THIS week, I’ve been chatting to a local lady, whose memories date back to the mid-1930s. Josie Meadows shared some fascinating stories of her early years and was able to shed light on an iconic Worcester landmark.
Josie got in touch after reading the piece on Hardy & Padmore a few weeks ago, as her older brothers had worked there many years ago.
A view along Hylton Road towards The Bear Inn, c1930 (thanks to the Changing Face of Worcester)
She was born in 1932 in rooms opposite The Bear Inn on Hylton Road. One of her earliest memories is of sitting on the bar of the pub, which was run by Fred and Ethel McKenzie regaling the customers with her own rendition of Old Faithful.
She said: “My mother always said I was two years 10 months old, never three! She would walk me down to see my father at that age, as he worked as a self-employed brass founder down by the river.”
Josie’s father Herbert Yeates, brass founder
Josie’s father was Herbert Yeates, a man she told me was well-respected locally. Most exciting for a little girl on those visits however, was the building next door.
Prosser’s Rag and Bone Merchants on South Quay in the 1950s
Prosser’s Rag Merchants, she recalls with great fondness, not for the strange assortment of rags and scrap hanging in every available space, but for their pet monkey which she would wander in to watch with fascination!
Herbert Yeates’ brass founding skills were well recognised, and he was commissioned by Hardy & Padmore to produce the plaque bearing the city crest that can still be seen in the centre of Worcester Bridge.
The plaque on Worcester Bridge today
The initials of Herbert Yeates tucked between the two shields on the plaque
Josie remembers many times seeking out the tiny initials ‘H Y’ tucked just between the two city shields on the plaque, a hidden testament to her father’s work. Herbert sadly died in 1935 in his early 50s.
Dowty’s Photography Studio can be seen here in 1951, next door to the former Midland Bank in Broad Street
Around that time, Josie was taken by her mother to visit the photographer Dowty’s in Broad Street and she recalls what a high step it was to the front door. She wore her father’s pendant for the occasion and two beautiful studio portraits are now displayed on her mantelpiece.
If you have memories of Worcester, we’d love to hear from you! If you’d like to view these photographs or even add your own, some of them are now available at kypworcester.org.uk.
You can now also create your own personal, private life story via the new NHS-hosted Life Stories platform https://life-stories.hacw.nhs.uk/
Worcester Life Stories
Worcester Life Stories is a collaborative project bringing local people together through shared stories of the City of Worcester.
It is co-led by Dr Natasha Lord, Herefordshire and Worcestershire Health and Care NHS Trust and Sheena Payne-Lunn, Worcester City Council and funded thanks to National Lottery players. For further information or to share your stories, visit worcesterlifestories.org.uk, our Facebook page or Twitter @worlifestories.
You can also email worcesterlifestories@gmail.com or call 01905 721133.
And why not visit the We grew up in Worcester page on Facebook?
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