Sadler and how it grew to take over Dell Quay
Fred Sadler, born in Portfield in 1865, built up his business Sadler & Co from a small shop in East Street, Chichester, called Toogood’s. It supplied agricultural products for the local farming community.
The son of Robert Sadler, a horse dealer and farmer, Fred started work for his uncle as an apprentice at a flour mill in Westhampnett at the age of 17, cycling there each day on a penny-farthing and receiving a wage of three shillings a week. In 1885, when he was 20, his father bought Toogood’s, which had one employee, a horse and a van.
By 1886, English farming had entered a period of depression. The 19th century had seen a lot of change, although Sussex seemed less affected.
Fred Sadler married Florence Byerley, the daughter of miller Frederik Bayerley, at Westbourne on November 27, 1890. In the 1890s, as Fred Sadler built up his business and reputation, he became a respected member of the business community.
As his business grew, he began importing cheaper animal feedstuffs. In May 1897, he signed an agreement with the Mayor, Alderman and Citizens of the City to lease the storehouse on the south side of the quay at Dell Quay at a rent of £5 10 shillings a year. It was the beginning of a long association which lasted for nearly 60 years.
Within two years, Sadler had run out of space but he persuaded the corporation to spend £325 on repairs and build an extension to the storehouse. In 1905, Fred Sadler’s original shop expanded to include 40 and 41 East Street, and several properties in Little London and East Row were purchased. No. 30 Little London was the family residence, where he and wife Florence lived with four children and a servant. This was next door to the seed store and offices.
The East Row property housed seed cleaning equipment, animal feedstuff, as well as corn and hay stores. In one of the yards, Fred Sadler garaged his Rolls-royce. By the 1920s, Sadler had control of the whole of Dell Quay. West Sussex Records Office holds various correspondence between Sadler and the secretaries of the various sailing clubs, discussing rights of way and access.
The import of artificial fertilisers and coal came in by boat at Dell Quay and the export of locally grown wheat and sugar beet was transported by a fleet of vehicles.
In 1928, a large store and mill were built in Terminus Road, where a range of dairy fattening foods were produced, taking over output from a Fishbourne grist mill. By 1931, the mill was used for dog biscuit manufacture by Harrison & Garthwaites, who claimed to be the first baker of meat biscuits for dogs. In 1937, the mill was taken over by Sadler and the company sold various brands of dog food.
In the 1950s, Sadler bought the trading area in the Corn Exchange in East Street. The premises were sold to the book publishers John Wiley.
Fred Sadler died on March 6, 1961, at the age of 95, and was described as being one of the city’s well-loved characters. The seed store and offices in Little London were purchased by the architect Stanley Roth in 1962. He had the building converted to house the Chichester City Museum, where it remained until moving to Tower Street in 2012 and being renamed The Novium Museum. There is a small display of items relating to Sadler & Co here.
• This article has been written using material from Keith Rodmell’s thesis.