Businesses

Christmas Eve at the Front

An interesting letter has just been received by Mrs Packer, of Broadclyst, from her husband, Corpl Packer of A Company, 1st Battalion Devonshire Regiment, who is serving with the Expeditionary Force in Northern France. In the course of a letter he describes a remarkable incident which occurred on Christmas Eve between the British and German trenches.

Business in the High Street likely to cease

If Bideford Town Council persist with the intention that when the new traffic control plan operates vehicles must travel one-way up High Street, deliveries of certain goods to two shops are likely to cease. This was made clear by Messrs Merdiths and Wickham and Co.

At their invitation, the Mayor, Mr A A Beer, watched unloading operations and agreed that difficulties would be great.

The Mayor had seen the unloading, with the lorry facing down hill, of six cwt. casks of beer. They were eased down skids and swung at the bottom so that they could be pushed into the entrance.

The driver of the lorry refused to attempt the operation facing uphill commenting “We do not want to commit suicide”. He pointed out that with the lorry facing uphill the gradient the barrels would have to travel would be more than one in four, and the danger of barrels running away downhill would be great.

Suppliers of bottled gas have told Messrs Merediths that they will not unload large cylinders outside the shop. Their lorries are fitted with hydraulic tailboards, which they point out would make the operation on a steep slope extremely dangerous. When it was attempted recently three cylinders of gas ran away.

The suppliers of gas have said that they will unload near the market, but Messrs Meredith say that to truck the cylinders from there would be impracticable.

The full Gazette article is dated 21 July 1961

Giving Him The Tools Of Happy Retirement

25 years as manager of Bideford Woolworths

Mr Wilfred Ricketts, manager of the Bideford branch of F W Woolworth Ltd, since the branch opened in 1937, retired on Friday and is now looking forward to devoting much of his time to his favourite hobby of gardening.

He and his wife are continuing to live in Bideford; their home is ‘Wycherley’, Rectory Park.

At the branch’s annual party at the Royal Hotel, a surprise presentation greeted Mr Ricketts. He was the recipient of a set of stainless steel garden tools on behalf of the branch, the presentation being made by the staff supervisor, Mrs Hettie Cook.

Mr and Mrs Ricketts have a daughter who is married and lives in Rochester, Kent.

Succeeding Mr Ricketts as manager of the branch is Mr A V Gretton, who has come to Bideford from Woodford, Essex.