E Drouet & Co Ltd Smithfield Market

[Simon68]

Evening BHF Members,

It is Simon here, your friendly token collector based in Ipswich.

Have been to the Midland Coin Fair today and picked up a token with the following detail on it...

OBVERSE FACE
E.Drouet & Co Ltd
Smithfield Market
Birmingham

(Hole in centre of token)

REVERSE FACE
1/=


Does anyone know anything about the company?

As always, any help is appreciated

Regards

Simon

 

[mikejee]

From Kellys (year is year of publication and probably refers to survey of year before)


1900 Not Mentioned

1903-5 Edward Drouet, fruit salesman and merchant, Moat Lane & Smithfield Veg.Market

1908-15 Edward Drouet fruit broker 6 Digbeth, Moat Lane and Smithfield Veg. Market

1921 Edward Drouet & Co Ltd , fruit broker ,6 Digbeth , Moat Lane and Smithfield Veg. Market

they continued at Smithfield , with other addresses altering slightly till 1962

1963-5 Edward Drouet & Co Ltd , fruit broker, Park St

1967 Not Mentioned


So, allowing for Kellys probably listing a year after the event, the firm was at Smithfield and a limited company from about 1920 to 1961

 

[Simon68]

As always very helpful, thank you Mike.

Regards

Simon

 

[Simon68]

Images of the token in question.

 

[Vivienne14]

Why is there a hole in the token? It looks like the hole was drilled after the token was struck as it cuts through the words on the token. Viv.

 

[Vivienne14]

Here's a Drouet lorry loading bananas at Lawley St depot in 1929. Image from Warwickshire Railways site. Viv.

 

[Simon68]

Hi Viv,

I think they used to counterpunch holes in them to show they had been cashed in or something similar. This one has a relatively neat hole but some market tokens I've seen have quite a crude punched hole.

Simon

 

[Simon68]

Excellent photo.