills in the world to roll hollow mining drill steel. Padley & Venables were competitors of Bedfords and used to buy their Hollow Mining Steel from Sweden rather than us (Bedfords) but when deliveries from Sweden started to slow up P & V where finding it hard to keep delivery promises, so they placed orders on Bedfords but Bedfords were so busy in the Drill Bit Dept. (Arnold Wades Dept) and in BRDC (Bedford Rock Drill Components) that our rolling mill supplied our own requirements before anybody else. This frustrated P & V to the extent that their parent company "Tarmac" yes the mighty "Tarmac" put in a takeover bid for Bedfords and Tarmac eventually won and raped the company dry selling off the handtool division to Spear & Jackson who themselves were bought out I believe by the Neill group who were bought out out by some American Firm and here you see the demise of the greatest tool making city in the world. Shame but good to see 'Footprint Tools' still alive and well I hope.

Sorry KJ I've digressed too far, hopefully if someone has read this and knew your dad, they will be in touch, I hope so.

regards

neil memmott