Businesses in Kingswear between 30’s and 50’s – …..when Kingswear was a busy, vibrant and industrious village !
Reg Little talks here on video of his memories of the shops and range of businesses here in Kingswear 70 – 80 years ago…..
Kingswear Laundry: Employed about 5 men and 45 girls. The men were mainly from the Quant family from Dartmouth. They did all the Admiralty laundry from the Naval college, and from the Naval Barracks in the Plymouth area. Also they did hotel laundry from Dartmouth & the Torbay area, and private houses in the locality.
Kingswear Railway Station: An important operation, the terminus for the Torbay Express to Paddington (the dining car was cleaned and serviced here and filled with gas.) with all the associated carriage storing, cleaning and maintenance was well as a busy goods station. 30+ people worked at Kingswear Station in those days. The station master Mr Bovey was resplendent in his uniform with a rose in his button hole. There were three ticket collectors, a booking clerk and there was a station staff of about 12 men and boys. There were three signal men, two of whom were Mr Job and Mr Selway. There were crane-drivers and shunters on the coal jetty. About 14 carriage cleaners started work at about 4am. The crossing keeper Mr Ashton and his wife lived in a railway house at Britannia Halt and operated the crossing. Mr Penwarden was the chief clerk and Mr Phillips was the goods superintendent, with about 2 Thorneycroft lorries and 2 vans. These collected goods luggage etc when requested. Fish used to travel to Billingsgate daily on the trains. Charlie Peperell was a well known member of the staff. He looked after the embankment jetty and “coaled” The Mew (the old Ferry), and was usually as dirty the material he handled – he spent much of his spare time drinking Cider.
Saw Mills: in the woods opposite the cemetery – owned by Mr Roberts
George Weeks: Engineering and boat engine repairs. He worked in the big tin hut at the end of the creek.
Garage: Couch and Stoneman – petrol was sold, cars repaired, wireless accumulators were recharged.
Garage: Lionel Fairweather owned the central garage.
Tailoress: Miss Lawrence, Summerland Terrace,
Hawkes Stores: (just at the bottom of Wood Lane opposite the Banjo): Groceries, Greengrocers.
Kingswear Dairy: Miss Hudson, from Roselands. The Caseys delivered milk to all parts of Kingswear and up to Noss. Later owned by Murrin, then Giles
Fish and Chip Shop: Next to Dairy (ran by Holmes and Kings)
CO-OP: (where Zane’s used to be: Sold Everything from bread to oil, including a cat sleeping among the bread in the window!
Butchers: ran variously by Messrs Barrow, Butland, Scoble, ending with Maurice Langworthy.
Powleslands: Greengrocers and milk.
Wotton Shoe Repairs
De Lisle Soady: Haberdashery
Sunday Paper Shop: (at the bottom of steps from flats): Sam Northcott to Bill Kelland
Hunt: Cobbler and clothes when ordered
Miss Taylor: The Square, Sweets, Cigarettes.
Stanleicks: Bakery and bread round, and refreshments.
Cooks: (Was Thrussell’s previously) Grocer (where Kingswear Bears now stand)
Heal’s: Cigarettes, sweets, lucky dips and hair cutting.
Post Office: Telephone exchange, stamps, postal orders, pensions etc also Savings Bank.
Bulley: Milk delivered round the village in a horse and cart by Mr Steer.
Blacksmiths: Jack Matthews repaired farm implements and all metal work, made horseshoes and shoed the local horses. Made hoops for children; I still have the last one he made for me. (In the “Old Smithy” opposite theMethodist Chapel)
Sam Hawke: Kept a horse in the stable in Brixham Road, which was used to shunt coal wagons along the jetty. The coal was destined for Newton Abbot power station and Torquay gas works. The horse was kept in Wilful Murder Field when off duty.
Mr Jobe: The railway signalman had a small holding and kept a few cows in Wilful Murder Field.
Ferry (General Estates): Workshops below the Banjo adjacent to the cattle pens. Ran two car-floats (horse ferries), 3 Hauley tugs, two passenger ferries. In about 1936 one morning one of the floats was rammed and sunk by an Admiralty vessel that came down the river. There was no loss of life. .
River Dart Steam Boat Co: Ran 4 paddle steamers and three diesel vessels between Totnes and Kingswear. Also a ferry service from Dittisham to Dartmouth.
Billy Peters: Lived in the Mill House (at the end of the creek) in Kingswear and had it converted to its present form. He ran pleasure boats to and from Torquay, landing at Dittisham pier for cream teas. His boats were the Torbay Belle and the White Lady. Both were taken over by the navy during the war.
Noss Works (Shipyard): Built nearly all the lightships all the way round the British Isles. During the war they built Corvettes, Boom defence vessels and Tugs for the Admiralty. Before the war a boat called “The Research” was being built which was made of totally non magnetic metals, Teak and all non ferrous metals were used. She was a beautiful ship but never finished.
Builder: Jas Tribble, did pile driving house building, quayside walls and the pier at Dittisham, work at steamer quay, Totnes.
Builder: Jack Tribble carried out building work and repairs in the village and did a great deal of work at Coleton Fishacre. Bert Ballard and Bill Todd told me how they walked out there every day. Jack Tribble had a motor bike and sidecar. During the war he worked for the D.C.R.E (Director Core Royal Engineers – responsible for any building work) building gun-sites, pill boxes etc. He then had an Army vehicle. His workshop was in the Old Warehouse where the new flats now stand opposite the Marina Car Park. In the basement was a lime pit used for making mortar. In the workshop above was a large fly wheel with a handle. It was about 4 ft in circumference, driving a circular saw with 2’6″ blade, which was used to cut planks and coffin boards, etc.
Hotels:
The Royal Dart Hotel kept by Mrs Flisher.
The Riversea Hotel kept by Mr King.
The Ship Inn, Mr Ireland.
The Steam Packet, Mr Endicott.
Boarding or Guest Houses:
The Keep and La Scala.
Churches:
St Thomas of Canterbury Church: The Vicar was the Revd F Keyworth there were about 20 in the choir, at least 3 services every Sunday, plus a Sunday School.
Wesleyan Methodist Chapel: Had two services each Sunday plus a Sunday School, and the school room was used for evening meetings in the week.
Yes…..in those days Kingswear WAS a busy, vibrant and industrious village!!
Reg Little
Local Historian
Kingswear Historians 