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PETER SHRUBSOLE
b 1 Feb 1856 Stanford, Kent, England
d 11 Sep 1932 Folkestone, Kent, England
Peter was born 1 February 1856 in Stanford to Thomas Shrubsole & Maria Matcham, one of their 8 children.
He was educated at Lympne School which he left at the ripe old age of 9 years. He then became a farm servant ending up as a Motor Bus Driver.
'Old Peter' was the first man to drive a public service in Folkestone ca 1903.
His obituary taken from newspaper cuttings says it better than I so have copied below:
Taken from Folkestone, Hythe, Sandgate & Cheriton Heralddated 17 Sep 1932
ECHO OF FIRST MOTOR DAYS
Death of Mr. P. Shrubsole
It is with deep regret that we have to record the death on Sunday of Mr. Peter Shrubsole of 2, Alexandra Mews, Folkestone, after a long and painful illness.
In the passing of Mr. Shrubsole, who was in his 77th year, Folkestone has lost one of her best known and popular figures.
Mr. Shrubsole was a pioneer in the true sense of the word. He was the first man to drive a motor coach in Folkestone, after receiving his tuition at Coventry in company with the late King Edward VII’s chauffeur.
Known to all his friends and acquaintances as "Old Peter", Mr. Shrubsole had lived in Folkestone practically all his life.
He was born in 1856 at Stanford, near Ashford, being the second son of the late Mr. & Mrs. Thomas Shrubsole. He attended Lympne School as a boy, having to walk three miles from Stanford in order to do so.
On leaving school at the age of nine, Mr. Shrubsole obtained employment in Folkestone at a brickyard near where the Skew Arches now stand, and there he drove a steam engine for a number of years.
FROM STEAM TO PETROL
Then, soon after the introduction of motor-
After having learnt to drive at Coventry, Mr. Shrubsole became a motor-
In the days of this first service between Hythe and Folkestone, the motor-
Later he left Mr. Bloome’s employment and entered the service of the Folkestone Motors, Limited and he was the first man to open up the Cheriton Road for public motor service.
In this employment Mr. Shrubsole remained for over 13 years, at the end of which he had to leave his post through the motor-
When they were sold he drove them separately from Folkestone to Rigden’s at Whitstable, to whom they had been sold, and he remained there to operate a service between Whitstable and Canterbury.
LAWN MOWER DRIVER
Not liking this occupation, Mr. Shrubsole left after a period of four or five months, and on returning to Folkestone he was employed by the Folkestone Corporation to drive their first motor lawn mower, which was used for cutting the lawns on the Leas and in Radnor Park.
He subsequently went to the Royal Pavilion Hotel, where he worked in the engine room for about four years. When this post terminated he considered himself too old to accept the responsibilities of permanent employment, and in the last few years of his life he occupied his time with a little odd-
Mr. Shrubsole was of a humerous turn of mind, and on one or two occasions he went on The Bayle, and such was his clear intonation of the cuckoo’s note that the residents in the neighbourhood vowed they had heard the cuckoo, long before the bird had actually arrived in this country.
GOLDEN WEDDING CELEBRATIONS
Mr. Shrubsole was married on July 12th 1879 at Christ Church, Folkestone, to Miss Rebecca West, of Newington, and they celebrated their golden wedding in 1929.
Mr. Shrubsole’s death is the first in the family since his marriage. He leaves a widow, and the six sons and six daughters of the marriage are all still living, together with his one adopted son. He also leaves 41 grand-
Curiously enough, all the six sons have followed in their father’s footsteps, and are all motor-
One of the sons is in Canada, and five of them saw action in the Great War, all coming through safely. The adopted son was taken a prisoner of war five weeks after he had arrived at the front in 1914 and remained in a German prison camp for nearly four years.
All the sons and daughters are married with the exception of the youngest son.
THE FUNERAL
The funeral took place at Hawkinge Cememtery on Tuesday, the Rev. C. Stonehouse (Vicar of Christ Church) officiating at a short service in the Cemetery chapel and at the graveside.
The principal mourners were:
The widow.
Messrs. Charles Shrubsole, Herbert Shrubsole, Denis Shrubsole, Ernest Shrubsole, David Shrubsole (sons),
Arthur Beard (adopted son),
Mrs. Jinnie Mount, Mrs. Olive Hill (daughters),
Messrs Frank Hill and William Swindail (sons-
Mrs. H. Shrubsole, Mrs. Ernest Shrubsole (daughters-
Miss Dora Sharp and Miss Olive Sharp (nieces)
Mrs. Dennis Shrubsole, Mr. Edgar Swindail and Mr. Frank Shrubsole (grand-
And Mrs. Adams.
LIST OF WREATHS
There were beautiful floral tributes as follows:
From your loving wife and son (David).
In loving memory, Jinnie (daughter), Daisy and Charlie
To dear daddy, Eliza (daughter) (Canada)
Loving sympathy to dear dad, Rose (daughter) and Tom (Gravesend)
With sincere sympathy, Char (son) and Maggie
With all true sympathy, Daisy (daughter) and George (Bristol)
Ever in our thoughts, Eva, Bert (son) and family
To our darling daddy, Ruth (daughter) and Bill
In loving memory Jim and Den
In loving memory of our dear dad, Winnie and Ern (son)
In loving memory of our darling daddy, Olive (daughter) and Frank
"Daddy", your little boy (Gordon)
In loving memory, Maudie and Frank (grandson)
IN affectionate remembrance, Harriet and John (Maidstone)
Deepest sympathy, Dolly and Charlie (Ashford)
Ever in our thoughts, Mr. Mrs. Beard (Sellinge)
In loving memory of dear grand-
With deepest sympathy, Mr. And Mrs. Adams.
With sincere sympathy, Mr and Mrs. Wm Smith.
Fondest love, Mr. And Mrs. Linkins (Deal)
With sincere sympathy Mrs. G.J. Johns
With loving sympathy, Olive and Ivy (Maidstone)
With loving memory of a dear friend, neighbours of Alexandra Mews.
In affectionate remembrance and deepest sympathy, Mr. And Mrs. Huntlea, Ted and "Nobby"
In kindest remembrance to one who was so faithful and loyal to Engineer-
With deepest sympathy, proprietor and staff at Brockman Road Garage.
Mr. And Mrs. Ingram, (Sunnyside), Hawkinge.
