David Borrett: The life and work of William John Randall

He was born in 1865 at 47 Chantry Street, son of builder John Randall and his wife Sophia, a dressmaker. The family moved to the upper High Street in the early 1880s where father John set up shop as a ‘fruiterer’. There is evidence that William was trading in poultry: in 1888, he was involved in the prosecution of one James Ashbee who had secured seven dozen rabbits from William, and not paid for them. A similar episode occurred in 1894, both reported in the newspapers, but I have found no other record that William was in this trade. It must be the same William Randall as his address is given as 71 High Street. Certainly, the Hampshire directory of 1891 shows father and son John and William Randall occupying adjacent shops at 69 and 71 High Street, William then running a cycle agency but with no mention of poultry. A later advertisement (see below) implies that William’s cycle business started in 1884 but such dates can be fanciful.

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Whether poulterer or cycle agent, William must have prospered to the extent that in 1898 or thereabouts, he moved to large premises at 3 High Street, where he was to remain throughout his business life. His parents moved there with him and all would have lived above the shop, though his mother Sophia died the following year. William’s main business was certainly bicycles but by then he was also manufacturing them on the premises and providing an all-encompassing repair service.

During the 1890s there would have been great strides in motor transport and this was something that evidently interested him. He became an agent for several different manufacturers of early motor vehicles, besides offering transport for hire. Once or twice he was summoned for what was called ‘furious driving’ and in driving some ladies between Bath and Calne, there sadly occurred a fatal accident when a young child ran across the road in front of him.

In 1900, he married Esther Maria Childs at St Pancras, London but the union seems not to have been a happy one. Two children were born – Dulcie in 1903 and another who died as an infant but William and Esther separated in 1915.

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Hiring out bicycles could be a risky business as the bicycle was worth far more than the cost of hire. William Thomas paid for two weeks’ hire in July 1900 and although he was subsequently arrested and charged for failing to return the machine, the bicycle itself was never recovered. The thief was sentenced to a month’s hard labour.

A full-page advertisement of 1907 shows how the business had progressed by that time. Supposedly established in 1884, The Andover Motor and Cycle Engineering Works, as it was termed, had a workshop for repairs and a showroom. He was the sole local agent for Humber, Argyll, De Dion and Clement Talbot vehicles, while Landauletts and open cars were available to hire with skilled and careful drivers. It was a depot for Michelin and Dunlop tyres and any tyre could be repaired on the premises using the Harvey Frost process of vulcanisation. Accumulators were re-charged and Pratt’s Shell and Carless spirit was available there. This was before the era of the petrol pump and all fuel was sold in gallon cans. An early patron of the local telephone exchange, the Randall telephone number was simply 11.

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One experiment that did not work out was the provision of a motor bus service. He bought a two decker 24-30 horse power Dennis omnibus, with seating for 32 people and luggage, intended to fill a need for transport between Andover and Tidworth. The increasing military presence at Tidworth meant there was an untapped customer base here for Andover shops and although a train could be taken from Andover to Tidworth via Weyhill and Ludgershall, the distance to the Junction station from the town was inconvenient for shoppers with a heavy load.

The timetable for the Andover-Tidworth route was published in the Andover Advertiser, showing the many stops that were available on route. Generally, there were three runs each day and a fourth on Saturdays. Return fares from Andover to Ludgershall were 1/6d, and Tidworth, 2/-. The final stop was Aliwal Barracks where there was much building in progress. A return fare to the barracks was 2/6d. There were also a whole host of different charges for shorter trips that were part of the journey: from Andover to Millway Road was 1d, while Andover to Weyhill was 5d. However, the prices were too high and within a week they had been cut to attract passengers but the service did not get sufficient support and it was discontinued after a few weeks. Not until 1920 was another scheduled service attempted in Andover.

However, W J Randall’s business continued to advance and by 1913, he had opened premises at 4 Bridge Street. The rear of both sets of premises met at right angles so formed a convenient space for garaging vehicles. Around this time, he added ‘wireless engineer’ to the list of his services. But competition in his various fields was surely increasing. Motor garages were established in several places around the town after World War I – William Lott’s Star and Garter Garage at the bottom of London Street, Macklin’s garage in Bridge Street near the town river and Moore’s Garage near the Town Station.

By now, William John Randall was an old man. Soon after 1934, the Bridge Street premises were closed, to be replaced briefly by another wireless engineer, William Dale, before becoming men’s outfitters, Robert Gray. The High Street side was still Randall’s in 1940 but must have closed soon afterwards. William John Randall himself died in 1945 and by 1947 the premises had been split into two with another cycle agent on one side and Blair’s café and restaurant on the other. This latter became Stuart’s café in the early 1950s, while a branch of the National Provincial bank replaced the cycle agency.