It wasn’t just a place to work…it was a way of life and one which generations of men and women lived and loved for so many years.
How times have changed. Factories in Norwich and across Norfolk have gone and today many people are working from home.
Also gone is the friendship and common interests shared by the men and women who produced a large range of goods which, at one time, were sent across the world.
One place where people were proud to work, and where many spent their entire careers, was Colman’s, at the self-contained “industrial city” which was Carrow Works.
For thousands of people, since the 1860s, this was their second home…and Colman’s looked after their workforce and their welfare.
They were part of the “Colman family” – they had their own school, the first female industrial nurse in the land, Phillipa Flowerday, cut-price meals, houses and much more.
In 1868 they sold 10,000 pints of tea and coffee and 14,000 dinners to their staff….and that was just the start.
A Works Council was also established where bosses and workers actually sat down together and exchanged views.
Our pictures today come from copies of the wonderful Carrow Magazine in the early 1960s which give us a flavour of what was going on when the workers had clocked off.
The clubs included:
- Angling
- Badminton
- Billiards
- Bowls
- Cricket
- Darts
- Football
- Hockey
- Judo
- Netball
- Table tennis
- Tennis
- Yacht Club
And they were just the sporty ones!
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