George Hedgecock – Shoreham Shoemaker

Jan Townsend

George Hedgecock was Shoreham’s well known bootmaker in East Street during the first half of the twentieth century and one of the town’s first cycling enthusiasts in the 1880’s. This collection of family photos is kindly donated by Jan Townsend, the granddaughter of George Hedgecock. Jan has also allowed us to include the story of George’s 1912 motorcycle marathon which can be seen at http://www.shorehambysea.com/1912-shoreham-edinburgh-motorcycle-marathon/  

Hedgecock Photos 

GH1 – Alan Upton’s article on George Hedgecock from the Shoreham Herald 1stFebruary 2001.

GH2 – Herald article reporting 75 years at East Street 18th June 1954.

GH3 – Newspaper article 1958 on George’s exploits as a Victorian penny-farthing cyclist.

GH4 – G. Farley, Arthur Eade & George Hedgecock in Shoreham Cycling Club photo 1885. 

GH5 – The original version of the 1885 photo

GH6 – In racing kit of the time. George Hedgecock’s mount was a Singer standard penny-farthing model with solid tyres. Cycling trips of over 100 miles on this heavy machine were not unusual but must have been very demanding.

GH7 –  Lady Cyclist Florence Harker, 1889. Daughter of George Frederick Harker the proprietor of Harker’s Ironmonger’s Stores. Shop owners were well known to each other and, of course, cycling colleagues were too.  Later photos show that the Harker’s were friends of the Hedgecocks and Eades.

GH8 – Mary Enid Hedgecock. George’s sister assisted him initially in the shoeshop and later married Bill Winton, the Shoreham photographer and postcard manufacturer (see article on William Edward Winton) (photos Winton Collection.

GH9 –  Eade’s Bakery in East Street circa 1900. George Hedgecock’s shop is on the left.

GH10 – Eade’s Stores in the High Street just round the corner from East Street. Caroline Stillaway worked here for a while and soon caught George’s eye. (photo Sussex Archaeological Society)

GH11 – The wedding of George Albion Hedgecock and Caroline H. Stillaway 1897. George and his new wife are seated and behind them, left to right, are his sister Mary Hedgecock , best man Arthur Eade, brother William Hedgecock and sister in law Hetty Lilian Stillaway. (photo Winton Collection)

GH12 – Lilian (b.1901), daughter and first child of George and Caroline. Their second child was George Arthur (b.1903, for some unknown reason he became known as Tim by his family) – the youngest was Reginald (b.1906).

GH13 – Shoreham Motorcycle Club circa 1912. Club members and their mounts in Church Street shortly before setting off on an outing. George Hedgecock is on the second motorcycle from the left; Myrtle Eley (b.1885 nee Winton) is on her Singer Moto Vito (second from the right); Reg Eley, her husband, is on the extreme right seated on a Singer 6 and sister in law Daisy Winton (b.1882) is riding on the pillion behind him.

GH14 – Friends of the Church Gathering circa 1915. Thought to be in the garden of 2, Southdown Road, the home of the Rev.William Stephen.Andrews M.A. Rev. Andrews was the vicar of St.Mary’s about the 1911 to 1915 period. Perhaps this is the occasion of h is retirement? George Hedgecock is standing at the back wearing a white, wide brimmed hat. Caroline is the fourth person to the right from him.

GH15 –  St.Monica’s School, East Meadway, Bungalow Town circa 1914. The reverse of this photo has noted on it “School held at 5, Gordon Road” but the photo shows Mrs.Baker who used her bungalow “La Margeurite” to run a school. Lilian Hedgecock is thought to be standing on the extreme left and Jessie Winton sitting on the ground, second from the left. There is no recollection in the family of Lilian attending this school which would have had to be reached using the ferry. Perhaps Gordon Road was a later school.

GH16 – Another Garden Photo.  Members of the Eade and Hedgecock families are included. George Hedgecock is standing on the extreme left, Arthur Eade is in front of him and Caroline is seated on the right with her daughter Lilian. The identity of the striking looking woman in the centre with what seems to be her two daughters either side of her is not known.

GH17 – York Lodge, Southdown Road 1910.  York Lodge was the home of the Eade family and next door at ‘The Elms’ was George Frederick Harker who had inherited his father’s ironmonger’s business in the High Street.  Arthur Eade and George Hedgecock had known each other since their cycling days – Florence Harker, George Harker’s daughter, was one of Shoreham’s earliest lady cyclists and may well be in this picture. George Hedgecock is seated on the right with his wife, Caroline, behind him. Arthur Eade is next to George. Seated third from the left is thought to be George Harker – Lilian Hedgecock is sitting at the front with her brothers Tim (next to her) and Reg on the right.  

GH18 – George Hedgecock and his family shortly after his marathon motorcycle journey to Edinburgh and back in 1912 .  It is not clear if the motorcycle in this photo is a Singer machine but the sidecar is now metal bodied rather than the wicker-work one used on the trip. The surroundings appear to be in Buckingham Road and the children look as if they are holding new bicycles – perhaps the price George had to pay for his two weeks absence from the family! (see ‘The 1912 Shoreham/Edinburgh Motorcycle Marathon” on the Shorehambysea.com website and at the West Sussex Library Services) (photo Winton Collection).

GH19 – Hedgecocks in Bungalow Town. An image from the Winton collection but showing Tim, left,and Reginald third from left. GH20 – Reg, George, Lilian, Caroline and Tim Hedgecock circa 1920. (photo Winton Collection)

GH21 –  A snapshot in Western Road.  George Hedgecock with his wife Caroline seated behind him and probably his sister Susanna Bessie Hedgecock in the sidecar.

GH22 –  Tim Hedgecock and his mother on George’s motorcycle.

GH23 –  Wedding of Tim Hedgecock to Joan Large 1930.  Standing, left to right George Hedgecock, Reg Hedgecock, unknown, bride’s father Mr. Large. Seated Caroline Hedgecock, Tim, Joan Large, Mrs. Large. Tim and Joan were Jan Townsend’s parents and she remembers visiting their sweetshop in Brighton where they were allowed to play in the shop but were expressly forbidden to touch any sweets – ‘for children as young as us it was almost torture’ recalls Jan.

GH24 – A Walking Holiday in Cornwall. George Hedgecock was a great walker and spent many holidays doing just that. This photo shows him third from the right with what is likely to be members of the Winton and Spence families.

GH24a –  The Wintons in Cornwall  Geraldine Winton (nee Spence), her husband Stanley Winton and Geoff Winton with their caravan on holiday in Cornwall in 1930. The Hedgecocks accompanied them on at least one occasion (photo Jon Spence) 

GH25 – A Walking holiday in Devon. The notes on the reverse also say that George’s companion was Mr. Leicester.

GH26 – The Hedgecocks near Ringwood in the New Forest. George eventually left his beloved motorcycling and purchased a car, doubtless using it to motor to Devon and Cornwall for his walking holidays with the Wintons and Spences. This particular vehicle is also to be seen with George at the wheel in W8f of the Winton collection.

GH27 – The shop at 12/14 East Street around 1900. Repairs then were gent’s boots soled and heeled 2s/9d, ladies’ 1s/9d, children’s 1s/-.

GH28 –  East Street shop circa 1920. Shortly after the window front was extended.

GH29 –  East Street shop decorated for the 1937 coronation of George VI.

GH30 –  East Street shop front circa 1950 with the flint walls now rendered.

GH31 –  East Street shop front circa 1960. Now sporting a modern entrance gate. The shop eventually closed in 1962 after 84 years of trading.

GH32 – One of Tim’s window displays circa 1960

GH33 – Another display of Tim’s that won an award from Dunlop.

GH34 – The Bus blown off the Toll Bridge on 31st December 1947.

GH35 –  Retrieving the bus 1.

GH36 –  Retrieving the bus 2. Joan Hedgecock, Tim’s wife, tried to catch this particular bus to travel back from Worthing but just missed it. Luckily though none of the passengers were seriously injured.

GH37 – Scene of the fire at Holloways Engineering. The works were at the riverside site just west of the Brighton Road/New Road junction (Parcel Force in recent years) but no record has yet been found of the fire. The Hedgecocks intermarried with the Holloways.

GH38 – The Great Snowstorm of January 1881 (1). This view is thought to be of the field above Buckingham Park.

GH39 –  The Great Snowstorm of January 1881 (2).  The Sussex Pad and Lancing College.

GH40 –  The Great Snowstorm of January 1881 (3).  St.Nicolas church from the railway line.

GH41 –  The Great Snowstorm of January 1881 (4).  The Old Shoreham Road  with Hooper’s Cottages and St.Nicolas church in the distance.

GH42 –  The Great Snowstorm of January 1881 (5).  Mill Lane looking north.

GH43 –  The Great Snowstorm of January 1881 (6).  Trinity Cottages at Southdown Road/Mill Lane junction.

GH44 – The Great Snowstorm of January 1881 (7).  Brunswick Road looking north.

GH45 – The Great Snowstorm of January 1881 (8).  Brunswick Road looking north again but from further south.

GH46 – The Great Snowstorm of January 1881 (9). Southdown Nursery, Southdown Road.

GH47 – The Great Snowstorm of January 1881 (10). High Street looking west from Marlipins Museum.

GH48 – The Great Snowstorm of January 1881 (11).  High Street looking across to shops.

GH49 – Victoria Road/Hebe Road junction looking south during 1897 Jubilee procession.

GH50 – St. Mary’s church looking east. 

GH51 – View from St.Mary’s tower looking north-east circa 1920. A beautifully clear photo and unusual in that closer foreground shots in this direction are rare.

GH52 – View from St. Mary’s tower looking east. circa 1920. On the left a flint built house or storehouse still stands next to the Wesleyan Methodist church, a steamship lies moored in the middle distance and beyond it is the Chemical Works on the other side of the river. 

GH53 – View from St. Mary’s tower looking south-east circa 1920. Another clear photo but showing Curds  building contractors showrooms on the south side of New Road. Hedgecock descendants still talk of the time when this was a cinema and the corner shop (now the Galleria) was a pub.  

GH54 – View from St. Mary’s tower looking south-west circa 1920.  A narrow photo that loses much from what would have been included in a portrait configuration shot. Nevertheless, once again a clear photo – occupants can be seen emerging from 19 Church Street (centre, below).

GH55 – Staghounds,at Bungalow Town 1910.

GH56-  Shoreham and Norfolk Bridge from the river circa 1910 (1)

GH57 – Shoreham and Norfolk Bridge from the river circa 1910 (2)

GH58 – Norfolk Suspension Bridge circa 1920. A photo used by A. A. Godfrey in later years for one of his best known paintings.

GH59 – Norfolk Suspension Bridge. Taken around 1915 the motor bus crossing the bridge is of a particularly unusual design with a body that slopes upwards from the front to back.

GH60 – Looking north-east from the bridge to the town. A photo that appears elsewhere in our records but this one shows a wider view.

GH61 – Harbour Entrance looking north-east. The angle of the ship’s masts in the middle distance, left, and others in the far distance, right, emphasizes the large tidal drop at Shoreham.

GH62 – Harbour Entrance looking north. The Kingston lighthouse is on the left and  in the middle distance to the right are the houses on the Brighton Road.