Butcher’s delivery

This is a still from a promotional film shot and edited by Peter Francis during the inter war years.

The film shows the full process – and we really mean full – of getting meat from farm to door. Much of it is far too graphic for present day sensibilities. We have a full copy at the museum, but certainly wouldn’t show it.

At this time the company was called Doubleday’s to become Doubleday and Francis. They occupied the butcher’s shop still operating as such – where the Douses now sell their top quality products.

Back in those days – some 80 or so years ago, Messrs Doubleday and Francis operated a pair of vans for meat delivery. It quite amuses many of us that supermarkets invented delivery a few years ago. It used to be the norm – certainly into the 1960s. Our curator tells us he had a holiday job when he was a student, which involved driving a van and selling meat. That was for quite a different butcher elsewhere in the country but just shows it was the norm. Here, from the film, is one of the Market Lavington vans.

Butcher’s van in the snow in the 1930s

The weather was clearly bad with snow on the ground, but still the butcher got through, delivering his meat.

The photo quality is understandably poor. We do not know what it was originally shot on – probably the little 8mm film. It has been copied onto VHS video tape and then copied to a digital format. But it does give an idea of those 1930s days.

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Jim Sheppard again

Today we’ll complete the recently given sequence of photos of Jim Sheppard. Jim, as we know, was the ‘Tip Top’ baker in Easterton. We have seen him with a colleague, using a motorbike and sidecar and we have seen him with his first van.

A second van was needed and Jim purchased a similar three wheeler, this time a late 1930s version. But we don’t see Jim at work here. We see him on a little jaunt.

Jim Sheppard, Tip Top baker of Easterton relaxes in front of his delivery van

There’s Jim, relaxing on a deck chair with the van behind.

Close up on Jim

He has driven this van up Salisbury Plain, to the top of Easterton Hill. We can see that Jim is a bit older here, but he still retains his jaunty, cheerful look.

He came up the hill with his daughter. She is standing behind a low arm chair they obviously brought up the hill. The family dog appears to have occupied that one.

Jim’s daughter and dog

 What a charming photograph – it looks like a very happy family life.

We would like to thank descendants of Jim for making these photos available to us. They show a way of life that has vanished and yet it was probably very typical of the 1930s rural scene.

The baker’s delivery van

We are continuing our look at Mr Shepppard who ran the Tip Top bakery in Easterton today.

Yesterday we saw his motorcycle combination delivery system. Today we see his first delivery van.

Tip Top Bakery van in Easterton – early 1930s

What a stunning picture this is. Jim Sheppard is driving the van.

Jim Sheppard owned the business and the van

This looks very much like a motortrike. It appears to have handlebar steering. But having a small van body it had space for advertising.

The side of the van names the business

This vehicle was the forerunner of the Reliant Robin – made famous as Del Boy’s transport in the TV sitcom, ‘Only Fools and Horses’. It dates from the very early 1930s and was actually produced by Raleigh.

Now we’ll turn our attention to the other person in the picture.

Ralph Maule was a neighbour on High Street, Easterton

This lad is Ralph Maule. He was a neighbour who later became Jim’s apprentice. We think he was born around 1918 although we find no record for a birth. He appears on the 1939 electoral roll for Easterton, living on High Street, Easterton with Alice who we guess was his mother. Ralph may have had two wives. He first married in 1942 and then he married Monica Burgess, in 1981.

Does anybody know any more about him?

The Market Place in the early 1960s

During the 1950s the Market Place in Market Lavington fell into a rather derelict state. The agricultural engineer’s yard was always a rather ramshackle affair and the fire station and associated buildings were in very poor repair. The time had come for action.

The old buildings, including the former St James’ Square, which stood behind the old fire station, were demolished. The engineer’s works were swept away and new premises were created for them. In their place bungalows and other housing was built on a new little road which was called Market Place’. The square became a rather random car park, which was hardly a problem when this photo was taken.

Market Place, Market Lavington in the early 1960s - a Peter Francis photograph at Market Lavington Museum

The bungalows, which face the front of the parked lorry, stand where Wordley’s had their engineering works. In its turn this had been Mr Sayer’s bus depot before that and even earlier a large house – the Doctor’s House – had stood on that site. The fire station had been roughly where the other new houses and bungalows stand.

The vehicles of fifty years ago are very different from those we see today.

Cars and a van in the Market Place

The Bedford van is one of the earlier ones with a split windscreen. Anyone who drove one of these will remember they had but three forward gears and the gear stick was mounted on the steering column. It would have had no seat belts and the sliding doors could be held wide open. With safety like that it’s no wonder that road deaths were at a peak at that time.

Next is what looks like a post war Austin, built in the late 1940s to, essentially, a pre-war design.

The back car is also an Austin – an ultra modern A40.

1960s lorry in Market Lavington Market Place

There’s not much detail on the lorry. Any ideas?