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Other postcards

Abingdon postcards

Whilst researching Victorian photographers in Abingdon, we realised that many also branched out into producing picture postcards and we have sought to add a representative selection of their cards to our collection. The dedicated page contains much information about these photographers, their work and studios. Some postcards were also produced by Abingdon based printers and stationers such as T.Leach, Burgess & Son, and Baylis & Co., and we include here a short background to those publishers not otherwise covered on the Victorian photographers in Abingdon page.

Warland Andrew

Warland Andrew is described on the dedicated Abingdon photographers page which can be accessed via the 'BITS&BOBS/Victorian photographers ' menu tab.

Baylis & Co.

In the census of 1851 we find George Baylis living in Stert Street with his wife, Sarah, and two young daughters, Martha Ann and Eliza. His occupation is noted as being Bookbinder. By 1861 they are still noted as living in Stert Street, but they now have another daughter, Susan, and his occupation is Printer & Bookbinder. Daughter Susan would later marry James Burgess, see Burgess & Son below.

5 Market Place circa 1880/90
Detail from postcard by Valentine, "SEPIATYPE" Series No. 363166 5 Market Place in 1901
Image ©The Francis Frith Collection

Kelly's Directory of 1887 has an entry for Baylis & Co. printers, booksellers, stationers, bookbinders & fancy repository, Market Place. Later directories from 1899 and 1903 now record the business as being at 5 Market Place and 55 Stert Street. This photograph, also in the Oxfordshire County Council collection (ref POX0122936), was taken by Henry Taunt in 1901 and shows the frontage of the shop at 5 Market Place carrying an advert for the Printing Works at 53 Stert Street and a large sign above, 'Ye Olde Printinge Workes'. It is possible therefore that they occupied number 53 before moving to, or expanding into, number 55. When exactly this business stopped trading is not certain, but George Baylis had died in 1873 and so it continued trading under his name for many years after.

Whilst there have been cosmetic changes made to it over the years, number 5 Market Place
5 Market Place as seen in 2022 is still recognisable.

Burgess & Son

James Burgess first comes to light in High Street Witney where he is living with his parents, three brothers, sister, and a cousin. He is recorded in the census of 1871 as being aged 17 and employed as a Printer. He married Susan Baylis in 1878 and must have moved in to live with her and her widowed mother to help with the Baylis & Co printing business. The 1881 Census shows him as being a Stationer & Printer and Susan as Printer's Wife. They have two young sons, Harold Baylis, and James Ernest. It is recorded that they are employing a 16 year old apprentice printer, a general servant and a nursemaid.

Susan's mother is thought to have died in 1895 but James and Sarah stayed in 5 Market Place with their two sons. By the time of the 1911 Census, James Ernest has married and they are now living in Victoria Road, he is noted as Printer & Stationer. James Burgess is still living with Susan and son Harold Baylis Burgess, now aged 31 and a Bank Clerk, at 5 Market Place. He is still recorded as a Printer & Stationer.

The business of Burgess and Son came into being between 1903 and 1907 as Kelly's Directory of 1907 now has an entry for Burgess & Son printers, booksellers, stationers, bookbinders, & fancy repository, 5 Market Place & 55 Stert Street and by the 1915 edition, the range of services has been extended to printers, relief stampers, booksellers, stationers, bookbinders, toy & fancy repository still at 55 Stert Street and 5 Market Place. A telephone number has been added to the entry, being Abingdon 55. The Market Place shop eventually closed but the printing business continued to grow, relocating its printing works to larger modern premises and becoming, under new owners Bezier, the largest independent greetings card manufacturer in Europe. It was a shock when it was announced in June 2000 that Abingdon works was to close. The whole site has been redeveloped and nothing remains but the name lives on in Burgess Close.

William H.Hooke

Stert Street in 1893
Image ©The Francis Frith Collection

When William Hooke married Annie Holden in Guildford in 1873, he is recorded as being a Stationer with his place of residence being Market Place, Abingdon. By the time of the 1901 Census, he is a Painter and Stationer and an employer. He is living with his wife and young family of three daughters and a son at 2 Albert Park, where they would remain. By the 1911 Census, his family had grown to include six daughters and three sons who now have a domestic servant to help them. He is now recorded as being Painter, Bookseller and Stationer. Henry Hooke died in 1937.

Confirmation of his business address comes in the 1899, 1903,and 1907 editions of Kelly's Directory which show him as trading from 17 Market Place and 8 Stert Street, which are one of the same as the building had entrances on both streets. The Electoral Registers between 1911 and 1935 record him as living in Park Crescent, with a freehold shop and warehouse at 17 Market Place. In the view of Market Place from 1893 above, the premises of William H.Hooke at number 17 can be seen in the corner to the left of Queen Victoria's statue. The Stert Street frontage and entrance can be seen at the end of the range of buildings on the right in this view of Stert Street from the same year.

His youngest son, John Holden Hooke, followed into the printing business as he is recorded in the Register of 1939 as being a Master Printer. He was a member of the Auxiliary Fire Service and wrote a book, published in 1945 by John Hooke Ltd. (then part of the Abbey Press group), about the history of the Abingdon Fire Service - but we digress. It is in the mid to late 1930s, possibly following Henry Hooke's death, that the business aquired 57 Stert Street for use as its printing works. This placed it next door to Burgess & Son the printers who were already at number 55, named 'Ye Olde Printinge Workes'.

W.H. Hooke produced a large number of local postcards. These were published both under his own name and by others, such as Frith's, with him being credited as the originator of the image.

Thomas Leach

The 1881 Census shows Thomas living with his parents in Stroud, he, as is his father, is shown as being a Cloth Worker. He married in 1886 and by the 1891 Census he is living and working in Reigate as aStationer and Newsagent. He and his family are known to have moved to Abingdon, being his wife's home town, sometime after 1901. The census of 1911 shows him as being aged 54 and a Stationer with three daughters and four sons, all born before the move to Abingdon. Eldest daughter, Florence, is a Stationer's assistant, and eldest son, Frederick Horlick, is a Printer. Second daughter, Kathleen, is recorded as being a Photographer. Their address is 52 Ock Street where they were to stay for many years.

Thomas Leach started his business in Abingdon around 1901 printing stationery, Christmas cards and Easter cards for the clergy on a small hand press in an upstairs room of the family home in Victoria Road. A small printing works was soon established in a building behind Bath Street, with son Frederick in charge. Early reference to Thomas Leach can be found in the Kelly's Directories from 1903, 1907 and 1915 where he is noted as being Thomas Leach, printer & stationer, 2 & 4 Bath Street. The business expanded across Abingdon to include newsagent shops on Oxford Road and the Market Place, as well as a stationers on Bath Street all run by Thomas and another son, Victor. The business of Thomas Leach Limited was incorporated on 26th March 1925 with Victor a director. In about 1937, the company bought 54 Ock Street from the Barnett family, who had run a mineral water and sweet factory there. This became the new Head Office and printing works until moving into modern premises in 2008. At the time of writing the company had grown into a highly successful commercial printer and large format print specialist.

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