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Wacaden Dairy Wathes Cattell & Gurden Dairy

P

Paul Walton

master brummie
When I was a kid, in the 1951 to 1956, period living on Birchfield Road just below Six Ways we had milk delivered by a dairy called, now don't quote me on the spelling but it sounded like Wackadon, it was taken over by Midland Counties Dairy sometime around 1955 I think. Years later, probably in the late 1970's I remember coming across a derelict yard off Ashted Row that had wrought iron gates on it with some lettering and a cartoon character milkman, what lettering remained spelt part of the word I summise to be Wackadon. Can anyone throw any light on this and confirm I
am sure I am not losing my marbles
 
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Re: Wackadon ?????????? Dairy

https://www.search.digital-ladywood...direction=2&pointer=1970&text=0&resource=7568

showthread.php
 
Re: Wackadon ?????????? Dairy

'Wathes Cattell and Gurden' are mentioned elsewhere on the Forum. The name was WACADEN. My father worked for them for a while. Will dig out the link later.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk
 
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Re: Wackadon ?????????? Dairy

Here is one of the threads where they are mentioned Paul. If you enter the names 'Wathes Cattell and Gurden' into the search engine you will find others.
 
Re: Wackadon ?????????? Dairy

Paul I am taking the liberty of changing the title to aid future searches.
 
I can remember the Wacaden dairy being demolished in the sixty's, it was on the corner of Nova Scotia St and Grosvenor St. I used to explore a lot of the empty industrial building in Birmingham, its a shame they did not have digital camera in those days.
 
i was talking to someone some time back about wacaden dairys...think they also had a depot in farm street..
 
A chance remark by my wife that, when we met 54 years ago, she was 'thin as a rake' and 'ate like a horse' brought back memories of horses with nose bags and, in particular, the Wacaden Dairy horse pulling a white cart which used to stop in Glyn Road, Quinton, opposite Bent Avenue where it caused less obstruction as milk was dispensed from a churn. There was also bottle delivery in the old style with cardboard tops. It had never occurred to me to think about the name 'Wacaden' before but googling it has brought me a new interest with this forum.
 
I have a remarkable old photo, from the 1930s I think, of five Wathes, Cattell & Gurden Ltd ('Wacaden') ice-cream vendors bicycles parked in a neat row in what looks like a yard belonging to 'Standley Transport'. I would be interested to know if anyone can locate this yard. It has a BP fuel pump and Dunlop and Pirelli? signs. There is a shop opposite the gate.
(The ice-creams cost 2D, 4D and 6D.)
 
Hi
Here is the photo. I apologise for 'protecting' it but it's so sharp and striking that I may wish to use it in a book I'm writing about vintage photography (WW2 era). The book is a private venture.
Any information will be gratefully received.Ice_Cream_Vendors_forum.jpg
 
Hi Lynn
I have Just been going through a book by Michael Douglas in the 1930s and in there is a picture post card of Wacadens
In is in a business card within a block Heading Wacaden
milk
The food which builds healthy
Happy and Robust children
delivered regularly through out Birmingham district by
WATHES, CATTELL ,@GURDEN. LTD
head office
Hollow Way Head Birmingham phone mid. 5060. (4 lines)
A a small picture of a child's face at the side of the card
And under the smiling face it says Wacaden smile


This is the Douglas book for the 1930 best wishes Lynn Alan, Astonian,,,,
 
Hi Astonian
Ah, the photo could have been taken in Hollow Way. I wonder if Standley Transport were also located here.......
Many thanks
Lincoln
 
Hi, came across this forum when searching for Wacaden dairy. We have recently landscaped our garden and have found all manner of oddities in the ground including a world war 2 altimeter from a plane, numerous empty bottles including one from Wacaden dairy. I have included a picture as I have added my own touch. Just wondered if anyone had any more info about the dairy- was there a local depot etc. We are on the Quinton halesowen boarder.
Lynsey
 

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Welcome to the Forum Lynsey, Wacaden had a depot in Frederick Road which is near the junction of Hagley Road West and Wolverhampton Road which would have served your area. As I remember them they had green and white lorries and milk floats
 
Thank you.
From reading the forum Wacaden stopped trading in the mid 50's. So it is likely the bottle has been in the ground for at least 60 years, and now it's on my mantle with 6 other bottles of different varieties. Amazing!
 
Hi guys
I can recall wacadens dairy,s because when I was sixteen years old I got a job as a lorry drivers mate
And it was at a company called the Birmingham bottle exchanged which was situated at the bottom of st Michaels hill Hockley. Come handsworth boundaries I used that term
The company was owned by a solicter firm whom offices are or was based there as well
They had the contracts for all trades of dairies ,and brewers mineral trade supplies
Whom handle bottles
We weren't to all the waccies , the co/op ,midland counties ,hands worth dairies and other
Small time traders along with all the brewers from around the midlands
You name it any part of the country they was contracted to collect thousands of bottles from every trader
All there grates stacked to the heavens on a huge twenty ton lorries they had four great big
Long lorries and they went to every corner of the county each having thousands of bottles
And they was washed out and sorted into there own special crates for where they came from
Whether its a dairy or brewers ,
It was a big business they employed women to sort them out
Once the lorry drove into the yard depot we the driver and mate would unload these crates
Off the lorrys and stack them up along side of the track that was running from out side
Of the building and from out side and through inside there would be women looking and plucking
The odd bottles that was not of the said company coming through before going to the wash out
When they was cleanse and sorted and put into there correct crates for the dairy and like wise
Thousands of mix beer bottles had to be sorted out they was the most mixed up ones
Brewers from all the globe was found and grated
It was my uncle billy smart, and his brother Joe was the yard foreman and billy was the yard charge hand
They knew the owner very well for years apparently and it was those guys whom got me my first job
In the winter it was a terrible job high up on there lorrys especially when we had the frost and snow
On the road and the grounds it was then you felt it because the crates have stacked up in the depot
Of all traders yard and covered in ice those metal milk crates was the worst
As I said I have been to all waccys depot and brewers of Wolverhampton
By my worst hate was going to the co/op at Vauxhall it was horendus for crates to be picked up
It was hundreds of them waccys was not to bad nor the brewers
On the subject of waccys, which no/one mentioued was that there was one on pershore road up until
1961 and then they moved out shortly after that year the postion would have been the bottom end
Of the police training grounds and just short of what was a chiefs of police semi that was there one time
We had a huge lorry big and wide and there front gates on pershore road was slim we got in okay
But being a narrow road then it was arkward
The Tally ho was not built then nor was there social club, and every year the licences Christmas
Party was held there and they had collections buckets going around to collect for certain charities
And believe me they give very generous including the brewers MB. I know because years later
In my life I was part of the brewers team and my old Dutch ESS included
Sorry for waffling on but its to easy thast waccies depot was on the site before the old bill ,police
Best wishes Alan,, Astonian,,
 
My grandad worked as a delivery boy for his uncles William Cain and Abel Jones who eventually sold their business to Wacaden ... they were based in Farm Street near the corner with Bridge Street West. They used to deliver by horse and cart and so had a livery stables on Farm Street. My grandad was born in 1910 so he was working for them in the 1920s but both were listed as dairymen or milk dealers on their marriage certificates in 1898 and 1908.
 
hi rob welcome to the forum...how interesting...if you have any photos to share would love to see them

all the best

lyn
 
When we lived in Knowle Road in the 1940s, which milk brand you used was rather like which football team you supported - Blues or Villa, Wacaden, Co-Op, or Midland Counties! My mother wouldn't buy pasteurised as she thought it watery and didn't colour your cup of tea, so we always had steralised. Midland Counties did a nice steralised, and the Co-Op (divi number 70718) was passable, but the Wacaden steralised tasted foul. I always thought it tasted like you were chewing an old rubber mackintosh! Of course, once we had a divi number, we always had it delivered by the Co-Op, and the only time we would buy from the opposition was if we'd run out and their delivery man was in the road before the Co-Op arrived.

As to the ice cream, I never saw any by Wacaden, and loved that by Midland Counties. And you couldn't beat Mason's Jaffarade, but we always had our six bottle of Corona delivered! Both of those were part of life's essentials, even if you were poor.

Maurice
 
Hi Maurice
on that subject of steralised milk , we was brought up on it for drinking it from the bottle and for a good old cuppa
All my life of growing up we never had the pasure ,it was only when i came into the Irish communitity
that i came onto the pass; because it was my wifes family that got me hooked on the pass as that was what they was brought
Upon in Ireland and never used the stera so now in our house hold its pass all the way
but i will say we found the stera is the one for colouring your tea, and on that subject of tea
And coming from a catureing famiy of jelfs tea and coffee houses , i am a natural tea earn belly
I love my tea and i will drink as many pots of it ,you can put in front of me
And on that subject and at this time of the evening i will pop on the kettle for a brew ,
and incidently my mothers co/op number was 2360
best wishes my dear friend Alan,, Astonian,,,,,
 
Sterilized milk was dreadful, as far as we were concerned. It was an insult for it to be called milk it was said.
I did see 'stera' as some called it but I have never seen it in Devon. I believe some holiday centre shops stocked it occasionally for the holiday makers who were used to it and found real milk strange. :D
 
Hi Alan,
when we was on the road for Dyno rod of palmaston road spark hill we used to spend alot of time in different cafes
up and down the midland and pull into the little cafes and the old transport cafes for lorry drivers
long before the councils came on the scenes for closing down alot of road side cafes for lorry drivers and before the motorways
and down passing the old brick works the making of bricks there just before them there was very thriving last stop
lorry drivers cafe before hitting the old folehill road before coventry was befor being reformed
and he was not alone in operating his business ,
But what i an leading up to here is the difference between stera , and passureise
the owners of fransport cafes would asked you when orderin a cuppa or mug of tea , what is your
preference he would asked . stera or pass , and my answer like most drivers was stera , because it does had colour to your teas
and less on quanty of milk is added to the cup but where as upomn pass it takes extra milk to colour your tea
Its water down and thin in texure and its very weak and taste less best wishes Astonian,,, Alan,,,
 
We also had the option of James Holt's dairy on Rodway St. Our mom would get it some time if we ran out of our co-op milk. I hated Holt's milk as it sometimes had skin on it that would float around in your tea, AND it tasted "funny". I would not drink anything that had something floating around, including tea leaves.

Dave A
 
Ha ha, Dave, you and me both! Hot milk with skin on it - REVOLTING. I found out nearly 30 years ago that I was allergic to milk - it was guaranteed to give me migraines. After a few spells in hospital I reverted to putting fruit juice on my cereals and now I can't stand milk in anything, so the stera -v- past argument doesn't arise. No milk - which ruins good coffee anyway - and no migraines!

Maurice
 
HI Dave
On the subject of floating around in your cuppa or tea what ever , i am very caution when it comes to my tea,
but being you have mentionioned holts milk and the skins floating in your milk
firstly do you recall the Automatic milk machine they introduce in birmingham and its first introduction of carton milk
well this as pronted me to reply to your thread on the subject of floaters in milk and the pasurised as well
because many years ago i got myself a job at Handsworth dairies in island road inside
I had previuosly prior worked for midland countys daires round man
So i got the job inside and around there dairies and of course by then the carton of milk became popular
with people
So Handsworth dairies bought some new Austrian milk macines for cartoning the milk
Ther machines was clean and it stoof for the likes of sounding in a hugh square troth all around the machine
and the operators stood out side of it , but was happening the machines was breaking down regular as clock work
And the cartond would get jammed and broken down there for they would break down the machine and openen it
and release gallons of milk out onto the trough on the floor along with damage crunch up cartons
It took ages to release but these operators had wellingtons on walking around the machine uop and down to fetch some one
to get it up and running but whilst all this is going on they was tramping around in those troughs in wellie
up starts the machine and sucks it all back in and carton and carry on and then all there bathes are dated six or more
In advace i high cold storage that put me off milk for awhile so thats why i will never buy a carton of milk ever
best wishes Astonian,,,
 
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