TIME-LINE - 1887 - 2017 for SHARP BROS & KNIGHT TIMBER & JOINERY MANUFACTURERS

1887, March, John Thomas Sharp founded Sharp’s Timber & Joinery manufacturers in Russell Street, Burton-on-Trent.

1891, Sharp’s Timber & Joinery manufacturers moved to premises in Shobnall Road B o T, taking H. H. Sharp (brother) and A.D. Knight into partnership and renamed the firm Sharp Bros and Knight (SBK)

1905, Mr. H.H. Sharp retired.

1913, Expanded the Shobnall Road premises.

1920/1921, Mr. Knight retired.

1925, Founded Ess & Kay to manufacturer wooden tennis racket presses, umpire chairs and other wooden sports equipment, on the Shobnal Road site.

1927, 13th Janurary, Sharp Bros & Knight became a Limited Company.

1937/8, Took over A. Sharp & Co, Timber company at Nedham Street, Leicester. (it continued to run as a separate company)

1938, Expanded the Shobnall Road premises again.

1944, March, J T Sharp died, we suspect Sydney Raymond Sharp had taken over from his father J T Sharp before this date.

1947, 26th July, British Door Marketing Co. (BDM) was founded (to take care of the merchandising side of SBK, and supply hardboard, insulating board and doors to the trade)

1953, October, Sharp Bros & Knight became a Public Limited Company.

1955, Sharp Bros. & Knight workers 30 Club was formed.

1960/1, BDM moved into its own premises at Branston (B-on-T) to retail other companies doors & goods.

1960/1, SBK set up door and joinery outlets at Arthur France’s Eastham Timber Co, Bebington nr Birkenhead.

1962/3, SBK took over Thomas Andersons, Strathclyde, Scotland and set up another outlet, Strathclyde Saw Mills, Dumbarton, Scotland..

1968, Friday16th August, S R Sharp sold his SBK holding (not A. Sharp & Co Leicester) to Jim Slater who put the company in the hands of E J Austin of Alteringham, they later became Austin International Ltd., who turned out to be buying builders merchants in the North West and stripping their assets.

1969, Mr M A C Webley, financial director of Austin’s, stepped in at the last minuet and save SBK from being stripped of its assets by changing its company name and making this new company bankrupt on a Friday. Then registered it as Sharp Bros & Knight (1969) Ltd. to open and trade on the Monday.

1970/1, SBK acquired by Elliot’s of Peterborough, who manufacture reusable portable school classrooms and offices units. SBK was left to run independently.

1972, Ess & Kay closed down due to the changes of materials used for their products. A new two story SBK office was built on this site using the Elliot reusable units. SBK post room continued franking mail with the slogan “You be glad you chose wooden windows” from an office now fitted with aluminium windows.

1980/1, SBK taken over by Salcon Industries PLC, the Parent company of Jenk’s and Cartell the spade and fork people.

1982, Wednesday 22nd December, John Carr of Doncaster acquired SBK. Although they retained SBK in the sites name (John Carr SBK Ltd) the works became a branch of the John Carr group, producing some of their lines. At this time, BDM, Eastham Timber and Strathclyde Sawmills were closed, as they traded in John Carr’s competitors goods.

1989/90, John Carr Ltd became the joinery division of the Rugby Cement Co, with Peter Carr at the helm. Soon after, Boulton Paul also became part of the Rugby’s Joinery division under Peter Carr.

1995, The SBK name was dropped from John Carr Burton, works.

1996 ish, Peter Carr retired for health reasons.

1997, A number of the John Carr factories closed, including Burton-on-Trent.

2006, The old SBK factory demolished.(after serving as industrial units since 1997)

2008, B & Q super stores, built on the main part of the old SBK site. Two coincident’s, timber and joinery again being traded on the site. SBK house, lorry and flag colour were orange, the same as B & Q’s house colours.

2008, 27th September. The John Carr SBK Sports & Social Club closed, removing the last SBK reference in Burton-on-Trent, 110 years after the name was established.

m2010, War Maorial Plaques to the SBK workers killed in the 1914 to 1918 and 1939 to 1945 wars, restored on the site where they worked. Bringing the SBK name back on display in Burton upon Trent.

2017, 20 years on from the end of joinery production at SBK Burton-on-Trent, a family celebration.

2021, The SBK website updated.

This Time Line was composed with the help of: The small archives left after the firms many takeovers. Penny Ellis, (the founder's great grand daughter) research and Ron Duckett’s personal diaries.

Aerial Views of the SBK factory site over the years

SBK Day's

During this year the Burton upon Trent Civic Society held what they then called a Civic Week at SBK, the only information we can find about it has come from Nick Ellis the founder’s great grand son archives in New Zealand.

1933

1937

The following invite came to light when Nick Ellis the founder’s great-grandson was sorting his late uncle’s papers, it shows the other side of SRS as it included all his workers and their partners which would have totalled between six and seven hundred people in those days and there are no records of any getting lost.

Thank you to all those who helped add names to the photographs on this site.

??, = the people they cannot recognize.

The photographs below are from SBK catalogues stored in New Zealand.

The Photographs below, are from the catalogues we have here in Burton.

Ron Duckett's days at SBK

SBK Garage 1957 to 1992

The year 1957 is stamped on my memory as the year my first child, a son, was born and the start of my SBK career.

By doing a favour for a customer at my previous employment I obtained inside knowledge that SBK would soon be looking for a new man to take charge of its vehicle garage, which enabled me to apply before the post was advertised. This nearly scuppered my chances, as a letter came back asking me to attend a meeting with SBK’s MD. The meeting started not as an interview for the post, but how I knew about the post becoming vacant. The questioning was not going my way until he asked why all my references were from the Sutton Coldfield area, to which I replied “That’s where I am from and where I was born”. His attitude seemed to change as he then asked whereabouts, as he was born there too. To cut a long story short, it turned out we were both born in the same district and his home had a rear entrance to the road I was born in, him at the posh end me at the other. The interview went all my way from then on and the post was mine, to work solely under him (Sydney Sharp {SRS}) and, when he was away, the works manager (Bill Hale {WEH}) This worked out well until SRS went away, and I found that WEH had it in for me, as he had had someone else lined up for the post.

The original garage I took on was situated between the old main office block, and Ess and Kay's factory, where they manufactured tennis racket presses and other wooden sports-related equipment. This was at the top of the works and had its own outlet onto Wellington Street Extension, which was seldom opened until SRS allowed the odd staff member with a motor vehicle to park there while the majority of others used the long rows of cycle stands.

This large draughty six bay garage had 18' high sliding doors along each side, which allowed for 16' high loads on open flat vehicles or trailers to be roped and completely sheeted before they were allowed to go out. The loads nearly always projected out from the side of the lorry and if the driver caught the centre of these doors it would bow them out of their top and bottom tracks, allowing them to fall gently on a cushion of air to the ground. In those days SBK had a group of supermen they called "The Heavy Gang" who, if the driver had looked kindly on while making the weekly Saturday firewood delivery, would soon replace these 18' by 10' monsters before SRS or WEH knew anything about it.

Two large steam pipes ran the full length of the garage with grilles that let hot air out under the parked lorries, my office radiator was also fed from these pipes. Heat to the pipes was controlled from a valve, situated by the back door to the main offices, which Sydney inspected as he arrived each morning before sending for little Wally Fletcher from the engineers to turn it off to save fuel as the lorries should have all gone by then, only for me to turn it on again. This became quite a ritual, until written orders went out that the top of the tap was to be removed after closing; it was a good job I had a movable spanner to fit the square.

Transport staff in those days were: Fred Brightmore (a real character) in charge of dispatch and drivers, although he did not drive himself, Phil Chambers, who had been the senior lorry driver and was now driving a newfangled Irion sideloader that was to replace the horse and drays on the yard, Ivor Goodhead, another ex-lorry driver, who was now the VW pickup driver. There were only two other drivers on the books; Albert Boam and a lad named Tomlinson. Jack Kilbride and Tony (Smudger) Smith, became drivers on the day I started.

Vehicles. In the small fleet of Bedford lorries there were three 12 foot long flat-bodied vehicles, two with Bedfords own petrol engines, and one with a Perkins P6 diesel engine, three Bedford Scammell artic units all with different engines: one Bedford own petrol, a Perkins P6 diesel and a new unlicensed unit with a Bedford own six cylinder diesel engine. For moving trailers around the yard for loading we had a three-wheeled Scammell Scarab Unit, which SBK called the Cob.

Local town deliveries were done by Fred Archer, the ostler, with a carthorse called Tom pulling one of the two drays, and a carrier-bike. There were also a number of timber bogies on which the horse moved timber around the works. This form of transport went out of favour and was disposed of soon after my first year with the firm, apart from a pair of the bogies, which were stored for years in different locations and finished up at the back of the new stores, built on the old horse field lower down Wellington Road Extension.

The first job that SRS requested me to do was to put the new artic unit up on wooden blocks and sheet it, in the stables at the bottom of the works. This, I found, was normal practice when new vehicles arrived on the firm. At one time we had six new lorries with number plates SBK 1 to 6 jacked up in different parts of the factory, quite a task giving them their weekly inspection and turnover. All very well for the firm’s tax calculations, but a problem when early repairs were needed after they were put on the road. SRS would be saying "it's only been out on the road a few months", and Bob Kenny who owned the local Bedford garage saying "It’s out of warranty." This would go on and on over bills, until the two met to work out a compromise. SRS would then ask "Why didn't you and Grimsley (the buyer) sort this out? “Archie Grimsley was one of a dying breed, he could pick out typist mistakes, telling them how they had misread their shorthand. He would also send letters to firms pointing out that their credit note did not include the cost of his postage, “It's the principle of it”, he'd say.

Directors. The two that I have already quoted would supply enough tales to fill a set of books, so I will attempt to keep it short. SRS, the daddy of them all, was a well-known figure throughout the town, he lived for SBK, not only for the profit it made but for the amusement he derived from his cantankerous actions. These actions enabled him to set a workshop managers back up against another of his manager, so they would not cover up their mistakes when he was not around. As well as getting his own back on anyone who got near scoring over him. The prime object I suppose, was to keep us all on our toes. He did though have very set ideas on life and no one, not even his wife (who confided with me over two of these) could change his mind. This was his attitude towards his son who had come back from higher education, with a total and illegal (in those days) outlook on life. And towards his son-in-law, who we think was being blamed for his step families life stile. His shout could be heard the full length of the main yard, standing at the back door of the top office he could attract the attention of someone going into the yard office at the bottom. (Don't forget that machinery did not have sound proofing on in those days). He was one of the original keep fit fanatics, not only having a drawer full of pills, but only eating fresh fish for his midday meal. Naming the fish he wanted and the shop it was to come from, the task of getting it usually fell to the chauffeur Fred Foreman, the errand-lad, or me. The post of errand-lad was filled by a young apprentice who was doing his spell in the Hardware stores. For our health reasons SRS insisted the works heavy- framed carrier bike was used by whoever had the task. The fish shops he favoured were one in the Market Square and one at the top of Bearwood Hill, this hill made it heavy work to get his Dover Sole or portion of plaice.

Another of his health habits was to abandon his car somewhere between Dovecliffe (his home) and the works and walk in, precisely where depended on how energetic he felt. Then he would summon either Fred Foreman or myself to his office, toss the car keys to us, and insist that we walked to find it, not knowing how far away it had been abandoned. Sometimes we would help each other by getting out with some other transport, but on those occasions, it would be our luck to just find it parked outside Sutton's paper shop.

On one occasion when I had received the command "COME ROUND" and waited for the lights on his door to turn green, he did not throw the keys at me, but just mumbled ”The door on the Bentley won’t shut.” So out I went looking for it, only to find that he had not come in it. So back I went to ask for the keys, only to be told "They are in the buddy car at home". On getting there I discovered that the front passenger’s door had been ripped off and put in the boot. When I reported back that the door would have to be rebuilt he snorted, “It is all Foreman’s fault, I told him to stop”.

On seeing Fred he explained to me: there was a new moon last night so, on the way home from Stratford-on-Avon Theatre, Sydney had asked him to stop at the top of the next hill to see if they could see it. In his rush to get out so he need not see it through glass, he unfastened the door (which opened out from the front) before they got to the top, and the door dug into the grass bank and Fred had to walk back for it. No moon could be seen, just a cold silent drive home.

SRS’ ability to give quick snap answers which defied reproach, was second to none. (I can hear his successor saying, "That’s where Duckett gets it from then.") On one occasion when I was driving SRS out of London in the rush hour, he tried to navigate the route Phil Chambers (an ex- Londoner) always used. After giving a few confident directions, which I could see were getting us nowhere, he yelled "Turn right", which I did, only to find we were back at our starting point. I must have made a comment, as he barked “If you had done what I said we would have been on our way home". Me: “I did turn right." “I wanted you to turn right round, like the taxi in front did". No answer is there!

At times I did fall for Sydney hummers, once when he was on one of his expense-saving moods he stopped buying cleaning rag, among other things. Not having rag was a real problem for the women who glued window frames and for me, working in oil, so the next time he sent for me I went in with dirty hands. “You don’t bring your garage dirt into my office,” he muttered.” Got no option with no rag on the firm,” I replied. He phoned the stores, then the buyer, who confirmed my statement. Then in the next day or so we got our rag. A few months later it dried up again and when he sent for me my dirty hands were back in his office, this time he rang the storeman and told him to bring rag to his office and he arrived with an armful of rag even though he had told me about an hour before there was none. He was told to give me the rag and go, leaving me with an armful of rag and a wait to be dismissed. The fact that it was only the rag I had been called round for told me it had been a setup, so I did not go straight to the stores. When I did, we agreed Syd must have seen the delivery van pass his window then phoned for me.

This reminded me of an incident from my early days with the firm, when I was in SRS office and he was called away to another problem. While waiting for him to return I noticed his portrait hanging askew so pushed it straight, on his return and sitting at his desk he said you have moved my patting, put it back to the mark on the wall. This puzzled me, so the next time I was in his office alone I went to his chair and could see that painting acted as a mirror allowing him to see what was going on in and around the watchmens box.

One time I can remember I came out best, but it did not look that way to start with. This was because, to clear a dispute between SRS and our local Bedford garage, I had bent the rules. Everyone concerned agreed SRS was in the wrong, but that was not going to stop the garage from closing our account. Bob Kenney, the garage owner, called on the off chance to see if we could resolve the issue as no one wanted this to happen. I was under a trailer doing a two-man job replacing shackle pins and bushes in its springs at the time, so we discuss the dispute with me still struggling under the trailer. Wearing my next weeks clean overalls he soon became the second pair of hands I really needed. The job was done in half the time it would have taken me on my own so, while getting cleaned up, I asked would an invoice for the work he had just helped finish clear any of the outstanding invoice? After a phone call to his office he replied, we could just about stretch it to cover the parts purchased, he would then have to reluctantly lose the labour costs. A week or so later I got a “Come round” call only to find SRS going through last month’s invoices with other managers. Being the last one in it gave me a lot of time to get worked up about the Bedford invoice. SRS would select an invoice or job card, then throw it at the person involved so it was hard to catch. By luck I noticed his arm drop to do an under arm spin at me so I easily held it. This, and seeing it was a Ford garage invoice, lifted all my fears. It was only for a kit to recondition a vacuum window-wiper motor costing three shillings and sixpence (less than twenty new pence today.) To, "what this all about, think we are made of money" I explained that both Bedford and Ford fit the same wiper, and that the Ford garage was easier to get to and that a replacement motor would have cost him pounds not shillings. Then before he could answer I added, “What would you have said to Boam (the lorry driver) if he came before you on the bench for not having wipers working?” “I would have buddy fined him, budder off.”

At first I found the task of driving SRS and others around a bind, but then I realised it was the ideal private opportunity to get my ideas across to them. This was how I got the custom of the longest serving driver having each new vehicle when it went on the road changed to each driver in turn having a new lorry until it was replaced. We lost one driver over this, but the overall condition of the fleet was there to prove my point. SRS at times opened up on some of his worries when we were out, but I never knew if this was to see whether I would then spread them. One time I am sure he used our in-car conversation to get his advantage, as he bought up how the costs of outside garage bills have risen. You could get a second man in the garage, I replied. Mr Duckett, (he had never used that title, since my first interview) you have no idea how business is structured, the cost of that and all it involves would go on our overheads, making our products less competitive. Whereas an outside garage bill is an expense, coming off our profits.

As I said at the beginning, SRS’ antics would fill a book, as would those of WEH, the perfect little yes man. He cycled to work, leaving his bike by the back door to the main office, thus allowing anyone with a grudge against him to take it out on his bike. Trouble was, I had to get it mobile for him to go home on. This involved keeping a stock of pumps, lights, three-speed connectors, even brake blocks, and I had a box of bells with no tops. I must admit this did not happen every day, as there were quite a few mornings when I had to go and bring him to work then, with Ivor Goodhead and his pick-up help, go round the pubs that he may have been in the night before until we found the bike and get it back in time for his dinner time ride home. One question that is best left unanswered, how did WEH own a driving licence when he could not drive? He eventually got over this by coming back to the works at night, when the works car was in. Then next morning, he would make a very polite request for Bruce (the head of the heavy gang) and me to go to his office to be told that some timber stacks were unsafe, and that a light on the car did not work, or the bonnet would not stop shut. After a year or so of this he got brave and took a brand-new Morris 1100 for a road run. Next morning he asked me to check it over. On lifting the bonnet I could see the paintwork was peeling off the top of the engine and parts of the metal still looked blue. The engine still ran but I could tell the water thermostat had failed. I got this replaced under warranty, but they did not want anything else to do with the engine. To be on the safe side I kept this as the works car, but as it turned out it performed better than if we bought it with a Cooper conversion.

Bearing in mind that on occasions SRS would put some of his cast-a-side clothes for sale in the watchman's box and sell them for the odd bob or two, makes it easy to understand how the following occurred. One morning I had collected Willy Hale, he asked me to stop and give the watchman his best suit for Ivor to take for cleaning. It had not been there long before Percy Prime the gardener cum handyman called there on his rounds.” What's that?” he asked. “It’s for sale,” replied little Jacky Frost the watchman,” ten bob if you want it.” Percy was soon in Les Collet’s (the maintenance joiner) shop to change into it. On the way back up the yard, he met Haley coming the other way; the air was as blue as the suit.

Two other top office directors at that time were Messrs Phelps and Easthope, who I did not have very much to do with. I only know that the latter could not be seen in the afternoon, as Ma Newbold did a grand job diverting people away from his office until after Mrs Warrington had brought the tea round. Frank Evans was the director in charge of the Drawing and Estimating offices, on the top floor of the bottom office. This was also called the London office even though the firm had an office in London. He was another non- driver that I had on occasions taken out to his appointments. I quite looked forward to these trips as he enjoyed his food and would only stop where he could get a meal to his satisfaction and have the driver join him no matter who was with him. He would order the largest and best steaks with all the trimmings, take two bites then push the plate away saying "That is all my doctor said I should have," look round and comment "but he is not here” and continue eating. The works’ canteen was on the ground floor of this building.

I shall never forget my last trip out with SRS, which was very cloak and dagger. Bill Hale sent for me to say that I would be out tomorrow with Mr Sharp, whose secretary had my instructions, but I was not to tell anyone about them. This all seemed strange to me, why had this come through WEH? My instructions only stated a time, post code and telephone number, which Freda had already worked out was the post code for London office but not their phone number. Next day I got to the London office at the specified time, only to find that were not expecting me but they let me use their phone. To my relief the call was answered by SRS, who wanted to be picked up at the Regents’ Hotel. On getting there I was given a street name to go to, this proved easy to find and then I drove slowly along until told to stop. Sid had disappeared before I had sorted myself out from the traffic I was holding up, leaving me the problem of dodging traffic wardens while waiting for him to reappear. Eventually he did and wanted to go to a solicitor office we had been to on another occasion, and where I took a chance to get something to eat. Time was getting on when he came out to say we should go back to the hotel and collect his case then home to Bournemouth. It was about 8pm when we got there as he did not stop for food, and as he got out said “Get accommodation and go back to Burton tomorrow, where I will see you next week.” Feeling a bit shell shocked and without any overnight gear, I found somewhere to eat and phone my wife to say I was on my way home but would be late getting in. It was also late when I got up next day so I did a job I had been waiting to do, then got to work in time to knock off.

Next week when I picked SRS up from his train at Lymington, the previous week’s trip was not mentioned other than him saying as he got out “Get me your expense slip”. I gave him time to get settled in and be on his own before going with it, as I had not got receipts for all the items. Need not have worried, he just scanned down it, signed it after adding £10 as a thank-you. That was just under half what I was getting per week then. The next Friday, when I took him back to Lymington for his train home, he let out that it would soon be known that he had sold his SBK holding to a group that was building a big North of England Building Supply Merchants and he would be staying on as MD. News soon broke that he had sold the firm to Slater Walker who had then moved us on to a company called Austin of Altrincham. Although SBK seemed to be running as it always did, it was obvious that SRS’s ways were not those of Austin’s. So it was no surprise to find he had been paid out to leave. Could this have been part of Sid’s plans? This resulted in a big shake-up of the rest of the directors including WEH.

It soon also became clear that Austin’s were not doing what they had lead SRS to believe. Yes they did take building supply firms over, but only to strip their assets. Luckily for SBK, at the time we were taken over Austin’s were also spreading their wings abroad and changed their name to Austin International Ltd. and took on a new financial director, Mr M. A. C. Weberly, who lived at Sutton Coldfield. As Burton was closer for him to get to he set himself up with an office in SBK’s boardroom, which he visited most mornings. I was a bit concerned at first as he came to the garage before going to his office, this turned out not to be to see what I was doing but to talk cars as he was a car fanatic. This lead to me having to get his Financial Times paper each day and take it to his office when he arrived to talk cars, often keeping people waiting at his door to see him.

Having McWeberly (as we got to call him) at SBK seemed to have stopped our firm being stripped of assets. He did get me involved with viewing the cars from other firms they were acquiring, with anything up- market going to Sutton Coldfield. Not a job I enjoyed, seeing the ex-owners’ faces when I drove off with their pride and joy. During this time I had more high-powered cars at my disposal than if I had won the pools. This came to an abrupt end, due to Austin’s overseas mining activities. This involved Ken Howerth, Austin’s MD, and an American call Wain Chambers’ attempts to turn slag into gold. Funding this crazy so-called operation involved me going to Altringham with a holdall packed with SBK money. I questioned this with Weberly, who said to do it as we had it covered. This apparently led to Howerth being arrested before flying to America and Weberly taking his place with the Receivers in. This kept him too occupied to think of cars and me, until he called to say he wanted me to take a package to London. This was on a Friday and there were no big cars left on the firm, the best I could find was the sale manager’s Morris Oxford which I prepared and sat in, waiting for the package. It was 1.50pm when he came to say “Get this to St. Johns Wood before they close at 4pm.” This was in 1969 and to get on the new M1 motorway you had to drive to Crick in Northamptonshire and then it only went to Watford. It was raining and those old Oxfords were not built for that type of motoring. I did manage the task with only seconds to spare, as they were waiting to lock up. On the Monday Weberly was at my garage early, he thanked me and said it had enabled SBK to change its name, then made this new name bankrupt and we were opening that day as SBK (1969) Ltd with no ties to Austin’s. He added that he would be in charge, but that the firm was up for sale.

This eventually took SBK into the next stage of its history, although my past history with the firm still followed me. Bill Savage, the next Works manager/director was one of those that had to wait at the door while Weberly talked cars, and Tom Ison, the next MD, was determined I would not get involved with any new owners. This showed when the head of our next owners was showing him the revolutionary new rotary engine in his new car, and he saw me coming up the yard so tried to closed the bonnet before Mr Smyth had got his head out.

At this time I had realised how work was stopping me having a family life, and had already decided to keep out of it all. But old habits are hard to break, when Bill Savage had to ask me for tickets so he and his wife could get in on the enjoyment his managers were having at the PTA dances I was helping to run.

My new found contentment was challenged but not broken after our last takeover when I was asked to store the group chairman’s car with a broken window screen and then take him home in one of our cars after their meeting, as there were no replacement screens in the country. This did not fit in with my new life, so I was soon on the phone to a company who had been pushing for our business. By telling them how many doors this job could open for them, a new screen was here and fitted when he came to say he was ready to be taken home. After an inspection he thanked me and asked if there had been any problems. “Only one,” I reported, “your office would not give me your insurance details.” He was looking puzzled, so I explained that I had made the car on loan to Burton and it was replaced on our insurance. This lead to him offering me a post at Doncaster with a big pay rise, if I would move there. This I turned down, for all the right reasons.

Elliot's Days

The first three views below were taken from the top of English Grains factory when it was being pulled down in the 1980's.

Below, familiar faces at some of the presentations.

John Carr's Days

Transport

The history of SBK Transport from early catalogues, to the owner driver days.

I should have forseen this purchase, as when out with SRS he always admired the Macadam lorries with there MAC number plates and I did get a call from him asking what he called a fictitious question “what would I most like to change, on our lorries?” With this call coming out of the blue, I could only think of removtng the side choc-rails that made us use double skids for fork-truck loading. The four platform lorries that came not only had no choc-rails, but also no loading board behind the cab and they where all short wheel-based tipper chaises with only eight foot long bodies. But they all had, SBK 1 to 6 number plates.

It then fell to me to get prices to have a three foot extensions put in the chaises of the four, their platforms extended with a loading board added. As SRS signed the last invoice for payment he asked in a way that looked as though I wanted this work done, “are you happy with them now?” I should have said, until we get the problems from the alterations, but just “it’s a firm we don’t want to deal with again.” Why not, it was OUR mistake. Treading on ice I replied, would you supply identical windows to a firm in different colours? To explain this, look at SBK 1 & 6 above. We had all been occupied with the other problems, to notice before.

The Bedfords performed reasonably well until we had motorway conditions to endure. This showed that these modified early models were not up to that kind of use. So Phil Chambers and I set about getting SRS to replace them with a more upmarket vehicle. He did eventually ask to see the local Leyland/Albion agent; their price must have sent ripples across his bald head. The agent, to avoid losing the sale, produced details of the cheaper BMC range, which he purchased.

These turned out to be updates of the old petrol engine Austin and Morris wagons, being about as reliable as the ones they were replacing. The situation of the price dictating the type of vehicle we ran continued throughout my time at SBK, apart from the last vehicle that was purchased in Burton for SBK deliveries. This was an Albion Chifton developed from the old Albion lorry designs before they became part of Leyland Motors. Although not designed for motorway work, it was a sturdier workhorse and as we mostly carried light bulk, not heavy loads, it coped and was still in use until the firm closed, albeit only as the yard swap-body shunter.

Another Rag Parade, "Girls of St.Trinians" from Bob Parker's days when he was driving SBK 4.

The following 3 photos are also from Bob Parker.

The first Swop-bodies

The last line up of transport, in SBK colours

How many drivers when given delivery notes for Eastham Timber Company went to East London? instead of Birkenhead!!

1989. SBK delivery transport went owner driver

Keith Staylet, Brian Piper, Steve (Shades) ?, Paul Jones, Steve Bullock, Ivor Goodhead and the owner drivers.

The only other SBK drivers that became owner driver, were Mick Nesling and Andrew Rigby with his ERF.

All but Tom Deville on the pick-up were owner drivers.

The loaders with the trailer shunt lorry, sent down from Doncaster.

TRANSPORT CHANGES OVER THE YEARS

In the early years I only had responsibility for the six SBK delivery vehicles and reps’ cars. This increased as British Door Marketing (BDM), a sideline outlet for SBK products (run by Tom Ison [THI), became a company in its own right. They started with one of our Bedford flat wagons along with Tony Smith as driver, this grew to four, all Bedfords, as BDM developed. At the same time SBK acquired two more outlets for its sales, Eastham Timber at Birkenhead (run by Arthur France) who had one lorry, and Strathclyde Saw Mills who ran two lorries. All these extra vehicles came under me, as it saved having extra people with operating licences, although I only had contact with Eastham and Strathclyde’s lorries when they came in with loads.

These extra outlets also increased my list of reps’ cars to sixteen, which luckily I only got involved with when they were replaced. SRS did use me once, to get one over on the drivers of these cars. Answering a “Come round” call, he informed me that they were having all the salesmen in for a meeting next week, so would I look over their cars and check the mileage of them. Being green I did as told, only then to get the reps that had been adding miles to their weekly work sheets for holiday use, breathing down my ears.

SBK and all the outlets also acquired, when they were needed or to reduce labour cost, little counter balance forklifts. I only maintained the SBK and BDM ones, but regularly got involved when there were problems with the others. As new products began to be produced at SBK, they increased their sideloaders to three, which added to my workload and enabled me to put more work out.

TRAILERS

These were Scamell with automatic coupling and 21 foot long bodies, (nothing compared with today’s standards) but when coupled to a tractor unit had not to exceed 35 feet in those days. As most units then had their engines sticking out the front under a conventional bonnet, a 21-25 feet trailer was about the maximum length.

It was only necessary for these vehicles to have one small cycle size rear light, (compare that with today’s Christmas tree illuminations). The build-up to motorway travel brought about many changes. First the 20 mph maximum speed signs were removed and a second rear light fitted, followed by stoplights and two red reflectors. Then complications set in when we had to fit new- fangled flashing direction lights that worked through the automatic trailer coupling, which relied solely on brass contacts touching between unit and trailer. The wear on the couplings and contacts caused all the lights to flash at times, so what chance did we have with the ones that had to flash? This was followed by the fitting of marker boards, to indicate the type and length of the vehicle and two outside mirrors.

As new regulations came out, it became obvious that trailers with automatic couplings would not meet the new requirements of the MOT tests about to be introduced. So more changes were forced on a reluctant Sydney. After a lot of persuasion he agreed to look at demountable bodies.

These had to be universal, and be moved around for loading with the existing vehicles. I found that the Ableson air system was the best to meet these needs, so I arranged for their sales manager (who lived locally) to bring one over from Birmingham for him to see. The day came, the demonstration vehicle arrived driven by a plump lad in a tattered jumper, that looked as though it had been used to prepare the vehicle. Time passed with no sign of a salesman, so we decided to go ahead with the demo. I went in to get SRS and then found we could not get out of the office door as the driver had demounted the body right up to it to demonstrate its ability. By shouting under the body we got it moved, so he did another demonstration, explaining it in his broad Brummy accent, using all the dears, loves and ducks to address SRS, who grunted something and went back in his office.

After getting the driver away I returned to my office to find the phone ringing, "Come round" was the command. I was thinking what other jobs I could apply for, while waiting at his door to hear him bellow "In". On entering I was greeted with "Can they not do better than six weeks delivery?” We had been a good six months getting to this point, but within four years all SBK artics and flats had been changed to these. They were in use throughout all our takeovers and were even being considered for John Carr’s group use, only a decision that all transport was to be owner/ driver stopped this happening, although one owner/ driver did still use them.

I also had similar problems with the type of cars that were supplied to the salesmen, as a few of them had more swing with SRS than me. So during the time he was at the helm it was mainly a mixed fleet, for which it was not cost- effective for me to keep basic spares. SRS had been semi-retired for quite a few years before he sold the firm and for company reasons made some of his top managers into directors. They were able to order goods/services to a value of £100. This came into question when one discovered I had ordered and got a set of lorry tyres costing £128. To resolve this, I was instructed to get all my orders signed by Bill Hale, the new works director. This proved quite time- consuming until I discovered his IN tray for his internal post in the top office. This worked in my favour at the next sales meeting at Burton, when the top salesman brought me his car for a broken light to be replaced. When he came for his car in the afternoon and was told I had not yet got permission to order the parts, the fat hit the fan. Next day SRS had me in, and with a wry smile gave me permission to order parts within reason if they were urgent.

Staff changed over the years, especially after some of the takeovers, so we did get a more uniform fleet of cars, until the John Carr takeover when the few reps we had left found themselves working out of Doncaster. When news first broke about this takeover there was a lot of talk about the advantages the bigger group would bring. My views were that we would just become a depot for them and, sad to say, that is how it worked out. With only the forklifts and Burton -based cars to look after, I found myself taking on other duties, until I decided that there was still time to bring my retirement forward but not to extend the end.

Outside Stores

My memories of SBK Outside Stores

By Ron Duckett, ex SBK garage.

The following also gives a glimpse into how SRS ran his business, to please and keep his workers without denting his profit margin.

In those days it was common practice for all the building trade to lay workers off for the winter months. This saved on the wage bill but SRS found that some of his best skilled men would then have found employment out of the trade. To combat this he rented outside stores where catalogued joinery could be kept which allowed joinery production to continue on a non- overtime basis for most of the winter. A big-hearted gesture, until you remember that every April the building trade received an across the board wage rise, with joinery prices matching it.

These stores were situated all around the town, and the stock was loaded on trailers and taken there with the three-wheeled Scammell Scarab unit. The loads were usually ready about mid- morning when all the drivers had gone out, so I got roped into taking and collecting trailers. This was another bonus for SRS, as staff men did not get paid overtime. Getting a full-time driver for the cob was soon on my list to ask SRS while driving him out, with me telling him the amount of damage these learner loader drivers were doing to the cob.

Although I had started the process by persuading SRS that he would save money by having a regular driver on the cob, the solution came from an unexpected source. This was while I surveyed the damage that a stack of timber had done when it got in the cob’s way while a loader was trying to drive it. I found that the fuel filter had been snapped off the diesel tank, and as I was looking to see how it could be remounted, I heard a quiet voice say “They used to refit those inside the chassis.” Not seeing who said this, I turned and asked “Who were or are, they?” To cut another long tail short, it turned out it was a new factory labourer who had come from British Rail where he had driven this type of vehicle. After a few gentle pushes, Horace answered my prayers.

The stores ranged from an ex-Salvation Army hall in Brook Street (now even Brook Street is no more.); the old Regent cinema at Derby Turn (since burnt down) where the trailers were left in the narrow alley at the back, much to the annoyance of other users; some outbuildings at our end of Shobnall Street, which was approached down a narrow drive with a sharp bend (manoeuvring the three wheeled cob and trailer round this proved the downfall of many an experienced driver); part of Shobnall Road and Clarence Street Maltings, which could only be used out of season. This was not the only bad thing these stores had in common, as both had to be approached along railway lines. A surface not designed for rubber-tyred vehicles and definitely not for dropping automatic undercarriage trailers onto. If the driver was not thinking, the rails would stop the undercarriage opening, allowing the full load to drop on the back of the cob, shooting it forward like a tiddlywink. It was easy to get the trailer back up if we could have the sideloader, but a devil with jacks.

At Shobnall Road behind the brick maltings we also had storage room for incoming timber and a set of wooden- built stores for joinery, these were available all year.

These buildings eventually became BDM’s first stores, before they moved into the old BRS warehouse on Lichfield Road, Branston. This gave them a lot more space, but loads over 9 feet high had to go through the town to get there.

Clarence Street (the Goat Malting) had another problem, its loading deck was designed for railway wagons but our trailers were two feet lower than these. I suffered the consequence of this when collecting a full trailer after the loaders had gone home. They had estimated the load’s height from the loading deck. Knowing that this 17 foot load of unpainted joinery had to be under cover for the night, I attempted to bring it home. This took until midnight, with me having to climb up and lift low cables on top so they could roll down the load. This could not be done with the overhead street lights; they had to be avoided. When I did get to the yard I discovered it would not go under the first suction pipe that took chippings from the machines to the boiler house that I met, so it had to be sheeted and left there. At least here I could use a forklift to put the sheet on top. Next day I kept a low profile, as some of the cables I had lifted were too tight to roll over the ropes that held the load on and had snapped, including SBK telephone line. and the sheeted load I had left was blocking the directors’ garages.

Building a big new stores on the old horse field (now part of Bovril) solved most of the above problems, but it still meant transporting stock off the firm albeit now only a few yards. Some years and takeovers later, shed 77 at the bottom of the works was converted into a stores and part of the Special shop at the top of the works into a Trade Centre, cutting out any off-works transport.

SBK also acquired two out-of-town businesses from which to sell its products, you can read about these in my Transport Memories.

SBK also acquired two out-of-town businesses from which to sell its products, you can read about these in my Transport Memories.

Sports Club

Two photos above show SBK first sports ground, at the back of English Grain works (over the road from SBK

The following photos were taken on the last evening, before the last SBK sports club in Grange Street closed

Special Joinery

From memory and research into SBK, (especially in Sid Sharp's days) the firm was very well known for its production of one off and small runs of special joinery items as well as being in the forefront of mass production. Although the garage was not directly involved with producing these, we did spend time chasing around the country after unusual components and then help solve delivery problems with the bigger items.
Most of these specials were master pieces, due to the skills of those who designed and made them. One had to admire these items, even if there had been no thoughts on how some of them could be delivered.

Photographs of a few of these came to-light when Jeff Coleman and I got the archives out for a visit from Penny Ellis, Sid Sharp's granddaughter who now lives in Thailand. She is very interested in the firm's history and keen to help preserve its memory through a Web-site.

Anyway back to the specials, For a number of years the special shop worked on the sections and doors for Smith's Insulations "Birdseye cold stores", with some of the doors and frames being twenty feet high in varnished cedar wood. I did get involved with the loading of these, when Phil Chambers was away from work or driving Mrs Sharp about.

Smith's own lorry and driver collected these, requiring to be away by 7-0 A.M. so that he could get to Lowestoft and be back for loading next morning. (No tachographs in those days.) Although not heavy, their length made the load and their old Guy lorry sag at times.
Another problem load was with the big doors we made for Swinfen prison, these were too big to lie flat or stand up on the wagon. So a frame was made to tent one door at a time across the vehicle and a loader travelled with the driver, to help  it get under the telephone and other cables.

Although not problem loads, I well remember the many trips made with big special windows to extend the entertainment buildings at Butlins Skegness and Filey Sites. (These were what we new as Cardder windows?)

Ron S Duckett, SBK garage.

 These old photographs must have been used at early building exhibitions.

 Three photographs below supplied by Peter Gaskin,  show work on Smith's insulation sections, made with sheet of cork bedded in tar and covered with foil in 10 to 20 foot Cedar frames.

Memories from the late Bryan J Woolley

I do remember many special joinery tasks which were undertaken during my service with Sharps & Knight Ltd.

As many ex employees who remember me, may recall, after time served as an apprentice joiner, when we were sent around all the departments to gain experience in our craft, and prior to the standard two years National Service those days. I recall on returning to SBK my time then composed of eleven years setting out in the Special Shop, and some twenty five years as foreman/manager of the Stair Shop, during this time I remember being involved with the setting out of different complexities of joinery work, which was first developed in our drawing office, and followed through by a team of machinists and joiners, all of which were members of the SBK team. These items became a credit to the skills of all, who could turn into production of anything to order, and one should not forget this.

I remember a job at a chemist shop at Henley in Arden,This springs to mind for it's canopy over the doorway with bow bays each side, each were bowed both in height and width, and to be technical had parallel jambs making the lambs tongue moulds different for the correct intersections to be completed, all this in hardwood.I remember setting out a pulpit for a chapel or church over at Macworth near Derby this was made with sycamore splines and a walnut veneer ply on a cylinder frame, it had a floor with a trap door, steps into the pulpit and a mesh grill around it's lower construction I believe there is a picture of this somewhere.

I remember many sliding sash windows for a mansion belonging to Lord Derby over at Liverpool, all of the very best first of selected timber, all sash box pockets were cut by hand.

Most of the joinery for the then Dove school was under taken by SBK, for Page Johnson, with laboratory benches and Joinery benches being supplied there, all with beech and teak tops.

Over the years lots of special stairs were undertaken, and I had the pleasure to work on quite a few with wreath handrails and built around a drum, in those early days

Also remember the construction of the big Belfast Roof Trusses assembled in the Special Shop, to be used in what became later the Door Shop.During Mr Sharps day, a few of us were sent to High Wycombe staying at the Red Lion Hotel, and on to the then Timber Development Association (TDA) all when the prefabrication of roof truss construction was in it's beginnings, those days with bolts and split rings between the joints.There were lots of special bar fitting which were mostly worked on from the original architect drawings not always easy to follow, for some of the access gates when the fronts were towed under could present a challenge to all.  I hope these memories will have any ex members of our team thinking again, for they should all be proud of there skills.

* * * * *

Jeff Bejenke apprentice joiner

Got a good memory for you, which you may find amusing. Bill Hale, the works manager used to walk around the special shop on Saturday mornings with his white poodle dog. One Saturday the dog cocked his leg up on a hard wood door I was working on and relieved its bladder. I was not impressed, but was unable to complain due to my minor status (apprentice) within the company at that time. Despite having prepared the door for varnishing, I had to clean it all off again to remove the 'water damage'.

 * * * * *

Don Laird, SBK driver

I remember taking a dock seat to a new police station and court in Birmingham that was up and running and they were waiting for it I handed it to a policeman. Another was the side of a rowing club/caf'e on the banks of the Thames at Kingston it was the only item on the lorry and it was almost 17ft high I had to drive right down to the riverside and ended only a couple of feet from the waters edge I was relieved when that delivery was over. Yes it was interesting I remember the special joinery shop.

A delivery to forget: It was a Thursday afternoon when I ran in from a night out and Ivor called me over and said I have got a good job for you tomorrow one drop to Wokingham BUT on the way down I want you to take Fred Bates to the Hornbey toy factory in Hackney to do some repair work then when you have unloaded go back and pick him up I am also sending a young lad out of the mass shop to give you a hand to unload (his name was Peter Lloyd). I spent the rest of the day loading up with the cream coloured joinery it was getting on for 15ft by the time we finished, roped and sheeted checked levels and filled up ready for the morning. Up at 5am a hot drink and got to work about 5.30am started log book for 6am waited for Peter to get there ,he arrived after 6 puffing and panting to say he had run all the way from Stapenhill, anyway we set off to pick up Fred from his home and we set off for London ,stopped for breakfast on the way and arrived at the toy factory about 10am . On the way down Fred said that I must not leave him there and I ensured him that what ever happened I would be back for him and he must wait for me, ok he said see you later. Wokingham being near Reading meant that I had to cross London and all its traffic it must have been just after12 when we found the site and the site foreman said we would have to wait till the architect arrived to inspect the joinery when he finally arrived he looked at it and said take it back its not good enough WHAT!! I carn't do that without authority so I rang Ivor and told him, wait there he said I will get the rep out to you , so we waited and waited till he arrived .the upshot was take it back. The time now was about 3pm so we set off to Hackney to pick up Fred I decided that the best way to go (being Friday rush hour) was through the city centre so we did the time was getting on , traffic getting heavy, in on the A4 and found myself going round Piccadilly circus at about 4.30pm with a 15ft load of joinery then stopped in a jam slowly worked my way down New Bond Street to Trafalgar Square the Strand Fleet St Ludgate Hill and Cannon Row and got on the A10 at East Cheap and then on to Hackney got to the Hornbey factory and inquired about Fred and was told that he had gone home on the train I'll kill him I said. So what do I do? a young boy with me no money no food there was only one thing for it I ripped up my log sheet and started again .It was now about 6.30 pm when we started back from Hackney. I had a little money and bought Peter a sandwich, traffic was still bad and took a while to get onto the M1 and head for home it was about 10pm when we got off the M1 at Markfield, we even gave a lift to a lorry driver trying to get home to Woodville Tollgate .I then took Peter home and ran into SBK about 11pm. And 1130pm when I got home exhausted , by the time I went to bed it had been about 18 hrs none stop then I realized I had to be up and back to work for 7am to do about 10 local drops .A day to remember or forget

PS. 2 weeks later the joinery was returned and accepted

* * * * *

Geoffrey Pallett

Memories of driving for SBK

I drove for SBK in 1963 when I came out of the RAF ,First I drove a Bedford rigid and then a long nose Bedford all pictured, They had a VW pick up too and I remember Ivor Goodhead.. In my opinion somewhat a strict company man... They used to call me Doc as I was about to enter the medical profession of which I have just retired from... I took some sort of test on the long nose articulated Bedford and also drove an articulated Van type vehicle...This was hard work and a menace on the road... I remember Mr Goodhead he sent me on a run to Kilburn in Derby with a quarter light that was missing off an order with the VW pick up and I remember it was Friday and I left SBK at 8 AM and deliverd the article and called in the cafe at Burnaston and slept all day...and I was required to deliver another load . I clocked off at 6 PM and no questions asked until I turned up on Monday, I was called to the office and Ivor Goodhead wanted an explanation, He asked did you go to Kilburn in Derby sarcasticly or did you go to Kilburn in London, Quick as a flash I said , I knew I was on the wrong road when I saw a sign saying Kilmarnoch two miles,He went mad at me he used one of these phones that were turned by a handle and he sat in a smoked filled room and sat on a swivel chair something like a piano stool effect with large arms he smoked cigars too... He said pay office ....Blah blah I am sending Pallett down pay him off I have no use for him.... So off I go and when I got there another message was waiting and it was to keep me for another week and not be sacked immediately. I remember driving along that awful A444 and if your load did not move by the time you got to the A5 Redgate you could be assured that one would get to Dunstable, Luton ,Bedford, Sandy ,Cambridge ect without a problem... Anyway Ivor worked me all week Hard with 14 foot loads and I remember on the last day I was given a load of frames to take to Willenhall and to top it all he put two Bay windows on top for Aldridge ,Why I did not tip over I dont know as the A38 was a two way road only... and vehicles used to touch each other... Anyway I dropped the first off ok at Aldridge and then on to a so called building site that was only pegged out and nothing had been built, I was assured that this was the site and I said I am not driving all this load back.I thought this was a vindictive act on the part of Mr Goodhead, I was so mad I Disconnected the trailer and came back donkey to SBK, Picked up my money and cards and left never to go back... The following monday a policeman arrived at my mothers door asking for me and to enquire if I had sold the trailer and goods......I told them exactly what I had done and heard nothing else..... I have thought about this a great deal but my memory fails me, I am 69 and just retired from medical practice and married 43 years ... I hope this story brings back memories for some. We used to pick up at BDM as well on the A38 ,I got a fantastic wage too ?18.00 per week. I had other ambitions otherwise I would have stayed at SBK as it was a family I remember.

War Memorials

In Memory of Those

Employees of

SHARP BROS. & KNIGHT LTD.

Killed in THE GREAT WAR

1914 - 1918

Greater Love Hath No Man Than This.

That A Man Lay Down His Life

For His Friends.

In Commemoration of

Those Employees of

SHARP BROS. & KNIGHT LTD.

Killed in THE WORLD WAR

1939 - 1945

We Will Remember Them.

Our thanks to Steve Hamilton, Ex SBK apprentice 1971-76.

For supplying the details from his own War Grave research, that show when you click on a name listed in blue above.

DEDICATION DAY

Can I on behalf of the names on the plaques, acknowledge and thank:

• B. & Q. for allowing and putting the names back, on the site where they worked.
• Roy Whenman and his Royal British Legion college, for giving them a military home coming.
• Jeff Coleman, for saving the plaques from demolishtion.
• Phil Carpenter (ex Bass maintenance painter), for restoring them.
• Phil Kersey (ex SBK worker), for making the base for the third plaque.
• Ken Nicholson and Kay Duckett, for the photographs to record the day.
• The B. & Q. staff and ex SBK colleges, who helped me (Ron Duckett) to get to and make this Day.

When B & Q agreed to the reinstatement of these plaques on the site where these men worked, we got the Burton Mail to insert an article in the hope of tracing relatives of the names. These are some of the replies, we got back.

* * * * *

Harold Cox, Stretton.

 -  Facts. - Trevor Goode was a member of Burton Sea Cadet Corps during the 1940's (World War 2) Len Clamp who was an apprentice at SBK during that decade knew Trevor who he says was also an apprentice. Len also states that he was aware that Trevor was lost at sea while in the R. N. World War 2 ended in 1945. In October 1946 a small fleet of four British warships left Corfu harbour and headed for the very narrow Medri Channel between Corfu and the Albanian coast. Two of these ships the destroyers Voltage and Saumarez each struck sea mines which resulted in major damage to the bows of each vessel. 36 men died or were reported"Missing presumed killed" many more were injured. Casualty list for one of these vessels, the destroyer Saumarez included a Trevor W Goode, Stoker 2nd class, Official Number P/KX 763125. (We presume he is the "Stkr T. J. Goode" on the SBK second world war plaque) Over a period of several years I have attempted to gain contact with Trevor's relatives without success. Circumstantial evidence strongly suggests that the man missing from H.M.S. Saumarez is the man who worked at SBK. Although we were at peace, he was undoubtedly killed by enemy action Albania being the country responsible. >N.B. This ship was a 'S' Class fleet destroyer named after Admiral Saumarez of the British Navy who was born in Guernsey, hence the French name.

* * * * *

Jack Hodkinson rang to say that GDSM H E Neal Harold) who was killed in the 1939-1945 war, was his best friend and only joined up because he had been called up. Harold had to go to Birmingham where he was not known to enlist, as his work at SBK was classed as a reserved occupation. 

* * * * *

Graham Butler, Burton-on-Trent.

I read with interest your article in The Burton Daily Mail regarding Sharp Bros & Knight (SBK) Ltd. I am writing to forward my late Grandmother's name, Mrs Florence Daisy Butler, who I believe was an employee of SBK during the Second World War period.

I do not know the exact dates of her employment or in what capacity she was employed. Florence Butler resided at 15 York Street, Burton. She had 5 sons, Eric, Charles, George, Ronald (my father) and Victor - all born approx. between the years 1920 and 1930. Florence was killed in December 1944 as she crossed the road in Wellington Street, using the crossing near the Almshouses, on her way home from working at SBK.

I am aware of this as her death made headline news in The Burton Daily Mail at that time, as she was run over by an American Forces lorry. The article gave her details, stated that she was employed at SBK and reported that the American driver of the lorry was drunk, after frequenting one of the pubs along Wellington Street, and ran her over as she used the crossing. I traced this article using the archives at Burton Library. I also tracked her funeral notice and the report on who attended her funeral in editions around that time. Of those who attended the funeral I remember it included names of management representatives from SBK.

Unfortunately, my father and all his brothers have now passed away - none of them making it into retirement age - so I am unable to find out any further information. My father did not speak much about his family, in fact he had joined the army at an early age and was serving abroad at the time of his mothers death. Handed down family reports say; father had heard on the forces radio that there had been a very big explosion near Burton-on-Trent, then some days later he received a telegram informing him his mother had been killed.

It appeared that each of the boys went their separate ways following the death of their mother in 1944 only meeting occasionally for family gatherings such as Weddings or Funerals.

A glimpse into SBK history 2017

20 years from the end of joinery production on the old SBK site in Burton-on-Trent

Nick Ellis the g/g/grandson of the founder of Sharp Bros & Knight, came back from New Zealand to hold a personal celebration at Dove Cliffe  Hotel, Stretton near Burton-on-Tent

This property was the home of

Sidney Raymond Sharp

The founders son, Nick's grandfather, and managing director of Sharp Brothers & Knight Ltd when I joined the firm.

The above portrait of S R Sharp, can still be viewed at Dove Cliff Hotel.

Nick was joined by his older sister Penney, and younger sister Mandy.

Along with a room full of guests, including my wife, daughter and myself.

 Plenty of family reminiscing when on, which lead to me being asked about the SBK website.

I was able to tell them  that Burton Civic Society had allowed me to put the site on their web space. This will insure that the history of the firm will be available for viewing, as long as the Civic Society has a website. .

Shock, horror, a room full and no one with their Pads or Smart phones could successfully access the site.

So it was back to the drawing board when I had the time, which soon showed that website technology had left me behind.

After months led to years of trying to get my head round new website coding, even with the help of a good friend from my family history days I had to admit defeat.

Then out of the blue I came across a young man studying website programming, who would help for the experience.

That is how this 2021 SBK site came about, but don’t ask me how it can be viewed on all platforms from phones to PC’s.

Our thanks, to Jennings.