OLD PLYMOUTH . UK
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WHO WAS WHO IN OLD PLYMOUTH

WILLIAM BOLITHO TRAHAIR (1855-1934)

With a middle name like Bolitho it is very obvious that Mr William Bolitho Trahair was a Cornishman.  In fact he was born in the Parish of Madron, Penzance, in 1855.  His father, Mr Nicholas Trahair, was the Land Bailiff for Mr Edward Bolitho, of Trewidden House, Madron, Cornwall, where he looked after 310 acres.  His mother was formerly Miss Elizabeth Bolitho, whom Nicholas married in 1847 at Penzance.  BY 1861 she had given him five sons and one daughter: Richard Hitchens Trahair, born 1848; Nicholas Trahair, born 1850; Elizabeth Trahair, born 1851; John Trahair, born 1853; William Bolitho Trahair, born 1855; and James Trahair, born 1857.  While John Trahair was later apprenticed into the drapery trade his younger brother William Bolitho Trahair went into the grocery trade.

In 1880 Mr William Bolitho Trahair married Miss Eliza Curwood, of Tiverton, Devon, at the Ebenezer Wesleyan Methodist Chapel in Saltash Street, Plymouth.  The census taken on Sunday April 3rd 1881 shows that they went to live at number 8 Longfield Terrace, Mutley, and that he was a commercial traveller in the provisions trade.  It is probable that he was working for his older brother, Mr Richard Hitchens Trahair, who was a wholesale provision merchant, importer of Dutch produce and flour factor. in Willow Street, Plymouth.

By 1890 Mr William Bolitho Trahair was a grocer's commission agent and merchant, in business at number 193 Union Street, Plymouth, and living at 6 Hemerdon Terrace, Alexandra Road, Plymouth.  By 1901 Mr and Mrs Trahair had moved across the river Tamar to Port View Tower, Saltash.  His wife was not at home but with him were his mother, Mrs Elizabeth Trahair, now a widow; his sister, Mrs Elizabeth Hancock; and two nieces, Miss Emily E Monk ands Miss Mary Hancock.  Mr Trahair was now an employer although still a commission agent in the grocery trade.

Mr Richard Hitchens Trahair (1848-1901), who had by 1891 moved from Bristol to Saltash, Cornwall, died there on April 14th 1901.

The census taken on Sunday April 2nd 1911 shows that a widow lady, Mrs Grace Redding Gloyn, was running a wholesale grocery business with one of her sons, Mr William John Gloyn, at number 57 Notte Street.  Just a few years later, in 1914, that address is shown as being next to Mr William Bolitho Trahair's Globe Stores, at numbers 58 and 59 Notte Street.  He sold proprietary brands such as Globe Metal Polish and John Master's Matches.

In the meantime, in 1912, Mr Edwin Elliott Farley (1864-1949), the son of the late Mrs Ann Farley (1820-1901), the baker of what were to become Farley's Rusks, was looking to emigrate to Canada, to join his older brother.  He offered the secret recipe for the rusks to another baker, Mr Solomon Stephens (1864-1950) for just £100 but he declined it.  Instead it was purchased by Mr William Bolitho Trahair.

He moved the bakery to number 14 Notte Street in 1915 and installed a packing department at 42 Woolster Street.  By now the biscuits were known as the "4Bs" - 'Bright Bonny Baby Biscuits' and those words were imprinted on each biscuit with a hand roller.

Two men and two boys used to produce an average of twelve baskets of rusks each, the baskets holding about 3,000 biscuits each.  These were taken by handcart to the packaging department in Woolster Street.  This was staffed by six girls, one man and a boy.  So careful was Mr Trahair about the quality of his product that the girls had their finger nails inspected at the start of the working day and because he was an ardent Methodist lay preacher, they had to learn a passage from the Bible before they would be employed. 

The floor of the packaging room was some three feet off the ground because the spring tides often used to flood the premises and when that happened the store man used to ferry the girls to work in the handcart.  The same handcart was then used to transport the packed products to the railway station.

When Mr Trahair took over the business he agreed to retain the services of Mr Collick, the baker, and Mr Farley's niece, Miss Morley.  She used to read serial stories to the young girls during their lunch breaks and apparently locked herself in the mixing room when preparing the secret recipe.

So successful this these "rusks" become that in 1919 the Trahair family gave up their other agencies, formed Messrs Farley's Infant Food Limited (note that the word 'food' is singular) and the following year moved production to Woolster Street, where they installed an electrically driven gas heated 'travelling oven'.

On Wednesday August 6th 1930 work started on the construction of a new factory at Torr Lane in the Parish of Weston Peverel/Pennycross.  The site was previously Corporation allotments and covered about 1¾ acres outside the City boundary.  The new factory was to be constructed entirely of concrete and brick, finished with white cement.  The roof was of Delabole slates. The grounds were to be laid with ornamental shrubs, flowers and lawns.

Mr William Bolitho Trahair died at his home, number 17 Thorn Park, Plymouth, on Tuesday September 4th 1934 at the age of 79 years.  He had been associated with the business life of Plymouth for some 60 years and was also chairman of Messrs Henry Lawry Limited, wholesale ironmongers.  The funeral service was held at Mutley Wesleyan Methodist Chapel, where he had been a Sunday School teacher, on Friday September 7th 1934 but his body was interred at Saint Justin Penwith, near Penzance, Cornwall.  The Reverend G Leonard Robinson officiated.  Mr Trahair's Obituary in the Western Morning News stated: 'He was of a very retiring disposition, but his keenness to foster the principles of Liberalism was strong.  He did a great amount of good in a number of ways but, typical of his quiet, unassuming character, it was known but to a few'.  His widow was unable to attend the funeral.  His estate amounted to £52,990 9 shillings and eleven pence.

The business continued under the control of his older brother, Mr Richard Ernest Trahair (1874-1938), the eldest son of Mr Richard Hitchens Trahair  (1848-1901).