G A Wedderburn Southampton, history

 

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G. A. Wedderburn & Co, Southampton 

 

The name of Wedderburn has been synonymous with weighing machines since the early 1800s. The first scalemaker of the family, Jabez born ca. 1797, was apprenticed to a blacksmith in 1811 for a period of 7 years. His son, another Jabez, born in 1827, established businesses in London and Yarmouth. On his death in 1882 his wife Harriet was to take control for just under two years, until the sons were able to take over the various parts of the business. One son was George Alexander, who was to set up in Southampton shortly after his father's death in 1882. Frederick William was to take over the London business. Jabez emigrated to Australia and set up there. Others left for South Africa and New Zealand.

 

George Alexander was to acquire the scalemaking business of Henry Wood in Bridge Road (later to be known as Bernard Street). Wedderburns manufactured grocery brass beam scales and shop counter scales. These were submitted to the local Weights and Measures inspectors for verification. Wedderburns serviced the scales they sold, with engineers visiting their customers' premises on bicycles, or by pony and trap, up to four times a year. The 'restamping' of trade weights was carried out by a Weights and Measures inspector who would set up his test beam scale in the local village hall.

 

There was a change of management by the end of the First World War. George Alexander died in 1918, and his first son Herbert, a Captain with the Hampshire Yeomanry, died on active service in France that same year. Lionel, George's second son, was given compassionate leave from war service in Burma to take over the running of the business.

 

In 1933 the business became a limited company, continuing to trade in the sale and service of all types of weighing equipment, including the new automatic scales with price computation charts, which were beginning to be introduced from the States. A new showroom was opened in Christchurch Road Boscombe in 1939 in addition to the service depot which had been operating from Bournemouth since 1900. WW2 however was to cause the closure of this branch within the year, mainly due to the great difficulty in finding skilled staff. This branch was reopened in the 50s, in St. Paul's Lane.

 

Disaster was to strike in Southampton in December 1940. 54 Bernard Street was destroyed by incendiary bombs during a devastating air raid on the town. Fortunately most of the company records had already been transferred to Lionel Wedderburn's home, where a new office was set up. Alternative works premises were found in Cambridge Road Portswood. The company became involved in sub-contract Admiralty work for J. I. Thorneycroft & Co of Woolston as part of the war effort, building "J" class destroyers for the Royal Navy.

 

They moved to their current Shirley Road premises after the war in 1946, returning to their original trade of supplying and servicing weighing machines. Gordon Wedderburn (Lionel's eldest son) joined the business in 1950, his younger brother Colin entering the family firm in 1957, after working as a marine engineer. 

 

Today Wedderburns act as main agents for well-known makers of cash registers such as Casio, Sharp and Uniwell, and have diversified into shopfitting, whilst the weighing machine division remains a major part of the business.  Wedderburns sell and service both retail and industrial weighing equipment, ranging from electronic warehouse pallet scales capable of weighing loads to 6,000 kgs, to fine precision balances registering grammes to a decimal point, as well as the latest in food ingredient/price labelling scales.  

 

A fourth generation of Southampton Wedderburns entered the business in 1986 when Gordon's son Peter  joined the group as financial director.

 

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Contact email: Peter Garwood