Researching a small family business

[MickWarwicker]

Hi,

Can anyone advise me how to find out about businesses that existed in the early 20th century?  I know that my grandfather ran a family in bakery in Kettering, Northants, from about 1911 to the 1950s.  I'm not sure whether to try national company records or local authority records.  Thoughts please?

Thanks
Mick Warwicker
Newcastle upon Tyne

[Rena]

I've not looked at these two websies for several years but I found them very useful.

This University of Leicester website has a searchable database historical directories showing shops, companies, and ordinary people's addresses

https://www2.le.ac.uk/library/find/specialcollections/az/historical-directories

The below website of the London Gazette is a government publication (the publication is over 300 years old) and could show a record of your ancestors if they wound up their business.  It even has records of divorces and I once found the name of my father's brother in one issue, submitted by a firm of solicitors to prove they were seeking relatives of my uncle.

https://www.thegazette.co.uk/

[chempat]

Welcome to rootschat, Mick.

I do not know at all how to find out (what?) about businesses.

However, to get us started, could you give the name of your grandfather, and the name of the business, please?

[maddys52]

Welcome from me too!

Another useful tool is searching newspapers of the day, sometimes there may be an article, or an advertisement, or a mention of the business (or the person). 

For example, there is this advertisement:

"BAKERS, CONFECTIONERS
FIRST-CLASS BAKER and confectioner, able to take charge. Single preferred, large country bakery; references. Head, The Bakery, Weldon, near Kettering, Northamptonshire."

Western Daily Press Thursday,  Feb. 27, 1947

or an article about a visit to a "model bakery" at King St, Kettering in 1947
Tamworth Herald Saturday,  July 19, 1947

[GrahamSimons]

Always worth asking the local archives service. They may have some records, and will have local newspapers and directories.

[macwil]

It would be worth searching Electoral Registers, until 1946 business owners were allowed a vote at both their residence and their business property, yes they had two votes.

[MickWarwicker]

Thanks, those suggestions are really helpful and I will follow them up. What I know so far is that my grandfather, Ernest William Warwicker, had a bakery at 1 Upper Street, Kettering, in 1911. He lived on the premises. By 1939, the bakery had moved to 52 Lower Street Kettering. I am trying to find out more about the bakery business.