|
John
and Rose had four sons, Tom, Leonard, Horace and Fred.
Tom worked in a local warehouse in Halesowen. One
day he noticed a delivery of miners shovels that had
been dispatched for one of the many local pits. He
made a note of the wholesaler who was in Sheffield
and passed the information on to his father. John
contacted the Sheffield firm and offered to make the
shovels for them at a cheap rate. The firm contacted
John and presented him with a large order.
The
nail shop attached to his house just would not be
able to cope with the expected work. So the two brothers
scraped as much money as possible together. Jim was
not married and had managed to save quite a bit. Lloyd's
Bank provided the rest.
And
so in 1886, Browns Shovel Works was formed in a small
factory in Chapel Street, Hasbury. It had hearths,
hammers and machinery and provided full time work
for John, his four sons and his brother Jim.
more
>>
|
