Anyone remember these fenland oldies

UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUMS OLD TIME LORRIES, COMPANIES AND DRIVERS (INTERACT
1

gattar2:
anyone remember these oldies from cambridgeshire. Pics or information would be great.
Healey Wilson
Claphams
Waddelow
Graves & Graves
Goodman
Purrell
Eric Wright
Darby’s Plant
Darby’s Transport
Atcost
Ping
Cawood
hope these ring some bells with someone.

Hi there… You may have already seen some of the stuff about Darby’s that I posted recently… My father was a tipper driver for Darby’s Sand and and Gravel around 1950…he used to take me with him now and then. He drove a Bedford OSBT for them when we lived at Witchford then moved to Ely. I remember Mepal Pits, and the yard at Sutton, and we used to go to Lakenheath, Mildenhall and Feltwell. We sometimes stopped for a brew at the Black and White Cafe between Streatham and Chittering on the A10, and another Cafe I recall was the Red Lodge on the A11 …was it Freckenham? I was only 5yrs old ,but it all stuck in my mind…now 66yrs and retired… I would love to find a colour picture of a Darby’s lorry of any sort…still searching !!..norman long.

2

ca barnes was only up the road from me in haddenham, he had some smart fodens and erfs before moving to volvos

3

here is one of harradines scanias they had some smart trucks shame to see them go, my uncle chris worked for them he had a p cab scania 113

4

a few more

5

norman long:

gattar2:
anyone remember these oldies from cambridgeshire. Pics or information would be great.
Healey Wilson
Claphams
Waddelow
Graves & Graves

I’m sure I got lifts with Graves and Graves when I was hitching to Sheffield from Feltwell via Kings Lynn when I was in the RAF,early 60s. They did market work.

6

Cornwells used to have their yard in Somersham High Street just opposite my uncle’s smallholding. I think they had dark brown F86 units back then.

7

Yes they did i ran up to Aberdeen with one of Cornwell’s must have been about 1971 and i remember i went to the flics in Aberdeen and watched A Clockwork Orange - before it was banned!

8

I remember Purrell, were from Chatteris. Jack Purrell was the man, he had a light blue colour Ford 4 wheeler which he drove himself on market work, carrotts I think, plus an AEC Mercury unit with a 30ft long trailer driven by a John Coulson. The artic used to work for Peterborough Heavy Haulage, mostly pulling their trailers, and later on John Coulson, went to work for PHH, ending his days there on a Volvo F10 and low loader, before finally moving himself to Newark. The Mercury was latterly driven by Bob Peachey, who also moved on to PHH, initially with a F86 I think, then F7 and later a Merc 2028, and he subsequently transfered to Carters when they took over. Bob was a much respected driver, very steady and reliable, and the last that I heard, he was driving for Stainless Metalcraft at Chatteris.

9

A Fenland firm that has not been mentioned is Cade Brothers of Ramsey. Eric and Bill were the brothers and they ran Seddon Atkinsons and Mercs when I worked there in the 80s. A lot of there work was from Cadbury Schweppes at Warboys airfield.

10

eric the judge:
A Fenland firm that has not been mentioned is Cade Brothers of Ramsey. Eric and Bill were the brothers and they ran Seddon Atkinsons and Mercs when I worked there in the 80s. A lot of there work was from Cadbury Schweppes at Warboys airfield.

On the subject of Warboys and Fenland hauliers not mentioned, Manchetts.
Bernard

11

Dents of Hilgay anyone? I was working in Southery where they had a small yard in 1993 when Mr Dent passed away and the business disappeared. Jim.

12

A friend of mine [Martin Russell] left Cades to go to Manchetts in 1988 and stayed there till they stopped doing long distance

13

I remember Jack Purrell had a F6 on for Minnaars, his son Mark drove a F10. There was a lot of owner drivers on there at the time; right up until the work went to Fowler Welch. Other names that drove out of Earith High Street: Burgess and Walker, Todd, Bonfield, Page, Charter, Turner, Titchmarsh plus Minnaar had a few Mercs of their own.

14

anyone remember these oldies from cambridgeshire. Pics or information would be great.
Healey Wilson
Claphams
Waddelow
Graves & Graves
Goodman
Purrell
Eric Wright
Darby’s Plant
Darby’s Transport
Atcost
Ping
Cawood
hope these ring some bells with someone.

15

gattar2:
anyone remember these oldies from cambridgeshire. Pics or information would be great.
Healey Wilson
Claphams
Waddelow
Graves & Graves
Goodman
Purrell
Eric Wright
Darby’s Plant
Darby’s Transport
Atcost
Ping
Cawood
hope these ring some bells with someone.

I remember G and J Ping and also Graves and Graves who I think did some market work.Atcost as well.Sorry no photos though :unamused:
What about Welches from Stapleford,they were biggish players at one time?

16

Yeah Graves and Graves did do market work, i think they were mainly a carrot firm. I can remember they had erf’s and volvo’s, both in rigid flat beds and rigid bulkers and were a light blue colour.

Chris Webb:

gattar2:
anyone remember these oldies from cambridgeshire. Pics or information would be great.
Healey Wilson
Claphams
Waddelow
Graves & Graves
Goodman
Purrell
Eric Wright
Darby’s Plant
Darby’s Transport
Atcost
Ping
Cawood
hope these ring some bells with someone.

I remember G and J Ping and also Graves and Graves who I think did some market work.Atcost as well.Sorry no photos though :unamused:
What about Welches from Stapleford,they were biggish players at one time?

17

for what its worth all i can remember are the folowing,
Healy Wilson - corn merchants from the roundabout on the A10 at Stretham now finished
Clapham-do
Wadlow-do
Graves & Graves - do
Goodman last seen at the Austrian Yugo border in 1976,with their spanish dodge, i think they are probably home by now1
Purrell-Mark still runs his own truck for Fowler Welch as far as i know
Eric Wright-finished
Darbys plant finished their yard is now houses
Atcost finished or taken over,Their main haulier Prime Godfreys Sons was also mentioned on here
G.&J.Ping as far as i know still going
Cant help any further than this maybe someone will come out of the woodwork?
Bill

18

Darby’s Transport used to be owned by Marcus Darby and i think the wagons used to pull Bejam trailers, which i think were single axle box trailers. And i also think he had some Atkinsons and later on a couple of Leyland Marathons. I also believe he done some work out of Jardins at Sutton Cambs which are still going.

LB76:
for what its worth all i can remember are the folowing,
Healy Wilson - corn merchants from the roundabout on the A10 at Stretham now finished
Clapham-do
Wadlow-do
Graves & Graves - do
Goodman last seen at the Austrian Yugo border in 1976,with their spanish dodge, i think they are probably home by now1
Purrell-Mark still runs his own truck for Fowler Welch as far as i know
Eric Wright-finished
Darbys plant finished their yard is now houses
Atcost finished or taken over,Their main haulier Prime Godfreys Sons was also mentioned on here
G.&J.Ping as far as i know still going
Cant help any further than this maybe someone will come out of the woodwork?
Bill

19

Hi gattar,what colour were Graves and Graves and what motors did they run,I’m sure I had lifts with them when I was in the RAF in the early 60s.Did they have any drawbars on that carrot/market job?

20

Hi Chris, Graves and Graves wagons were sort of sky or pale blue with black trim. Don’t think they had any drawbar outfits, but they ran ERF’s and later on VOLVO’s F6’s and they were mainly flat bed 4 wheel rigids.

Chris Webb:
Hi gattar,what colour were Graves and Graves and what motors did they run,I’m sure I had lifts with them when I was in the RAF in the early 60s.Did they have any drawbars on that carrot/market job?