Retail & Trades: Difference between revisions

[[File:12RTA1 Hopton's shop Faulkner St.jpg|left|thumb|''<small>Hoptons the Butcher, shop Faulkner Street</small>'']]

By carrying on trading during the Covid-19 lockdown not only did Hopton's continue to provide local residents with their high-quality meat and meat products, they also ensured that a butcher’s shop had traded in Hoole for over 160 years. Even during the two world wars Hoole Food Control Committee ensured that the availability of meat continued from butchers’ shops, but with strict controls on rationing and deliveries.

Meanwhile in Charles Street, premises at No.24 occupied for many years by the Roberts family, cow keepers, and briefly occupied by George Stalker, dairyman, and William Wild, fishmonger, became a butcher's shop run in 1881 by John Evans who went into liquidation in 1882. It was then run by Edward Roberts and later directories link the business to the Argentinian Meat Company! The shop (now the Groves Herbal Dispensary) was eventually to be tiled in dark green and white, a unique shop frontage in Hoole. Roberts the butcher traded in Charles Street into the 1970’s.

 

All these butchers, Dinwoodie, Crewe, Bagshaw and Roberts continued to trade during the first half of the 20th century, their premises equipped with cold stores, wooden chopping benches and usually sawdust on the floor. During the two World Wars, Hoole Food Control Committee issued regulations to ensure rationing (a typical ration in WW2 for one adult was meat to the value of 1s 2d per week) and deliveries to minimise the use of transport, the Food Order even referring to the use of cycles. Frederick and later John Dinwoodie, and Ernest Bagshaw were members of the WW2 Committee.

 

 

In 1933, Sydney Nicholson opened a butcher’s shop at 54 Westminster Road (opposite Law Street). In 1945, Edward Bagshaw died and for a number of years his shop in Faulkner Street was run by Read's. It was then taken over by Nicholson's who by 1977 had premises at Upton, Waverton, The Lache and Buckley.

In 1967, Dawson the newsagents advertised for sale a new shop at 30 Faulkner Street which had been converted from a residential dwelling. It was bought by Harry Hopton, a master butcher whose son Bryan had opened new eateries in Chester: the Caribbean Grill, Chester Steakhouse and the Witches Kitchen in Frodsham Street. In 1974, Harry Hopton purchased the champion bullock which weighed ten and three quarter hundred weight at the Chester Smithfield Market for £688, a record price; he also bought the champion beasts at other markets and advertisements show them being sold both through the restaurants and at the shop. Selling meat for freezers was another line of business.

 

 

As the millennium approached shopping habits began to change. The big supermarkets had their own butchery departments and provided a wide range of meat products; ready meals and eating out were becoming the things to do; working wives were spending less time cooking and family meals traditionally including joints or cuts of meat were becoming less frequent. Vegetarianism was also making an impact.

Not surprisingly, butchers’ shops everywhere began to close. A nationwide survey shows that there were 15,000 shops in 1990 and now there are less than 6,000. Nicholson's endeavoured to increase their trade by opening a deli counter. This shop became known as Clancy’s and has also now closed.

 

 

So now in Hoole we have just one shop, Hopton’s, who fortunately continue to provide (without any sawdust) local residents with a traditional high-quality butchery service.