Yeovil's Virtual Museum

Thomas Frisby

Shoemaker

 

Thomas Frisby, known as Tom, was born in Frisby on the Wreake, Leicestershire, in 1856. He was one of the nine children of agricultural labourer Joseph Frisby (1824-1883) and Lucy née Duffin (1825-1899). Joseph and Lucy's children were Joseph (1848-1902), William (1850-1924), Sarah (b1852), George (b1854), Thomas Edward (1855-1937), Tom, Mary (b1858), and Charles (b1865).

Tom's eldest brother, Joseph, was the founder of one of the earliest chains of boot and shoe shops in the country. He is known to have been selling boots and shoes by 1872. He also ran market stalls in several towns on different days of the week. Joseph Frisby opened branch shops as well as market stalls and had to employ assistants to help run these outlets and, for preference, his managers were married men. By 1880 another brother, William, had moved with his family to Dorchester, Dorset, where he managed one of the largest branches, at 14 South Street. This traded as ‘Frisby’s Great Leicester Boot Warehouse’.

To return to Tom; by 1871 he was working as a farm servant at Hoby Leicestershire. In the autumn of 1878 he married Sarah Campbell (1860-1893) at Malton, Yorkshire. They initially lived in Huddersfield where their daughter Edith was born in 1880. Tom was, presumably, working for his brother Joseph and by 1881 they had moved to Yeovil to open a new branch of the family business at 109 Middle Street, where their second daughter Mabel was born. In the census Tom gave his occupation as 'Shoemaker, employing 2 men and 1 boy'.

It is likely that the family were only in Yeovil long enough to establish the new branch of the family business since they then moved to St Helens, Lancashire, where children Edward (b1883) and Lillian (b1885) were born, this was followed with a move to St Margaret, Leicestershire, where daughter Florence Beatrice was born in 1889.

In 1893 Sarah died at Leicester and at some point during the next decade Tom married widow Emma née Firth, formerly Stork (although I couldn't find a record of the marriage).

In a round-up of where to buy items for Christmas 1899, the Western Gazette reported "To those in search of a good strong pair of boots, an inspection of Messrs Frisby's large stock at their establishment in Middle Street, will repay. Here, too, one may choose from a large stock of ladies' and gents' dancing shoes, slippers, &c., at prices to suit all."

By 1901 the Frisby's had left Yeovil and returned to Leicestershire. They lived at 27 Clarence Street, St Margaret, and Tom was working as an auctioneer's clerk. 

 

 

This photograph probably dates to about 1880 when John Rundle was the saddler and harness maker whose shop is at right, on the corner of Union Street, opposite the Castle Hotel. Tom Frisby's premises were next door to Rundle's as seen by his sign.

 

From my collection  -  This photograph features in my book 'Yeovil From Old Photographs'.

This hand-coloured postcard was post-marked 1904 but the original photograph actually dates to about 1890 when the licensee was John Wilkins and his name appears under the Castle Hotel sign that projects into the road at high level. The sign for Tom Frisby's shop is seen at right.

 

The view looking towards the Borough from Middle Street around 1900. Tom Frisby's shop is at extreme left in this photograph.

 

From my collection

Middle Street photographed (I'm guessing) in the early 1930s. By this time Frisby's shop was on the north side of Middle Street and closer to Bond Street - even though Tom Frisby had left Yeovil some thirty years earlier.

 

The upper portion of Middle Street, seen here in 1986. There were an awful lot of shoe shops in Yeovil during this period.