Stefan Jarkowski
New Member
HiHello, I wasn’t an apprentice but joined H.W.Ward in 1973 as company photographer, based in Dale Rd, Selly Oak. I used to take all photos of every lathe and components for our manuals and would commute between Selly Oak and Worcester to take the location pictures, then develop the prints and finally re touch them for the manuals. Does anyone remember Harold Hazard? Great boss and manager ( a Dunkirk veteran). Edward Williams was the Chairman and I remember working with Edgar Powell, Gordon Dobson, Henri Thorneloe, Brian Queenborough, Phil Luke and countless others in both factories. Sadly was made redundant in 1981 and had to drastically change career course. Best days of my life, great people, great company and I feel great pride when I see my photos have been seen all over the world.
I am planning on documenting Worcesters’ lost industrial heritage. HW Ward were an important employer there and it is sad to see so much of it disappear. I’m a member of the Changing Face of Worcester (CFOW) which records old Worcester by posting the thousands of archive photos in our procession onto the website and describing them to aid web searches. As a photographer, I was wondering if you managed to keep any record of the HW Ward products, the people and the Worcester location. Old trade catalogues are always worth scanning and posting to the site. Thanks in anticipation…