As a child I remember people mentioning the ‘milk train’ between London and South Wales, but was never sure if it was first up or last down or both. Before I married, my fiancée and I went to stay in Bermondsey with her aunt who had been in the milk trade in London, but was now running a local shop. Over time I became more aware of the strong Welsh links to London, centering historically on the milk business, developing out of droving activities. The Welsh had dominated the London milk business.
On our recent trip back to west Wales we ended up in a lovely book store in Cardigan (Awen Teifi Bookshop). Whilst my wife decided how many Welsh language books she could actually carry, I browsed and came across a book on the London Welsh milk trade, the families and their shops. Published by Y Lolfa in 2018, it had not come across my radar before.
The book tells the story, in both English and Welsh, of the milk trade between Wales (and especially Cardiganshire/Ceridigion) and London. It begins with the droving history but focuses mainly on the migration from Welsh speaking rural farming west Wales to urban sprawl London and the reasons, economics and cultural shifts within this. It is a tale of product distribution and industrialisation but also so much more.
At one level the book is inherently Welsh; being all about families and relationships and placing people in the patchwork of community of place, both in Wales and then in London. But it also contains a fabulous treasure trove of pictures of the retail stores that these families operated and some insight into the supply of milk to the growing English capital.
These pictures are for me the essence of the book. They are a first class compendium of shopfronts (and very occasionally shop interiors) drawn from their family histories and memorabilia. As we found out with our Sanders saga, store interiors are often lost to history (anyone who wants to share any let me know) but these shop fronts provide a time capsule of retailing and products (not only milk, though getting milk direct from the cow in the back of the shop in the early days is one notable distribution solution). The quality and pride shine through.
Most of these stores are now long gone of course, defeated by retail progress and change (and sometimes by war-time bombing damage). But some still remain – albeit in other uses – and a few photos at the end of the book make this point. One in particular stood out (see below) and I am pleased to note that this is Grade II listed. Next time I am in London I want to seek it out.
Original Photos of 35 Conway Street London by Leighton Morris
The author – Megan Hayes – sums up the history she portrays succinctly in terms of markets and change:
“The drovers provided London with cattle bred on Welsh pastures, while dairy cattle keepers provided milk for the growing population of the city. That trade ultimately adopted and developed, by and large, by a population of dairymen mostly from Cardiganshire. Later, economic pressures led to their demise, yet some dairies survive to this day in the hands of people who are proud of their roots and origins”
It is all too easy to be nostalgic for what was a very hard life – in the book, the families note that the milk business was a tough life, day in and day out – and we should try to avoid this. But we can I think revel in some of the shops and the people who created and ran them. This book allows us to do just that.
Megan Hayes (2018) Y Lon Laeth i’r Ddinas: Hanes Llaethdai Cymry Llundain/ Cows, Cobs and Corner Shops: The Story of London’s Welsh Dairies. Y Lolfa. ISBN 978-1-78461-526-0. £14.99.
Stirlingretail 
A nice piece Leigh. Some discovery that.
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Super. Just ordered the book.
Have you seen Jeremai Smith’s map of burton buildings?
No I don’t think I have. Do you have a link?
Does this work for you?
https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1tAPSD51wm01djRrI6LraDYMIBuc&usp=sharing
Cofion –
Thanks. It works I have seen an elephant head “score” by @laidbymonty which is interesting
There’s good literature on Monty! Here
Click to access U3A.pdf
is a talk I sometimes give on the topic.
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I have read this book and purchased it in Cardigan a few years ago. I have communicated with the author to ask about one of the photos which I thought might have been my mother but sadly it was not. I come from a welsh background and my grandfather and my father had dairies in London from the end of the 1800’s up to the mid 1950’s. The author of the book had advised me that she had put enquiries into Welsh papers asking for people to contact her with their connections with welsh dairies in London. I and my brother were unaware of this so we missed the boat, otherwise my family heritage of dairies might have been included. I am the only surviving member of the family with some limited knowledge of matters. My brother who was born in 1936 was eight years older than me and therefore knew much more than I do, but unfortunately he passed away in 2016.
D W H Rees
David, thanks for leaving a comment. Really interesting though sad it was not your family. In a different piece of work (Sanders Brothers) we have used the Census to track down material as the managers/owners lived above the shop. Given you possibly have 1891, 1901, 1911 (and 1921 to come soon) to look at, if you have names or/and addresses you might find something and then link to the major London archives. We have also found the British newspaper archive very useful, and in another context again the use of Welsh language newspaper searches. Leigh
What a beautiful interior! If I’m ever in London again I’ll have to visit. Came across an image of the shop on Instagram and onward to this. Copy of the book now ordered! (No relation to Megan as far as I’m aware – shame!)
Thanks for the comment. There are some lovely surviving shops around the country and some of the examples of the Welsh dairies are worth seeking out. The book was really interesting to me.
In a similar vein not sure if you saw this other post of mine in a Scottish company – https://stirlingretail.com/2020/09/03/the-buttercup-dairy-company/
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My Great Uncle Llewelyn Lloyd from Llangeithio Ceredigion had a brother Dai Lloyd who was a lawyer and ran Lloyds Dairies Anwell Street Islington. The building is still there and was at one stage a museum for the Welsh dairy industry in London and was opened by Huw Edwards the BBC presenter.
David, apologies but I misses this comment at the time. Do you have any more information of the the museum and what happened to any exhibits?
Apologies Leigh. I am not sure what happened to the museum exhibits. I think that the building is a hairdresser shop now.
Amwell Street
I assume you have seen https://alondoninheritance.com/london-streets/lloyds-dairy-lloyd-baker-estate/
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I was told by my Mum that her Dad worked in a dairy in London in St Marks Axe during the 1930s and into the war period but my cousin said it was a Welsh dairy in Wrestler square. Was it sure if you had come across one in this area at all? Thanks
Helen, I would not know but I will check the book to see if mentioned, unless you have already
Have you come across the David Morgan family, who after Cardigan Militia went to Stepney and Whitechapel as Milk Men – lived Back Church Lane, and eventually his son in law John Myers ran the business. David was also a Carpenter (source: Parish Baptisms) and seemed to alternate between the two occupations.
Prior to London, David Morgan had been with the Militia defending Fishguard from the “French Invasion” and married in Havorfordwest where there were Cardiganshire Militia Barracks.
I shall endeavour to find the book mentioned.
Hilary, I have not come across them, but I am not an expert in families. Was in Whitechapel last weekend. the book is well worth looking out. There are also great online sources for areas of London (London inheritance and others) and their past.
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Two of my uncles and aunts had dairy’s in London all came from The Llanybydder area one in Enoch Jones Victor Dairy in Chelsea and Jack Davies Park Dairy I think it was in Ealing.
Two of my uncles and aunts had dairy’s in London all came from The Llanybydder area one Enoch Jones Victor Dairy in Chelsea and Jack Davies Park Dairy I think it was in Ealing.
My wife’s family from Lampeter and Bermondsey based.
Nice one Leigh I now Lampeter very well Jack Davies had a small holding called Penybontbren a half mile outside Llanybydder on the Rhydcymerau road and Enoch came from Penprisk Lllanllwni a couple of miles outside Llanybydder, I have photos of both shops in my possession.
Hi Leigh I worked in the Bermondsley area in the early 60s we also had two guys from there working for us there names Jackie and Paddy Hughes I often wonder if there still around Regards Hefin.
The wife’s aunt shop and was on Jamaica Road, Bermondsey. Can’t see the shops you mentioned in the book. Sure Megan Hayes would be interested in seeing your photos, as would I.