DODMANS

[EWW]

Does anyone have any Dodman stuff?

[teddybear1959]

It seems to have pasted a lot of info but could be worth a try!!!!!!!!!!!!

Teddy


http://www.hfstephens-museum.org.uk/

[EWW]

Alfred Dodman

[Alastair]

An interesting item produced by Dodmans was the locomotive Gazelle.. quite a bit of information on this page from the Industrial Railway Society, and also on this page from the Kent and East Sussex Railway wher she is now on exhibit.

There's also a photograph (no. 72) in Ely to King's Lynn in the Eastern Main Lines series from Middleton Press.

[pspooner]

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

[EWW]

Hello pspooner. I can remember you father Bob from my short career at Doddie's. Mr Pishorn
was there then and I think Mr Leeder's name was Ron, but not sure. I work with
Jim Mitchell at True's Yard who worked in the drawing office while your father
was there also. I worked with Barry Flegg, can you remember him, and his brother Colin.
Barry was a good goalkeeper and had the nickname "flash flegg" Quite a few characters
there over the years.

[EWW]

The old works.

[apollonine]

At tea break the Dodmans men would be sat lined up against the wall with their sandwiches and flasks...

[EWW]

Same picture in the Haynes garage thread, but nice to see it again.

[pspooner]

This is about Ralph Melton, who worked with my father at Dodman's for many years. According to my sister, he lived in the caretaker's cottage at Hardwick Rd. Cemetery with his mother. He used to ride a motorbike with a sidecar. I think his mum rode in that!
This clipping (very long so in 2 pieces) must be from 1983 (I thought it was earlier at first until I started reading the adverts on the back!). Anyway, Mr. Melton was a very clever man and had been doing this sort of work when my father left Doddie's in 1963.
Pam Spooner
(now in Texas)

[margaretdimbylow]

My father, John Twyman, born 1926, was an apprentice draughtsman at Dodman's 1942 onwards. He worked with Eric Hales, John Todd and George Fretwell. Later, Eric Hales, with others started up their own engineering factory in King's Lynn. Has anyone any information about this and what happened to Eric Hales? My father is still alive and has talked about them.
Margaret Dimbylow

[margaretdimbylow]

I enclose a photo of a group of workers at Dodmans in the 1940's. My father, John Twyman, is in the back row by himself. Does anyone recognise the others?

[wallywombat]

The chap center front is my wifes uncle Frederick Starling, He used to say the brush was his "badge of office", he was a general worker and spent a lot of his time sweeping up. He spent most of his working life at "Doddies"

[EWW]

Bad picture I know but better than nowt Which corner?

[rospaul]

........ Most definitely Townsend Corner.