MELVILLE. W.A
. 6156 6th June 1982.
Dear Mrs Green,
When I met you in Collie on the occasion of the celebrations in honour of Miss Wilson, you evinced a keen interest in the early days of Collie.
I am enclosing a copy of a letter I have just written to the Collie Mail - it is self-explanatory - in case it is of interest to you as I do not expect them to publish it in full. Of necessity, I have only put down the bare bones of my reason for writing it, but if you would like any further reminiscences I could furnish plenty - such as my memories of the 1926 floods, when the Co-op bakery was flooded out and they came and shared our bakery and how we had a horse and cart nearly swept away, trying to cross the Co-op. Bridge in those same floods. There was no East End Bridge in those days so the only way bread could be delivered to Coombe Street and other residents on that side of the river was for it to be carried by hand over the railway bridge and transferred to a borrowed horse and cart on the other side. Dad and the Co-op. combined in this operation and served both sets of customers.
Having gone to Collie as a very small girl, and having lived there until 1961, I have many memories of different events - probably of interest only to me! It makes me realise just how old I am becoming, the same as when I look in a mirror at this old face and say,’'Who? Me?" Best wishes - it was a lovely weekend in May, wasn’t it?
70 Kitchener Road
MELVILLE W.A 6156
6 th June 1982.
The Editor,
Collie Mail Newspapers,
COLLIE. W.A 6225
Dear Sir, While perusing ray copy of the "Collie Mail" of June 3rd, I was amazed to read in the article "Delivering us our daily bread... on page 4, the following statement..."The first baker in Collie was Tom Booth who built the bakery, and then baked in it." for the record, Tom Booth was NOT the first baker in Collie. I do not know the name of the first one, but when my father, Hubert William Froude, came to Collie in, I think, 1922, he bought out the existing baker who had a bakery in Wittenoom St., roughly behind the present Auto hotel western end buildings. In addition, a second baker, Mr Catchpole, operated the Collie Bakery situated at the eastern end of Wittenoom Street somewhere around where Western Collieries offices now stand. The Collie Co-op. also had a bakery though I do not know when it commenced. It was in operation during the Twenties. During this decade, or in the early thirties, the Collie Bakery closed. In about 1925 (I'm not sure of the exact date) Dad had a new bakery built on the corner of Throssell and Atkinson streets. Although very dilapidated now, when built over 50 years ago it was one of the most modern country bakeries and had the first dough mixing machine. It was called the Standard Bakery and had a very good name in the district. My father owned it until ill-health forced him to sell out in 1936. The new owner was a Mr Matz who in turn sold it some years later to Mr Tom Booth. Mr Booth later built a new bakery - presumably the one mentioned in the Collie Mail article. Although this letter is probably too long to print in full, I would be grateful if you could just print the relevant fact of there being earlier bakers than Mr Booth., who, incidentally also had a very good name in the trade!
Yours faithfully,
Miss WIN FROUDE
(Note: Hubert Froude is also referred to as Herbert Froude in other documents.)
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