if you look back on page one of the bewick transport thread there is a photo of thomas bewick who i believe was dennis’s grandfather . you have to admit that bewick has more of a ring to it than smith , sorry dennis , tin hat at the ready .
Agreed. Although you must admit that those lads from Maddiston made a pretty good job of it despite the name. 
Retired Old ■■■■:
Agreed. Although you must admit that those lads from Maddiston made a pretty good job of it despite the name.
Had a similar thought myself ROF, but…
Does Smith of Milnthorpe (pronounced Mill ern Thorp) have quite the same ring to it? 
Our family home had an air raid shelter from when the Luftwaffe bombed the shipyard in the war - I still live near there, maybe time to ask for a temporary berth?
John
Hi John, about a year ago on another thread (I can’t remember which) you asked Dennis if he could remember a Barrow lad called Alan Cooksie or his brother. I don’t think that Dennis replied to your question or he even saw it but as Alan was my first ever transport supervisor I always wondered what ever happened to him and was he still in transport. We were both in our early twenties at the time and to be fair with hindsight he really looked after me. I know that his dad at one time had a couple of wagons and I think that somebody told me that his dad was a councillor in Barrow but I am not sure how true that was.
Regards Steve.
Or alternatively John, I could rent you one of my Anderson shelters, ( I’m currently offering a very attractive off peak rate ). It’s always advisable to have a fallback option I find.
Only just seen this thread Dennis , excellent stuff hurry up with the next post please
rigsby:
if you look back on page one of the bewick transport thread there is a photo of thomas bewick who i believe was dennis’s grandfather . you have to admit that bewick has more of a ring to it than smith , sorry dennis , tin hat at the ready .
Thomas Bewick was my Great Grandfather Dave. Cheers Dennis.
ChrisArbon:
It must have been hard work and long hours when you first started. Then even worse when things started growing so big and so fast. What did you do to relax? Did you ever get away for a holiday? Did it affect your health? I had a boss who had a heart attack in his thirties through overwork and stress.
Hi Chris,No holidays for about 13 years then only one week in Tenerife in feb/march and one week in Nov for a few years then up it to 10 days at a time, I was knackered by mid '90’s, 24 hrs from “croaking it” when I was taken Hospital though still here but only just some days ! Relax/Hobby Harness racing was my interest for about 16 years I owned and trained some great horses over the years but my health problems forced me to give up in the mid 90’s but I’d got a bit sick of the sport anyway by then ! Cheers Dennis.
Bewick:
rigsby:
if you look back on page one of the bewick transport thread there is a photo of thomas bewick who i believe was dennis’s grandfather . you have to admit that bewick has more of a ring to it than smith , sorry dennis , tin hat at the ready .Thomas Bewick was my Great Grandfather Dave. Cheers Dennis.
oh , so you’re not as old as you look then dennis . lol
BIBS:
You were in at the right time DENNIS one of the main things would be you would be able to get up and down the road easier than now,no speed limiters a lot less traffic,drivers hours more flexible,and as you said good drivers with all the photos you have your story would make a cracking book I can see the front cover picture now Bewick unit pulling a Haworth bros fridge box.
There is a shot of one of Howarths YORK dry freight vans in the depot at Milnthorpe coupled to a K. Fell 111 Bibbs, could be a few more as we were regularly pulling the two lads out of the ■■■■ and there was no chance they would ask SJB or Ernie to help, you wouldn’t show those two outfits a birds nest now would you 
■■■■ and Dave trusted us and we trusted them it worked well for a good number of years ! “Drums of foam to Tilbury” ? How many trailers you want David ? and straight back with a load of pulp to Milnthorpe. Cheers Dennis.
rigsby:
Bewick:
rigsby:
if you look back on page one of the bewick transport thread there is a photo of thomas bewick who i believe was dennis’s grandfather . you have to admit that bewick has more of a ring to it than smith , sorry dennis , tin hat at the ready .Thomas Bewick was my Great Grandfather Dave. Cheers Dennis.
oh , so you’re not as old as you look then dennis . lol
ramone:
Only just seen this thread Dennis , excellent stuff hurry up with the next post please
You must pay more attention “ramone” The next episode is the very interesting few weeks I had up to the time I bought the K. Fell business and depot early/mid '76 but I’ve been laid low with a right bad virus ( my health) this week so I’ve been a bit out of sorts to start putting the episode together proper like ! But I will get it on soon. Thanks for the kind comment though glad you found it interesting although it was a lot more interesting for me during the years they episodes cover ! Cheers Dennis.
I get the impression from that first pic that you didn’t really want to let that pretty lass have that trophy Dennis, you seem to be hanging on to it for grim death!
Pete.
windrush:
I get the impression from that first pic that you didn’t really want to let that pretty lass have that trophy Dennis, you seem to be hanging on to it for grim death!Pete.
It certainly looks that way Pete but if you notice the Horse’s tail was flapping up and down and he was watching another horse close by, he was that fit he would have gone again and won by an even greater distance as he had done in that big race, he was chucking his head about as well and you don’t like a “bat in the kisser” from a head that big !! Cheers Dennis.
“Takeover central” or strategic growth by acquisition ! From around late 1974 we started subbing loads of woodpulp to a local firm Davy & Co (Grange) Ltd trading as K. Fell &Co which was made up of the remnants of three old establish hauliers who Davy & Co had bought out in the ‘50’s and 60’s Old man Davy (who I never met as he past away in 62’ or '63) had been the driving force and he had also owned a Quarry and was a Coal Factor supplying Barrow and Millom Iron Works but these two parts of the group had finished so they were left with the haulage business of K. Fell who were one of the main contractors at Libbys, they also had farm collection motors as well as a few tippers along with a sizeable number of 4,6 and 8 wheelers mainly on contract to Libby as they only had the odd “A” Licence. After the old man Capt.Davy passed away his son John (RIP) got thrust into the “driving seat” and give him his due he kept up the momentum by buying up a couple of local firms first in '64 J L Ion and their “A” licence and Contract Licences with Libbys and Crossbones Fert of Bridlington,he also got a couple of “A” licences from Wearing Bros of Flookburgh in '64 as well. In 1966 he bought another local 6 vehicle fleet of 8 wheelers of J.B. Hudson Ltd who where owned at the time by Athersmith Bros of Barrow-in Furness. So by the late '60’s Davy and Co had quite a sizeable fleet of probably the best part of 30 plus motors their main traffic was out of Libbys with their one acre depot adjacent to the factory. Trouble was John was a typical ex Public School Boy and by the early 70’s he was loosing his way as he wasn’t really a haulier and the fleet started to shrink steadily and they became even more dependant on the Libby traffic next door, they never looked for new business apart from the fact his manager was a ■■■■■■ and a yes man !! So they would just sit the motors in the yard and wait for a load out of the factory, usually for the London area then they’d pick the phone up to Bewick Transport and we would give them a load from Tilbury straight back home, what could be easier for the useless ■■■■■■■■ !!.So over 74/75 they became dependant on our subbing them so by early 76 I got the “wire” that John Davy was sick of the whole job and was going to sell out but he wanted a written deal off Libbys guaranteeing their traffic would continue to be offered to a new owner. Now he never gave me first refusal or discussed it with me as being a Public School Boy I would be looked down upon, he was determined to sell out to the highest bidder and walk away ! And Bewick Transport had more-or-less kept them going for 18 months with good quality back loads but that was loyalty for you by the upper classes! Anyway, I tackled him about the sale but he just dismissed me out of hand and said he had had a number of inquires that were promising so I said OK then tell your useless ■■■■■■■ manager to look else where for some of his backloads and we cut them off ! I was boiling I can tell you but it didn’t bother John as the family was wealthy out side of their Transport interests so he wasn’t bothered but he wasn’t happy about the money his motors were loosing him year after year by now. So this is where I got devious ! we had outgrown our second depot and I had my eye on the Davy business if I could “swing it” but also the two acre ex BR Goods yard over the fence from the Davy depot. Enough for to-night but the plot thickens from now on as I got to know something that John thought I didn’t Cheers Dennis.
Look here, pal, you’ve no business going sick when we’re all hanging on your every word.
MUST TRY HARDER!
Hi,
Mushroom man, I do remember Alan Cooksey. The father bought 2 ‘A’ licences from my dad to start Cooksey Removals. He worked out of Bowaters and sold out to Blue Dart in about 1970. Young Alan was about my age - 21 in ‘69. He carried on driving for Blue Dart. His truck was a ford with a 36’ boxvan. He did night trunk and was only concerned that the lights were working in the headboard!
I understand from his older brother David that he worked at WH Malcolm at first in the traffic office and eventually becoming a director, but it’s been a while since I saw David and I may have got that wrong.
Now, Mr Bewick. I hope your illness is temporary and you’re soon back up to speed. But…
There’s nothing wrong with Public Schools. Not everyone had a limp handshake. Your friends the Stampers all went to a fine establishment on the ■■■■■■■■ coast called St Bees, which has produced many a good man!!!
Eddie, I’m glad you have 2 shelters, I may need one!
John.
Hi John thanks for that info . Now, can you nip up street and give Bewick a knock, this thread doesn’t deserve to be on page two. As I can’t get The News Of The World on a Sunday morning I need some thing really interesting to read while I am having me breakfast.
Excellent history telling very brave man,hope you’re soon feeling better.
So I determined that I would try to get my hands on the Davy/K. Fell Business and depot, not particularly for their traffic out of Libbys but more for their depot and thinking a move ahead the 2 acre derelict BR goods yard over the fence. But John Davy was not playing ball whether he thought I couldn’t afford it or more to the point he was wanting every last penny. So OK I reason I’ve got to get some “inside track” and I had got to know Bob Bland the Libby despatch manager fairly well as between Bewick/McGuffie we had about 15% of their outward traffic although K.Fell had between 20?25%. So I button holed Bob one day and asked him what was happening to the Davy/Fell sale and as far as he could find out Davy had an outside buyer lined up but he was looking for Libbys to give a written guarantee for the traffic that Fells got. Well they had told him it was “no Dice”. By chance I also found out who the prospective buyer was and he was adamant that Davy could get a written contract and provided he could the deal was on ! I told this Chap he had no chance as I knew Libbys would have none of it but this Chap was adamant that Davy would come up with the “goods” but I knew different and the punch line came a few days later when Libbys told John Davy that they were not going to allow an outside haulier onto their list so he would have to sell to one of the other hauliers who ran out of their factory and on balance Bewick Transport would be Libbys choice to buy him out 
Things happened fairly quickly, the bloke who thought he could buy his way in rang to say that Davy was a lying ■■■■■■■■ as he could no-way get a written deal off Libbys but he had had him believe he could right up to the last moment then he had to come clean. I believe Nelsons of Arnside went and had a “sniff” but it was too rich for them so one morning about mid June '76 down in our Milnthorpe office John Davy pops his head around the office door and says " The business is yours Dennis if you want but we have to conclude a deal by the 26th as the fleet insurance runs out on that date". As part of the deal I quickly concluded I employed John Davy for 5 years as Office manager and a good few years later in the late 80’s Bob Bland took early retirement from Libbys and came to work at Bewick Transport handling the POD’s and calculating the time sheets up until he finally retired. To conclude the Davy/Fell deal I had to do some intricate financial planning PDQ as it was quite a mouthful to swallow and digest at that time and I was still in my late 20’s but I managed it with the help of my friendly NAT West manager and from memory it cost Bewick Transport just about 95K net in two tranches over 12 months as this actually suited John Davy.But I had got what I set out to get and the “inside track” assisted me enormously .Now I turned my attention the BR Property Board who owned the 2 acres over the fence at K. Fell’s depot. Now thereby lies another intriguing episode as the BR Property Board were “something else” to deal with ! Cheers Bewick.