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Wilmot Breeden Limited

hi maggs
first of all how are you and tom fine i hope
yes they made the car keys there and i used to drink in the grotto next door every night of the week befoe going to the windmill
up the rest of the evening and having a laugh with old stan kirby and have him running up and down behind the bar
maggie , my olest sister went to camden street school that was a good school i have come across a book where there was a picture of
a group of school girls from camden street going to london and seeing the house of parlimernts
and lord and behold there was two girls having there picture taken in front of the houses of parliment with a councilor
my sister knew of this pic nor the book so i gave it to her this was about two years ago
would you remember a girl by the name of carol paget from brook field she lived around the corner on george street west she went there
but i surpose its a long time ago and i think half that area went there did nt day
i have got alot of invoices from willmots breedon and for there purchasing orders
well magg i have got to go now i hope top hear from you both soon but in the mean time take care
and have your self a merry christmas and a healthy new and prosperous new year to you both best wishes astonion alan
 
Hello Everyone. I have just discovered a site that has a relevant article you might be interested in. It relates to:
MARYBOROUGH DISTRICT​
ANTIQUE MOTOR CLUB INC.
located in Queensland, Australia (Yes, home of the FLOODS).
If you go onto the link (below), the result is a PDF format, and scroll to page 6, the article entitled "The Harmonic Bumper Bar".
Here is a description of an historic aspect of Wilmot Breeden production.
You may also be interested to know Wilmots had an office and distribution centre in Melbourne Victoria.
When I did my apprenticeship in 1958/63 I was introduced to one of Wilmot's Aussie Sales Team. (Name lone forgotten).
He actually met me when the ship (SS Fairsky) docked in Melbourne in October '63.
Hope you find this interesting.

https://www.maryboroughvintage.com/2010_march_maryb_vint_news.pdf

OldBrummie
 
Astonian said:
HI THERE
Doe,s Any=body Recall Wilmott Breedon Of Camden Street
Hockley Spring hill Did Any body Work There
I Used To Lve In King edwards Rd Just Up The Road By The Kirby Gang
Wilmotts and Breedon Had Afew Factory,s Around Brum
They Had One Next To The Ice Rink At Spring Hill And They Had One In Cheston Rd Aston Off Rocky Lane
I Have Got AN Invoice Addressed To R,H Burman Ltd Avon Works
Tyburn Rd Bham 24, FOR Reqeusting Payment For Materials Supplied
I Have Down Loaded The Copy On The Thread If Any-body Wants To See It
Best Wishes ASTONIAN ,;;
Click to expand...

I think my nan used to work there, and my uncle too for a time. Their last name is Moseley.
 
hi virusman, I worked in the toolroom for nine years from 1964. The toolmakers their were: Norman King, alf Collins, Pat Barker, Ron Hooper, Alf Chapman, Les Hayden, Lester Phillips, Paul Humphries, Billy Briden, Leo Jones, Reg Cosgrove, Barry Jackson, Eric hollis and me Cliff Henry. If you need any further info you can contact me by IM
 
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Hi Dave, Bill Moore worked in the toolroom at fordhouse Lane. He was my uncle.Contact me by PM if you need any further info.
 
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Hi, I worked in the toolroom from 1963 to 71so befor the time you need, but the toolmakers I remember were Alf Collins, Alf Chapman, Reg Cosgrove, Leo Jones, Billy Briden, Les Hayden, Ron Hooper, Norman King, and me Cliff Henry. If you want any memories let me know, Ive got plenty.
 
I worked at the Kings road factory from 1964 to his eventual closure in 1994. We made turned parts in this factory on the single spindle and multi spindle auto's in the 60s and most of the 70s. These auto ran day and night, turning out thousands of nuts bolts rivets bushes shafts and screws every 24 hours. There was also a second Opps Department consisting of capstains millers special-purpose machines and splinning presses. I think we supplied every other factory in the group at one time or another. Rockwall took us over when they bought the rest of the group but in about 1987 a chap called Bob Russell brought the Kings road factory off Rockwell and run it as Russell manufacturing. Bob Russell had another factory in Tipton, but he went bust in 1994-95. There was also another factory in Kings Road. Call Farringdon works. They had a small toolroom. There, but what else they did. I haven't a clue.
 
Hi Virusman, Have just come accross you request from 2009 for any info on toolmakers at Fordhouse Lane. If you are still interested I worked in the toolroom for 9 years and would be happy to give you a full list of every toolmaker up to 77 when I left.
 
Hi Dave, Are you the Dave Rock who used to work in the toolroom at Fordhouse lane With Steve, Cossa, Billy briden, Les Hayden etc.?
 
Hi, Only recently discovered this web site. I was a WB apprentice 1958-63. Much of the time at Umberslade down in the "chemy" lab. Then later at Amington Rd., Farringdon and Fordhouse Lane. So I guess we knew each other. Colleagues I can recall at Umberslade include Graham Jones, Bob Green, Jim Paxton, Dave Wild, Ian Stockdale, Cliff Beddows, Maureen Smith, Moira Amos, Sid Cashmore, Peter Pinnock, Ernst Rupprect, Uffa Marx and David Gould, who sadly died from meningitis. I recall Eatonway's coaches, walks from Wood End Station, ice creams at Henley, outings to Motor Show, skating on the lake.
Who can recall the "Great Chain" robbery from Fordhouse Lane? And I cannot find any mention of the Bridgewater factory in this thread.
Think the reason I went to Wilmot's was a neighbour Ron Simper told me of the sports activities there, do you remember the interdepartmental cricket, I was "headhunted" by the maintenance team on virtually my first day at work. Characters in the main factories include Billy Chadwick, Arthur Letts, Bill Hamilton, John Given, Mac White, Bob Leishman, Stu Anderson, Bob Picken, Bunny Lee, "Big" Howy who could down a yard of ale in under 10 secs.
 
Hi Devonjim.
I joined WB in 1958 in the apprentice workshop in Ammington Road. Nine months in, I had an accident whilst working on a lathe and was "Off Work" for 4 weeks with a one and a half inch gash in my left wrist (still have the scar). Messrs Kettle and Roberts decided I was not cut out for engineering and to get rid of me, sent me out to Umberslade, where I spent the remainder of my apprenticeship. At the end of my "time", there was no job for me, so I upped sticks and sailed for Australia where I have remained to this day. I am not too hot with names but do recall some of those you mention but, I do have quite vivid memories of faces there. I still have, somewhere in my boxes of junk, a photo of Andy, one of the two gardeners, trudging to work through the snow from his cottage on the estate. My boss was Wal Comley who was replaced by Nick Gross when he retired. Nick also moved to Australia sometime after me. Most of my time was spent building rigs to test door locks and window winders and I also spent a great deal of time with the test drivers out at M.I.R.A at Nuneaton. I enjoyed my sojourn at Umberslade but it didn't do much for my future career prospects. Perhaps one of the things that stuck in my memory was the constant "cleaning and tidying" we were forced to do whenever there were "bigwigs" visiting, especially when the French folks visited. Oh happy days! They were a great crowd there and we did have some fun. Devonjim, you would remember me as Peter Platt.
OldBrummie
 
wb1962 (2).jpg
WB 2nd XI 1962
Sports played a big part in the social life at WB. In these austere times it easy to forget the investment made by the company in those days to enhance our lot. There was a full time social secretary in HR(personnel)and a couple of groundsmen at the Sports Ground at Elmdon, which had a fishing lake, two cricket squares, two or three soccer pitches. There would be fireworks and a bonfire on November 5th. At Tyseley there was a dance hall which held some 400, and who can forget the annual Miss Wilmot competition, so non-PC!
 
My dad Vic Hunt was a bumper polisher at Wilmot Breedons in Amington Road, he lived in Yardley and cycled to work. He met my mom and she worked there assembling locks and they got married in 1950, and lived in Berkeley Road East, Hay Mills. Dad was still working there until he died aged 52 in January 1979. My brother Dave worked there with dad for a short while. Once they had done their quota on nights, they would then get their heads down. My mom is now 84, and still comes out with stories when we go and see her.

I remember going up to the sports ground by the airport as dad used to fish the lake, and won loads of prizes, the first time I saw a colour t.v. was at the sports ground and there was a nature programme on the t.v. that must have been around 1967. I also used to go the works Christmas parties/pantomime trips
 
My brother works at the "Old Sheldon Cinema" which is now Tescos and has been Safeways / morrisons and many other supermarkets before that, it may even been a Kwik Save at one point. He has worked on that site for about 30 years.
 
Hi,
The captain(Harry Hartshorne) of the cricket team in my picture #57 was a polisher,as was Kenny Hewitt, your dad or brother may have known them. For a while I worked on lock assemblies 1966-1968(I think) at Farringdon Works. Bob James was the works manager at the time. My brother was one of the grounds men at Elmdon when you went up with your dad. His wife and daughter both work at Tesco at Monkspath.
 
My dad met my mother while working for wilmots in the early 1940s my dad (Ron Beetison) worked in K block and Mom (Olive Rudge) worked in A block. My wife worked in the main office block in Amington Road I worked at the Kings road factory , we met at a new year dance held in the canteen in 1961.
Glenys said:
My dad Vic Hunt was a bumper polisher at Wilmot Breedons in Amington Road, he lived in Yardley and cycled to work. He met my mom and she worked there assembling locks and they got married in 1950, and lived in Berkeley Road East, Hay Mills. Dad was still working there until he died aged 52 in January 1979. My brother Dave worked there with dad for a short while. Once they had done their quota on nights, they would then get their heads down. My mom is now 84, and still comes out with stories when we go and see her.

I remember going up to the sports ground by the airport as dad used to fish the lake, and won loads of prizes, the first time I saw a colour t.v. was at the sports ground and there was a nature programme on the t.v. that must have been around 1967. I also used to go the works Christmas parties/pantomime trips
Click to expand...
 
When I was in the Austin amature boxing club we used to use a large room at W. Breedons in Tyseley some evenings. I don't remember why because most of the time we used a room at the Austin in Longbridge, I did not have many fights for the Austen because I was little heavier than they wanted but I used to train regularly.
 
Tom24 said:
Hi,
I am starting to research this Birmingham company as there is very little about it on the internet, and it was a major employer up to the 1970’s – turning out car bumpers, door locks, window winders, badges etc. for all manufacturers.

I worked there as an apprentice from 1966, based at the Kings Road Works then the Amington Road factory. I also worked for a time at the Head Office in Goodman Street (Sandpits). Other locations were a warehouse in Digbeth; Fordhouse Lane in Stirchley (later taken over by Rockwell); an R&D facility at Umberslade Hall and the former Civil Service Sports Ground at Elmdon plus the Camden Street works you mentioned.

Most of the Amington Road buildings are still there, although converted to other uses. Up until 1972, I worked in the computer dept. (ground floor front) of the 60’s-style office block, using an ICL 1902 room-size computer with a massive 8mb memory!
I swear that the window blinds in that room today are the same ones that were there in 1972.

I find it incredible that a company of that size can just disappear from public view in just a few short years and therefore want to record as much about it as possible whilst people can still remember.
Click to expand...
 
I worked in the wages dept Amington Road late 50s early 60s. wages were done by using punch cards later we used
accounting machines (NCR 32) later still enter the computer.I sometimes helped on the Staff Payroll (all Coded of course) and remember querying an axpense receipt for a camera for Miles Breeden. they used to hold amature boxing matches in the works canteen and often had entertainers there in the lunch hour.
 
wages clerk said:
I worked in the wages dept Amington Road late 50s early 60s. wages were done by using punch cards later we used
accounting machines (NCR 32) later still enter the computer.I sometimes helped on the Staff Payroll (all Coded of course) and remember querying an axpense receipt for a camera for Miles Breeden. they used to hold amature boxing matches in the works canteen and often had entertainers there in the lunch hour.
Click to expand...
Your years at WB much the same as mine, ie. 1958-1970. Included time at Fordhouse Lane, Farringdon, "K" Block, "A" Block and Umberslade.
 
I remember going on a school trip around Wilmot Breedon in Amington Road in 1965, my last year at school, I think our school supplied a number of apprentices for them. I remember a leather tanning premises just over the other side of the road, and the stink it gave off.
I can also remember the Wilmot Breedon lorries going down the back of Hanger Road at Elmdon airport in the 1960s and parking up outside Hanger 3 during my aircraft spotting days. Not sure if they were using hanger 3 as storage as the lorries usually had goods on. Can someone clarify this for me.
 
lencops said:
Wilmot Breedon Ltd Factory, Amington Rd, Tyseley. Len,
Click to expand...

Hi Len,

My father used to work with you at Amington Rd and you was his supervisor for many years, he was a quality control inspector dealing with car bumpers. He work for WB between 1973 - 1982 I think.

Please let me know if you remember him.

Many thanks


M
 
Glenys said:
My dad Vic Hunt was a bumper polisher at Wilmot Breedons in Amington Road, he lived in Yardley and cycled to work. He met my mom and she worked there assembling locks and they got married in 1950, and lived in Berkeley Road East, Hay Mills. Dad was still working there until he died aged 52 in January 1979. My brother Dave worked there with dad for a short while. Once they had done their quota on nights, they would then get their heads down. My mom is now 84, and still comes out with stories when we go and see her.

I remember going up to the sports ground by the airport as dad used to fish the lake, and won loads of prizes, the first time I saw a colour t.v. was at the sports ground and there was a nature programme on the t.v. that must have been around 1967. I also used to go the works Christmas parties/pantomime trips
Click to expand...

Glenys, I don't know if you are still a member of the forum and I've just come across your post. My Dad was also a bumper polisher at WB in Amington Rd and I too used to visit the lake at the sports ground with him. Caught my first carp in that pool. Before he retired due to ill health, my grandad also worked there and I can remember my dad taking me to see him at work one Saturday morning (I was about 4 or 5 yrs old) and I was astounded by the noise and the sparks he produced polishing the heavy castings. At gran's house were several chromium ashtrays with a chrome metal bird attached. I later found out that were car mascots (Possibly Wolsey) and someone in the factory had the bright idea of fixing them to a cheap metal ashtray and sell them on.
 
mujib ahsan said:
Hi Len,

My father used to work with you at Amington Rd and you was his supervisor for many years, he was a quality control inspector dealing with car bumpers. He work for WB between 1973 - 1982 I think.

Please let me know if you remember him.

Many thanks


M
Click to expand...
I worked at Wilmot Breeden for some eleven years, until 1970. I never worked in Bumper division, but I thought your father may have known Frank Tye who was a manager in that division.
 
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