19th century postie and Mum Potts' ice cream

This week's collection of pictures were all published in the County Times in 1975 and 1976 '“ but were taken many, many years earlier.
By The Newsroom
Published 10th Apr 2018, 10:54 BST
Updated 8th Jun 2018, 03:11 BST
A Horsham postman, left, outside 9 Carfax in 1850. The picture was taken by Thomas Honywood and was loaned to the County Times by Mr H TaylorA Horsham postman, left, outside 9 Carfax in 1850. The picture was taken by Thomas Honywood and was loaned to the County Times by Mr H Taylor
A Horsham postman, left, outside 9 Carfax in 1850. The picture was taken by Thomas Honywood and was loaned to the County Times by Mr H Taylor

The County Times has published thousands of old photos over the years but this one of the town postman must be one of the oldest. It was taken in 1850 and was first published in 1975 after being loaned to the paper by Mr H Taylor.A week after it was published, Mrs Winifred Harvey pointed out that it had been taken outside No 9 Carfax – where she was born – by Thomas Honywood. Mr Honywood was an archaeologist and Captain of Horsham’s Volunteer Fire Brigade. He is also believed to have introduced photography to the town – rather a remarkable man.Mrs Harvey wrote: “I was born there in 1896 when Coole and Haddock had the premises. “My father, the late Frank Charman, was clerk with the firm and occupied rooms at the rear and above the offices. “When the building was demolished in the 1930s, Chart and Lawrence extended their showrooms on the site.”Not far from Mrs Harvey’s birth place was the old Stout House which, of course, still stands today. In 1975, Cecil Cramp carefully repaired a picture taken in 1903, which showed five men outside the pub. Mr Cramp had no idea who the men were, which was unfortunate as he was the acknowledged expert on bygone Horsham. He compiled the largest existing collection of historical postcards, films and slides mapping Horsham’s history.Mr Cramp ran Horsham family business Jury Cramp’s Jewellers and Opticians in West Street until its closure in 1985. Jury Cramp’s was set up by his grandfather in 1872 and became a landmark in the town with an iconic large pair of spectacles staring into the town centre from outside the shop. Mr Cramp died in 2007, aged 91.Over in West Street was G Hosking and Sons, a family run butcher’s. Pictured outside the shop in 1925 are George Hosking, second from left, his son Jack, second from right, with Ernest Burchell on the extreme left and Mr Grace on the right. The picture was loaned to the County Times in 1975, courtesy of his daughter, Grace Hosking.George Hosking owned Needles Farm, where he did all his own slaughtering. The Horsham Silver Band once practiced in what used to be his slaughterhouse. The area was developed for housing in the 1960s and 1970s.Jack Hosking died at the tragically young age of 25, four years after the picture was taken.After Jack’s death, the family moved to Chichester, and the Co-op moved into the Hosking premises. George returned in 1935, setting up shop in Queen Street. He retired in 1947 and moved to Selsey.The West Street shop changed numbers from 29 to 27 and was later taken over by Dorothy Perkins. No 27 West Street is now occupied by Greggs.Our final picture was taken some time before 1976 and shows what is affectionately known as Potters Corner.Near the corner of Springfield Road and London Road stood Jackson’s garage but right on the apex – where the Sussex Lighting building now stands – was a shop and house kept by Mrs Ada Potter.Mrs Potter was rather good at making ice cream and became know as Mum Pott by the gaggles of children who swarmed into her shop to buy the tasty treat.One of those children was George Jackson, whose father and many uncles, founded the garage. In 1976, Mr Jackson shared his memories of Mum Pott and his family’s garage.Jackson Bros started life by trading in bicycles, then motorcycles, then cars. As the business expanded, Mr Jackson senior sought further land for establishing a service station on the other side of Springfield Road.He bought the site from Jimmy Rice, whose name continued with the firm, which became the town’s main Ford dealership.George Jackson shared a tale about a wag who, on passing the new Jackson’s site, suggested that was to be a factory producing nappies for baby Austins.While some were not happy about the multi-storey building which took the place of the garage and shop, Mr Jackson thought it made a rather pleasant feature for people heading into the town centre.He did add, with a touch of nostalgia: “But that corner brings back memories of lovely ice cream made by Mum Pott.”Do you have any old photos you would like to share? They can be sent to West Sussex County Times, Springfield House, Springfield Road, Horsham RH12 2RG or emailed to [email protected] .