JOHN T HEWITT – SADDLER AND HARNESS MAKER, CHURCH PLAIN
In the summer of 1918 John began his career as a Saddler and Harness Maker with Durrant and Rushbrooke, a very old established firm in Market Street, North Walsham, as an errand boy. The shop was taken over by Mr Percy Rackstraw and a few years later as a top class grocery and wine merchants.
After he left school he became an apprentice for a four year term, and then another year as an improver. He stayed with the firm another four years to gain experience. All the work of making new Saddlery and the repairs were handsewn.
John started his own business at Church Plain, North Walsham, in August 1927. He found it heavy going for the first few years but he worked hard and long hours especially during the summer months and then he hired three branch shops at Bacton, Tunstead, and Happisburgh. John had a lot of good customers and most of them stayed with him until he retired 36 years later.
John Hewitt in 1920’s, and his shop, now our Heritage Centre. (George Turner standing in doorway)
John married Kathleen Leeder in 1937 and they had no family and lived in Cherry Tree Lane, North Walsham for most of their married life. Kathleen died in 1969 John having nursed and looked after her for several years following her having a stroke.
John Hewitt was well known on the Bowling Greens having played for Norfolk in the Federation game about 20 times and also in the E B A a number of times. He was also one of the founder Members of the North Walsham Private Club on New Road joining 1933.
John Hewitt remarried in 1972 and moved to Parkgate in Cheshire in 1977. He died in June 1998, a month off his 94th Birthday.
STEPHEN W HEWITT – FAMILY BUTCHER, MUNDESLEY ROAD
Stephen William Hewitt, born 1906, started his career as a butcher at the age of nine. He was an errand boy to Bob Elgar Butchers at 39 Market Place, North Walsham. After leaving school he served his apprenticeship there with Mr Philip Gee teaching him the trade. Later Stephen worked as a journeyman, gaining more experience, at the shop of Mr Charlish of Wroxham. He then worked for Mr Proudfoot of Bacton and for Bertie Gunton of North Street, North Walsham. Stephen started his own business on Mundesley Road in 1932. When he opened the shop, his Step-Father, Mr Bob Grimes, who was a carpenter with Cornish and Gaymer, built the shop counter, window slabs, and the main butcher’s block for him.
Stephen Hewitt outside his shop in 1932
In those early days when he started Stephen Hewitt delivered orders with his Norton motorcycle and sidecar, later progressing to a delivery van. He married Rose Howlett in 1939 and together they continued with the business. Rose used to deliver the meat to the surrounding villages of Bacton, Edingthorpe, Gimingham, Happisburgh, Knapton, Mundesley, Paston, Ridlington, Swafield, Trunch, Walcott, Witton, etc., etc. It was a real Family Business with Stephen in the early years slaughtering his own meat from his slaughter house on Vicarage Street having attended livestock markets at Norwich, Reepham, and North Walsham, to buy beasts ‘on the hoof’ ready to slaughter himself when he got them back to the Town.
They managed to keep their shop open during the Second World War and they both served part time with the National Fire Service and Stephen was a Meat Allocation Officer for North Walsham and District. The allocation usually took place on Mondays at the old Egg Depot on Mundesley Road. The meat was delivered to this central point and the local butchers came to claim their allowance.
When the War ended and people began to get their lives back to normal and were able to afford holidays at the seaside, they used to drive round the coast collecting up orders for meat and sausages every evening and then Stephen would go back to his shop and prepare the orders ready for an 8.30 a.m. start by Rosie the next day to deliver these and also to carry on with their normal deliveries. He would not leave his Butchers Shop until 1 a.m. in the morning and he would be back there at 7 a.m. They claimed that this was ‘the icing on the gingerbread’ and there was only a very short time to make the most of the holiday trade as when the schools went back in September, the holiday trade came to an end. The whole business was worked by the two of them plus an errand boy/apprentice.
Deliveries always got through and even in the severe winter of 1947 the van was taken as far as possible and they walked the rest of the way to Mundesley to deliver as you did not let your customers down.
Stephen Hewitt outside his shop in 1962
Both my parents worked incredibly hard to build up a successful business over thirty years until he retired at the age of 56 in 1962. During the 30 years 1932 to 1962 the business was never closed for a single day [apart from Sundays and half day closing on Wednesdays] and he never had a day off through sickness nor took a holiday in all that time.
Stephen died at the age of 61 in January 1968 and Rose died aged 74 in July 1987.
The Butchers shop now demolished stood at the junction of North Street and Mundesley Road.
With thanks to Janet Blake nee Hewitt