Portishead High Street
Portishead High Street was previously known as Mill Street and Duck Street and the water came up as far as the old mill at the beginning of the High Street. Now a pub, the building was for many years called the White Lion but has recently been renamed The Old Mill.
It is thought the first shop opened in the High Street in the 1860s. Named Wedmore’s, the shop was situated opposite Court House Farm, facing St Peter’s Church. More shops followed, mostly during the Victorian era, with a few more in Edwardian times. The majority of new shops after those times have appeared in existing buildings that have been modernised to accommodate current trends.
Two businesses still in open in Portishead High Street today have been operating for more than 100 years. Many more, like Freemans and Careys have been running for more than 40 years.
F H Halliday & Son Ltd
F H Halliday and Son is an independent, fifth generation, family business owned and run by direct descendants of the Halliday family who established the funeral business over a century ago.
In the early 1800s the Hallidays were a family of carpenters, painters and property maintenance operatives, working from a woodworking shop alongside their home at 115 High Street, Portishead.
In the 1870s they were asked to make a coffin and this is how the funeral business began for them. Records show that although the property maintenance business continued, by 1880, F H Halliday and Son was carrying out full funeral services, providing horse drawn hearses and horse drawn mourning coaches.
Halliday’s still holds records written in long hand on every funeral dating back to 1880, which are held in archives and are regularly used to look up past funeral arrangements.
The business was founded by Frederick Halliday and passed to his son William (Bill) and in the late 1950’s his nephew Edward (Eddie) Lawrence joined the business, along with his wife Kitty. Eddie worked in the carpentry workshop and Kitty ran the office and the decorating business. Eddie’s son Glyn joined the company after leaving school at the age of 17.
In 1966 Bill Halliday retired and the company was formed into a Limited Company, owned by the Lawrence family.
Today the company is still owned by the Lawrence family - Glyn Lawrence and his wife Helen. Glyn and Helen’s son Harvey and their son-in-law James work as part of the team too.
Whilst the team at F H Halliday & Son hold traditional values they also realise the importance of choice and have a modern view about funeral services. They offer a truly personal bespoke service and help to families at what is a difficult time, aiming to make the arranging of a funeral as stress free and easy as possible, taking care of all the arrangements in accordance with their wishes.
Tudor Garage
A Real Family Affair
The Coles brothers are proud to follow tradition
Tudor Garage, located in the heart of Portishead High Street, is a fifth generation, traditional family-run business where everyone takes pride in quality workmanship and first-class customer service.
Today the business is run by directors Vaughn Coles, his son Joe and wife Jane. Jane and Vaughn's younger son Luke works as a mechanic in the workshop and Joe's fiancée Rhianna is the accounts manager. The team is completed with experienced mechanics Pete, who is Vaughn's cousin, alongside Phil, Robin and Rob.
How it Began
Thomas Coles founded a haulage business in 1895 at 62 High Street, running a daily carrier service to Bristol with his horse and cart. He was one of the first people in Portishead to own a car and lorry and he saw potential in the repair of motor vehicles. Deciding to expand his business to include this service, he instructed the building of Central Garage at Cabstand.
After World War Two Thomas' son George took over and expanded the haulage side of the business. George had Tudor Garage built at its current location of 51 High Street in 1955, before deciding to sell the haulage business. In 1960 Tudor Garage became the first motor garage in Portishead to carry out the new compulsory vehicle MOT testing.
With his son Brian and brother-in-law Robert, George continued to run Tudor Garage and when he retired Brian and Robert took over. Brian's nephew, Martin Petty, joined in 1972 and in 1980 Brian's son Vaughn started his apprenticeship. When Brian retired Vaughn and Martin ran the business together until Martin retired in 2017.
Proud to see two of his son's following the family tradition, Vaughn says following in his dad and grandfather's footsteps was always a given for him but he is delighted that Joe and Luke decided to join the family firm too, although there was never any pressure for them to do so.
The motor industry has seen vast changes over the years and obviously Tudor Garage has moved with the times, however one thing that hasn't changed is their values. Quality service and good customer relations will always be a priority at Tudor Garage. Not only are they a fifth-generation family run business, they are a local independent firm that can boast several generations of the same families as its customers.
Vaughn says: “You only get that kind of loyalty when you deliver what your clients want. We are proud to serve the Portishead community and provide a first-class service to its residents and beyond.”