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Wimbush Factory Little Green Lane.

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Hi./
Any one out there with knowledge of A,D.Wimbush and Son. Small Heath.Would you believe nothing in the Ref. Library.
Regards Ken.
 
Ken welcome to the site, If you put Wimbush's in the search box at the top of the page. A number of posts and threads will come up, some with photo's of the place. I worked there for about three years in the mid 1960's.

Pom
 
This doesn't give much information but - I also worked there in the 60's and may even have met Pom; wow. It was only for two weeks, however. I was a student on a holiday job. Work included packing cakes and slicing the continuous belt of swiss roll cake as it came from the oven, then stacking it on a trolley to be sent up stairs to be spread and rolled. I had recently stopped smoking but was still forced to take the regular smoking breaks. There wasn't much dough in the job!
 
AHH yes. as a kid I used to pass this place on my way to my Grans house. The wonderful smell of the place always made me feel hungry.:D
 
My nan worked at Wimbush's in the early 1970's. Her name was Pat Roberts and she was Welsh. She would bring cakes home for us on a Friday night. Meringues with cream in, heaven!
 
I've been trying for a long time now to find info about Wimbushes for my Small Heath Website but There doesn't seem to be anything at all about them on the internet and I also drew a blank in the local history dept. at Central Library. If I do come across anything I'll pass it on.

Jerry
 
jerry said:
I've been trying for a long time now to find info about Wimbushes for my Small Heath Website but There doesn't seem to be anything at all about them on the internet and I also drew a blank in the local history dept. at Central Library. If I do come across anything I'll pass it on.

Jerry
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Hi Jerry. Do you have a link to the Small Heath Website?
 
Hi There
I lived at 5 back of 71 little green lane almost opposite Wimbushes i can remember it was a regular accurance we used to scale the gates of a night time and raid the bins with the reject cakes etc,used to play on the bombed building opposite the cricketers arms where my old man used to drink would stand outside the bar opening the door for people to go in and they would give me a penny a time,great days lived like paupers and thoroughly enjoyed it have many memories of the place can you remember old ma turner from the corner shop in little green lane kept cats and they would be all over the place the shop had a wooden floor that used to creek got caught out the first time tried to go in and pinch a few sweets lol,gotta stop now getting to nostalgic but good days
 
I all, I am new here but I recently came across something relate to the A.D. Wimbush & Son LTD company and I am wondering if anyone could help to find out more.
A friend of mine living in New York managed to get an old wrist watch with an interesting personalised phrase printed on the case. the phrase states that the watch is gift from the directors of the A.D. Wimbush & Son LTD to such "Mr F.G. Carter" who worked for 25 years with the company. there is a date as well: 1st April 1953. The watch is a "Roamer 17 Jewels". does anyone have any information about who Mr. Carter is?
 
More information here about A.D. Wimbush.

Wimbush Bakery

I notice from the swimmiong thread that you worked at Wimbushs Pom, do you remember any of the staff there, like your Union Rep and perhaps one of the mangers (female) that used to operate from there!!! In the 70's when I first started work one of my best friends used to live by Wimbushs, we...
birminghamhistory.co.uk birminghamhistory.co.uk
 
Those interested in Birmingham history may like the publication recently out, available on Amazon, 'When I Was Young' by Norman Wimbush. Norman wrote it in the 1940s but it describes his childhood in Birmingham from birth in 1880 until about 1905. His parents ran a small café in central Birmingham and his (Hill) grandparents a bakery in the Horse Fair. He went to school at Five Ways school. All these are described. I have noticed some people have asked on this forum about the company A.D.Wimbush - of course this company dates from later but Ambrose Wimbush who founded it was Norman's young uncle and there are descriptions of Ambrose as a late teenager in the book making his first steps.
 
Welcome Mark. Thanks for the interesting information. Sounds like a good book.

A bit more history about Wimbush. This summary was issued in May 1933. It was a truly ‘local’ business at the time with it’s 54 shops no more than 20 miles from Birmingham. Don’t remember them having cafes. Maybe they didn’t by the 1950s. Viv.
 

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My Nan used to drink in the cricketers most nights,everywhere was very quiet except a hum coming from the Wimbush ,the smell was delicious to a hungry child.My daughter used to work at Wimbush in Sheldon(1989),she worked in the cafe for several years .my granddaughter was about 3years old and is now 33. I do not remember when it closed.When I was young we used to go to the bakery at the Swan on a Sunday afternoon and get a warm loaf for Sunday tea from Hardings. Wonderful smells.
My Nan used to clean the shop windows in all the shops on the Cov road from wimbush to the Greenway pub.
My Mom used to clean the gentlemens outfitters next to the pork butchers (bowaters).she also did the shop and the private home of Johnsons the jewellers.The slaughter house for the pork shop was behind the shops by wimbush and behind the gents outfitters ,the pigs screaming was so very sad. I used to see the lorries coming up the Cov and go into the slaughterhouse ,I cried every time i saw and heard them.
 
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carpenta said:
I all, I am new here but I recently came across something relate to the A.D. Wimbush & Son LTD company and I am wondering if anyone could help to find out more.
A friend of mine living in New York managed to get an old wrist watch with an interesting personalised phrase printed on the case. the phrase states that the watch is gift from the directors of the A.D. Wimbush & Son LTD to such "Mr F.G. Carter" who worked for 25 years with the company. there is a date as well: 1st April 1953. The watch is a "Roamer 17 Jewels". does anyone have any information about who Mr. Carter is?
Click to expand...
In reply to your request for information on Mr F.G.Carter.I think you will find that it would be aneGeorge Carter who was a Transport supervisor on transport when I joined the company in 1962. I think this has to be the man as I can recall him telling us the story of seeing the steel R S Js for the bakery being delivered by horse drawn carts.I think he lived in a house on one of the Avenue’s down Green l
 
Billy Wimbush said:
In reply to your request for information on Mr F.G.Carter.I think you will find that it would be aneGeorge Carter who was a Transport supervisor on transport when I joined the company in 1962. I think this has to be the man as I can recall him telling us the story of seeing the steel R S Js for the bakery being delivered by horse drawn carts.I think he lived in a house on one of the Avenue’s down Green l
Click to expand...

Errr.......The watch in question was given following 25 years service and retirement in 1953.
 
More likely, from the 1939 Register, Frederick G Carter, b. 21 Jan 1914, living at 115 Fourth Avenue - Transport & Admin (Bread & Con).

I may be wrong about the watch being presented on retirement. Just 25 years service.
 
Ken_R said:
Errr.......The watch in question was given following 25 years service and retirement in 1953.
Click to expand...
I have read the reply Ken,it does not state retirement it was given after 25 years service.This was if I can recall correctly were given to all employees reaching 25 years service. I just failed to reach my 25 years being made redundant in 1984
 
Ken_R said:
More likely, from the 1939 Register, Frederick G Carter, b. 21 Jan 1914, living at 115 Fourth Avenue - Transport & Admin (Bread & Con).

I may be wrong about the watch being presented on retirement. Just 25 years service.
Click to expand...
Ken,
Watches were presented for 25 years "Faithful Service".
My dad received his gold watch on 17th October, 1953.
Boomy
 
carpenta said:
I all, I am new here but I recently came across something relate to the A.D. Wimbush & Son LTD company and I am wondering if anyone could help to find out more.
A friend of mine living in New York managed to get an old wrist watch with an interesting personalised phrase printed on the case. the phrase states that the watch is gift from the directors of the A.D. Wimbush & Son LTD to such "Mr F.G. Carter" who worked for 25 years with the company. there is a date as well: 1st April 1953. The watch is a "Roamer 17 Jewels". does anyone have any information about who Mr. Carter is?
Click to expand...
Ken I think we have the same man,I think George was made redundant Inthe sixties when the agency customers were separated from the Wimbush shop rounds and were on separate vehicles
 
Does anyone know if there is any substance to the suggestion that it was the Wimbush business which bought Chadwick Manor when it was sold at auction in 1931? It subsequently became a hotel, which would fit in with the catering side of the company's business. Where did the Wimbush family live in the twenties and thirties?
 
wotsinaname said:
AHH yes. as a kid I used to pass this place on my way to my Grans house. The wonderful smell of the place always made me feel hungry.:D
Click to expand...
Yes went past the factories where the Morrison’s is now with the trucks waiting to leave their sheds I went on to be a Production Manager at Birmingham Bakery Garretts Green
 
The firm was founded by Ambrose Durrant Wimbush b 1865
in 1911 he is at 554 Coventry road Small Heath with his family including his son
Albert Durrant Wimbush who took over running the firm when Ambrose died in 1935.
at the time of Ambrose death his addresses were given as The Bakeries. Small Heath and St Bernards Grange, Lyndon Green.
In 1939 Albert Wimbush b 1893 lived with his family at Packwood Towers ,Solihull which i believe was in Windmill Lane.
He died in 1965 address given as Barn Close, Windmill Lane.
 
We had a wimbush shop at the bottom of our road in Great Barr (perrywood road) when ever I smell baking it takes me back to when I was a kid and popping into the shop for our mom to get bread or cakes. The lady who run the shop was called Tilly and at the end of the day would always give you a cake for "after yer dinner " if you were walking past after school
 
re wimbushs bakery,,,,i worked as an apprentice bricklayer for r m douglas ltd on the new bakery in green lane circa 1964/5 it was very well built ,,,douglas were a top class building firm ,,,the training i got from them stood me in good stead for working anywhere,,they were the very best,,,,happy days john griffin,
 
the family were french... named vimbush.. but changed to wimbush,,,,reference one of their oldest employees,,,1964,,,,jg
 
I am surprised to read the French connection to Wimbush bakery family. In 1891, apparently, there were 43 Wimbush families in Warwickshire. Ambrose Durant Wimbush was recorded as a commercial traveller at Southam, Warwickshire in 1901. It was in 1904 that he founded the famous business which became Birmingham's largest bakery. He died in 1935, his son becoming his business successor.
However the Wimbush name, common in the UK and USA, did, it seems, have Norman French origins so maybe that is what was implied.
 
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