by pspooner » 12 Jul 2009, 04:04
Hello, just saw this post asking about Dodman's. My father, Robert James (Bob) Spooner, worked for Dodman's for 36 years and for many years as the Foreman Boilermaker. He left there, after a heated row with the general manager, in 1962, I think. We left K. Lynn in 1963 for the States. We lived only a few doors up from "Doddies", at 4 Gaywood Road. I have a wonderful photo of the company cricket team which includes my father, Mr. Neve (sp?) the general manager, Willy Forster (I believe the owner) and many others. I will try to scan and then post here the photo of the cricketers.
A few names I remember: He worked with Mr. Pyshorn (sp?), Mr. Leeder, Tubby Scase (sp?), Bill Spenceley (I think), Ernie Barber, and Mr. Self worked in the drafting department. I have a tool he used to measure the inside or outside of the boilers - made by 'Old Knowles', a senior member of the staff when my father was a young man.
I loved going to meet him out of work and if he worked late, sitting in his office while he worked with blueprints. he would be the one to lock up in the evening. The office was in the middle of the 'works', up steps, a little wooden room with windows all around. The works always seemed so dark. He took me there once to see an owl that was in the roof. He also, during WWII, kept pigs on the grounds and several of the workers put money in and then had their share after the slaughter (don't know how he could do it - he was very soft hearted really and would scrub the pigs with a stiff broom. He said they liked being clean.) There was an air raid shelter at Dodmans and my parents would take my sisters there during air raids. Not sure if the whole street went or just the workers who lived nearby?? The whole neighborhood went by Dodman's buzzer - which sounded the noon hour and the official lunchtime.
Pam