Sweet factory Glasgow.....

[emjay]

I know it seems odd on the Quaker / Publican thing, but his father and grandfathers also owned breweries and hotels in Leighton Buzzard - and he was the Quaker - not his wife!! Some of the boys went to Sibford Friends School, Sibford Ferris, Banbury, Oxfordshire, Sibford’s custom at that time to take in children of parents who had been disowned by the Society of Friends for marrying outside - told you they were interesting.... Its good when a piece of puzzle falls in.. I have now traced young Roy over to Canada where he marries, and at some point father Frank went into New York on the Muritania ( thank goodness it wasnt the Titanic! )

I shall investigate further I have some credits with ScotlandsPeople (from another branch on my Husband's line from Banff) - you have been a great help. This one has been a sticking block for years nice to fill up a couple of holes in the tree.

cheers
Mary-Jane

[Currie]

Hello Mary-Jane,

I suspect you may have already seen this http://mj.illallangi.com/individual.php ... ees%20Link

Mr. F. H. Reeve is mentioned in the Edinburgh Gazette of 10 February, 1914, as an Employer representative on a Trade Board in connection with the confectionery etc. etc. trades. (near the bottom of RH column) http://www.edinburgh-gazette.co.uk/issu ... /pages/166

According to these sites the Reeves factory appears to have been on the corner of Barrowfield and Stamford Streets, later became the Welma bakery, and is now a car park. http://urbanglasgow.wonko.myfastforum.o ... _1792.html

http://discuss.glasgowguide.co.uk/index ... topic=7789

If the above is correct then you can see the old chocolate factory in the background to this Soldier’s funeral. http://www.rhf.org.uk/Newforum/phpBB2/v ... 4e5a78e1ab

Here’s the corner of Barrowfield and Stamford Streets. http://maps.google.com/maps?t=h&hl=en&i ... 1,,0,15.26

Here’s mention of the factory in the Glasgow Evening Times, 1953.
http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=qQ ... late&hl=en

Looking at odds and ends scattered throughout the London Times, it seems that Reeves Limited, Chocolate Manufacturers, of Glasgow, was a subsidiary company of the British Automatic Company (the name varies over time) and made chocolates etc for use in their vending machines located at Railway Stations and elsewhere. This was the situation from at least 1913. From at least 1934 they were also selling chocolate and confectionary to shops. There was a Mr Reeve on the Automatic board until about the mid 1920s.

Also in the London Times, on Wednesday, July 9, 1958, there’s a statement by the Chairman of Associated Automatic Machine Corporation Limited at the Annual General Meeting, part of which refers to Reeves.

REEVES LIMITED.
In 1955, and again in 1956, I commented upon the serious position or our chocolate manufacturing subsidiary, Reeves Limited. In 1955 there were serious losses, mainly of a non-recurring nature. In 1956 there was a modest profit, but circumstances were still exceptionally difficult. Last year the position again deteriorated. This deterioration was not serious in terms of actual losses incurred, but the general situation has convinced your directors that in the circumstances now existing in this trade, the prudent policy is to cease production and make the best realization possible. Competition in the chocolate and confectionery industry is most severe, and that presented by the larger, fully mechanized firms specializing in the production of pre-packed lines, leaves few opportunities for such undertakings as Reeves, without a very large capital outlay and intensive and costly advertising. Serious fluctuations in raw material prices also constitute an additional hazard for the small firms. Reeves, owning its own freehold factory, has few outside liabilities and is financially sound, and your directors are confident that the capital realized can be put to more profitable use in other departments of the Group.

There’s information about the parent company in “Company Archives: the Survey of the Records of 1000 of the first” etc, Lesley Richmond, Bridget Stockford – 1986. http://www.google.com.au/search?hl=en&t ... =&gs_rfai=

580. BRITISH AUTOMATIC CO. LTD.
25 Nov 1887
25389
7 Hanover Square, London W1R OPS
Automatic machines
History: founded in 1886 by Hore & Frampton who installed wooden automatic machine 'chocolate boxes' on railway stations in and around London with 452 installed in the first 9 months. Incorporated in 1887 as Sweetmeat Automatic Delivery Co Ltd. By 1903 the chairman was George A Touche, founder of the accounting firm of the same name. Moved offices from 52 Southwark Street, London to 14 Appold Street, London around 1904, and also owned chocolate factory of Reeves Ltd in Barrowfield Street, Bridgeton, Glasgow. Name changed to above in 1909 and was taken over by Associated Automatic Machine Corporation Ltd in 1929 which subsequently centred its activities in Appold Street. By late 1920s began to install weighing machines in various sites eg chemists, chain stores etc .............

There’s more information in the book including current owners and records held by the company but I don’t want to tread on copyright. It doesn’t say what records they hold for Reeves. If you want the rest please let me know and I’ll send it via a PM.

Hope that’s useful,
Alan

[SarahND]

Hi Mary-Jane,

Some of the boys went to Sibford Friends School, Sibford Ferris, Banbury, Oxfordshire, Sibford’s custom at that time to take in children of parents who had been disowned by the Society of Friends for marrying outside - told you they were interesting....

My Quaker forebears were always getting disowned and reinstated also Have you had a look at the monthly meeting minutes around the time to find out the reason and read the discussion of it? Makes for some fascinating reading!

(Reeve brewery samples in the mugs)
Sarah

[emjay]

Hi again Sarah.........Love your litte smilies!

My mother ( never being backward in coming forward) blatantly used the Quaker links and history to allow me to have an enrollment as a teen at The Friends School in Hobart Tasmania, Aus., The best school years of my life I hasten to add .... so I am glad she did though at the time I was horrified as teens often are by their parents behaviour - it comes back to get you when you have your own!

You have been very busy on my behalf ! Thank you - again! - Need any Tasmanian or Victorian stste lookups? Have a collection on hand.

I had come across the Automatic Company info slightly before but there was a spelling mistake in Automatic which confused me but now it all falls into place. I wonder if Mr Reeve was off to Cananda to peddle his vending machines? ( I also believe they sold cigarettes s well as chocolates in the machines - the meeting may have had the horrors about that too!).. I shall go a digging to find out more.

My Grandfather ( his brother) was always writing to the paper - the Australian National Archives has a very deep philosphical booklet he wrote on elimiating unemployment as wel as a flight of verse! - By report he was always taking up ventures some of which were not profitable at all! Though he styled himself under "ëmployment "as a gentleman on certificates, he joined at one time the Gospel Hall church and my mother remembers with horror one day he was thwon down the church steps after some disagreement!!

Their brother Charles emigrated - married a Jewish lady ( !! who converted !! ) preached for free at public venues on topics fromt he bible all though Tasmania then embarked to Poonah in India and set up an inland mission there for some time...

The next generation is equally as eclectic, I will be startled not to find Roy or Rennie doing something somewhere.

If you have read or heard of the book Brother's in War by Michael Walsh which I believe was on UK TV?
http://www.thelincolnshireregiment.org/beechey.shtml
Their mother was one of their sisters, Frank gets a fleeting mention in the book too visiting with Chocolate!

And yes clicking on the administrator connection on http://mj.illallangi.com/individual.php ... ees%20Link
will send me an email if you wish to PM to my email address

Still hunting but now back and work - glory that interferes with ones research time doesnt it!!

Mary-Jane

[emjay]

Alan
Wonderful wonderful - thank you so much.. the links will fill my time up beautifully, digging around, as said in other posts aways willing to do do any antipodean lookups too
Mary-Jane

[emjay]

Lesley - Thank you too - people are very welcoming on here ..
Mary-Jane

[SarahND]

My mother ( never being backward in coming forward) blatantly used the Quaker links and history to allow me to have an enrollment as a teen at The Friends School in Hobart Tasmania, Aus., The best school years of my life I hasten to add ....

Hi Mary-Jane. Small world. My sister taught for a year at that school in 1995 on a teacher exchange with her school in Pennsylvania. As I recall, it was a bit of a culture shock in terms of classroom discipline. What in the world were you and your friends up to in class?

Cheers,
Sarah

[emjay]

Ah Sarah - ( sorry all - a little off topic) The 90's past my time - the place went to pack I hear after I had left ( not because I left of course ) - for a while I believe untill they got a new principal..I have left Tasmania now and live up in Queensland on the other side of the country.
While I was there it was very formal, I rememeber almost too strict at times, I was there twenty odd years earlier in the early 1970's. When they tried to stem the flow of flower children! Not that nany one there appeared to be even interested in the cultural revolution. Uniform lengths being measured daily - beautiful singing, meeting weekly at assembly, wonderfully interesting speakers too. Often quite famous ones in tinly little Tasmania - boy that was interesting, I Matriculated there, and majored in Speech and Drma which was a bit of a new idea for the place but became well entrenched since.
Much discussion on the Vietnam war and the attitude to dissention of course.

One could go and talk the head. ( William N Oats) any time for anything and get a fair and often quite deep discussion from him, I was heartbroken when he died not too long after I left,
Mary-Jane

[dizzybint]

my cousin worked in Reeves in Barrowfield, it was at the top of Barrowfield st on Stamford st...he used to get bars of chocolate out a lot but never saw it in shops here strangely enough.... this was in the early 50s.. I remember taking my pram up to it to have the buckled wheel fixed, why in a chocolate factory I dont know. but they fixed it....

[emjay]

Hi Dizzybint - I suspect that the reason they weren't in shops was they were all made for vending machines on railway stations.... Were they nice chocolate?