The material for this article was kindly given to Mrs Esme Overman by Mrs Clark of the Moors Ley flats
The article was published in the November 1975 issue of the Walkern Journal
There’s a long story of successful village commerce in our front page photograph this month. Ebenezer Kitchener, the proprietor (father of Mrs Clark of Moors Ley flats who, incidentally, was born in the house) lived above this shop (now Ju1yn’s, Hairdressers in front and Brown’s Grocers, behind). It was a large house with five bedrooms and the drawing room was the upstairs room on the right, wher€ the lace curtains can be seen. Appropriate to a substantial householder Ebenezer was also a substantial shopkeeper, for he owned most of the other village shops too. Indeed the shops of Wa1kern had been a Kitchener monopoly for a century even before our picture was taken (some time between 1895 and 1900, by Bishop, the prolific Stevenage photographer) and continued up to, through and after the first World War. No wonder Kitchener’s was known as the White1eys of Wa1kern, serving not only our villages, but many others around.
There was a ‘branch’ at the Red Lion, which sold hardware metal baths, buckets and so on (it was known as ‘The Tin Shop’), there was a ‘branch’ at Cannon’s opposite, which sold china; there was a ‘branch’ at the former Spearman’s bakery, which in those days sold sweets, fancy goods and toys.
The main shop was mainly a drapery store, and at the turn of the century you would have found Miss Christabe1 Savage (sister of the late Eva Savage) and Miss Polly Philips (who lived at the Red Lion) serving behind the counter. Also Bert Dearman, who is seen in the photograph at the door in his ‘apron’.
There was a wide variety of goods in this main shop. From the ceiling hung hob-nailed boots in all sizes – worn in those days by school kids and farm workers alike. There were corduroy trousers for work on the farm, with leather straps at the ankles to prevent mice running up the trouser legs while one was harvesting the corn: In the left hand window can be seen the wide range of domestic uniforms (including maid’s shoes) kept always in stock. By the door are metal trunks. In the right hand window are displays of biscuits, and sugar is offered at l½ d per pound (Lump sugar 2d) The shop also sold cotton material by the yard and a variety of general drapery goods; also straw boaters, binding string, and little oil lamps, mostly brass (but no candles – Mr Kitchener didn’t be1ieve in selling candles!)
To the left of this shop was the Kitchener bakery; behind was the Kitchener pig slaughterhouse and in the basement the bacon hooks. And to protect the goods in the window from the morning sun was a really huge canopy (seen closed in the picture) which came out half across the High Street.