Shops and P.O.s

Village Shops

From the census returns the following people have been found:

1841
Elizabeth Davies, Crafty - Fish Dealer
1851
Allen Palmer, Golden Lion (Laurels) - Butcher
Ann Kendrick, Moors - Shopkeeper
David Lewis, Ruelswall - Shopkeeper
John Morgan, Middleton - Fishmonger
1861
Allen Palmer, Golden Lion (Laurels) - Butcher
1871
Mary Kohane, Blackheath - Hawker
1881
Mary Griffiths, Norton - Shop woman
John Charles Hobbs, Schoolhouse - Shopman/Grocer
1891
John Davies, Greenacre - Grocer
William Williams, Milton - Commercial Traveller
1901
William Williams, The Laurels - Shop, General Merchant
Jane Davies, Lanteague (this would be Ashdale - see below on P.O.s) - Postmistress
1911 to be checked

20th Century

Within living memory there have been shops at:

Middleton

Middleton Shop in 1930s
L.to R. Millie Phillips, Pattie Davies (Sparrow’s Nest),  and Millie's sister Florence Phillips.
I know they used to make bread and buns

Sandy Grove

Gladys Wilkins (nee Phillips), sister to Millie and Florence above, would sell cigarettes
Not sure if that is her in the picture.

Oaklands

A small shop was run at Oaklands by Miss Georgie - Georgiana Philipps - Not sure what she sold - but I have heard sweets and crisps.

The Laurels

Rebecca Raymonb and Margaret (Maggie) Morris, later Bowen, outside The Laurels -
probably 1920s.
It has a Victorian letterbox and what looks like a cast-iron roof to its porch.
The shop/P.O. was in the little extension on the left -
where the shop remained until at least the late 1960s.

This outbuilding to the east of The Laurels was also part of the shop business.

21st Century

The garage had a small selection of items (papers mIlk etc) but in 2010 a small mini market was opened at the garage, open from 6am to 10pm.


The Post Office
by Sue James
Published in Llanteg Down the Years

Postal History
Prior to 1635 the Royal Mail was used only by the King or Queen or Royal Court. However in that year Royal Mail opened up to the use of the public, and in 1660 by Act of Parliament the General Post Office started. It was
more organised than previously, although still cost more than most people could afford.
In 1715 Carmarthen to Pembroke was a main mail route, and in 1763 and 1794 further Acts of Parliament paved the way for delivery of mail to little villages. In 1786 official Mail coaches were introduced. These were guarded by two pistols and a blunderbuss gun, and the guards were told to protect the mail with their lives.
The Penny Black stamp was introduced in 1840; and ten years later envelopes were first used, as were roadside letter boxes.

Llanteg Post Offices

The first date stamp for Llanteg was recorded in 1897.  At this time Llanteg was linked to Whitland.  Also in 1897 during Jubilee week the postal arrangements of the parish were rather disorganised, owing to the appropriation of the letter box at the Old Toll Gate by a swarm of bees!
In 1901 a Mrs Jane Davies ran the Post Office at Ashdale. Records show that letters came out from Whitland at 9.25 am and were cleared at 4.40 pm. No Sunday delivery. By 1923 the Post Office had moved to The Laurels (which was also a grocer’s shop). It was then run by Mrs E.Raymond.  Letters were still received from Whitland, but services such as telegrams and money orders had to be transacted at Amroth.
Records of 1926 still show Mrs Raymond as sub-Postmistress, and by 1930 the office had become a sub-office of Narberth.

Centre and right - Maggie and Ivor Bowen

Mrs Maggie Bowen took over from Mrs Raymond, and subsequently - still at The Laurels - it passed over to Mr Ivor Bowen.

P.O. at Stanwell

In 1972, when it now came under Haverfordwest, the office moved to Stanwell.  Here it was run by Mrs Alice Brinsden until 1977, when it moved again, to York House, where it was taken over by Mr Dudley.
During the 1980s the controlling office was Carmarthen.
The office moved yet again in 1992/93 to Llanteg Garage, being run by Mrs Rose Gammon. In the very near future, all Post Offices, large and small, will be linked to a computerised network.
Sadly our post office closed in the early 2000s and the village lost another asset.

Village Postman
As far as mail deliveries are concerned, in the early 1930s the Royal Mail began running its own vans out to villages. Once there it was taken on foot or by bicycle by the local postman.

Mr Willie Allen, Rose Cottage, was a familiar sight cycling round Llanteg delivering mail and lots of other news.

Bertie Bowen, Willie Allen the postman and Maggie Bowen (nee Morris)
Outside The Laurels - telephone box on extreme right.

When the mail van took over from the foot delivery, Willie was often able to undertake general services like collecting prescriptions, shopping, etc.
Sadly those days are gone. Sadly also the ending of Christmas Day delivery in the 1950s - though I dare say not missed by the postman, who many a time must have got home for a very late Christmas dinner having received a lot of Christman ‘cheer’ on the way!

Post Boxes
We now have GPO letter boxes at:

The Folly
George V (1910-1936) old post box which will only take narrow envelopes and not birthday cards.  Now only has a collection in the morning.

York Lodge

The Garage
The old postbox at Llanteg Garage was demolished by a vehicle back in the Summer of 2008.
The damaged one was taken away and for months we were without one in this location.
This enormous specimen got put back shortly before Christmas 2008.
No idea why it is so large, but it had to be specially constructed to fit onto the wall, as apparently they do not do that any more (the previous one had been on a pole similar to the one at York Lodge, but kept getting hit by vehicles getting pertol).
This one could probably accommodate the mail for half of South Pembrokeshire!