June 1895 was not only a happy time for Peter and Fanny Whales, it was also one of
those dates in history that was to help make our hobby of collecting vintage slot
machines a reality. For in June 1895 Oliver Owen Whales was born at Rookery Farm,
Great Dunham, Norfolk. Oliver's mother and father were both well respected and
successful cattle dealers and dairy farmers. They already had five other children, Oliver
at that time being number six. It must have been a very busy household as they also had a
16 year old live in domestic called Lucy Moor. I should think that part of Lucy' s duties
would be to tend to the needs of young master Oliver. Little more is known of his early
childhood other than he attended Great Dunham primary school; a school which is still in
use today and is situated right at the side of St Andrews church in Great Dunham.
When Oliver had finally finished his schooling at the age of 15 years, he secured a
position as an apprentice draper at Garland & sons of Norwich. It was a requirement of
this apprenticeship that he live in lodging rooms above Garlands London Street shop in
the centre of Norwich. He shared these rooms with draper' s assistant James Carr and
draper's window dresser Harold Henry Cland. Garlands was at that time one of the
biggest retail establishments in the area and was still trading until the 1970s, when on 1 st
August the store experienced a huge fire which totally destroyed the building. Although
the shop was rebuilt on the same site, it apparently was never quite the same and it closed
completely in the mid 1980s. I have been told that any historical records that may have
included references to Oliver's time at Garlands were destroyed in this fire.
Whist working at Garlands, Oliver
became acquainted with Helen Edith
G?IRLllND & 50N5,
Newman, who was working there as a
Oressmnk er s. i\\11ntle Mnkc rs .
shop assistant in the millinery
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department. Unlike Oliver, Helen who
was four years his senior, didn't have to
live over the shop, as she was still living
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at home with her mother Esther and her
older sister Eva. They lived at 2
Churchill Road, which was only a short
walk away. It was not long before this
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friendship blossomed into romance, and
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,
records show that in December 1916,
,
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at the age of 21 years, Oliver married
Helen.
The following year, they both
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left their employment at Garlands and
opened their very own business. This as
you would expect was a drapers shop.
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It was located at 6 High Street,
Chelmsford in Essex. Oliver and Helen
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set up their first home in what must have
I J. 15 c. 17, Londo n 5 tred, orwich
been quite spacious and well appointed
0 NORFOLK COUNT
rooms over the shop, as they were to live
.
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