Welcome to the Gibbs of Bedfont website. This site documents the history of 150 years of service to the farmers and market gardeners of Southern England. The firm of J. Gibbs traded under 5 generations of the same family until 1997. This is the st…
The site at Bedfont. Longbridge House is the large building in the foreground on the left. The Spinney cottage and blacksmith’s shop can just be seen centre back, standing slightly separate from the rest of the buildings. The Great South West Road…
Herbert recognised the potential of power driven vehicles on solid tyres and with the end of the First World War providing many redundant military vehicles, he was quick to seize the opportunity. Soon Gibbs were adapting old lorries for use on farms…
In 1920 the firm designed and built the first Gibbs Hampton Pattern Wheelbarrow, specially designed to negotiate the narrow doorways and aisles of the greenhouses in Hampton, Middlesex where flowers, especially carnations and chrysanthemums, were gro…
The horticultural trade around London was also thriving, with growers using greenhouses to provide a wider variety of flowers and edible produce. Gibbs, as usual, was ready to supply this trade with specialist equipment.
‘Bedfont, November 18th 1850. Gentlemen, I will make 6 navigating barrows at 10 Shillings each with ash sides, oak base and Elm boards with a wood wheel 1 foot 6 inches high with hoop tyre and painted.
J. Gibbs.’
The continuing expansion of Heathrow saw the loss of land once used for growing produce and at the same time, its close proximity caused problems for the remaining farmers. Whilst Gibbs benefited from supplying equipment to the airport, it lost many…
Gibbs opened a branch of the firm in Ripley, Surrey in 1938. This branch specialised in agricultural equipment and designing and installing irrigation systems; in 1948 they won the contract to supply a new irrigation system for the White City stadiu…
Gibbs worked with the firm of David Brown from the start of Brown’s involvement with tractors in 1936. It proved to be a very successful association and Gibbs were appointed London area distributor for them in 1958. The association continued after…
Just as the lorry took over from the horse-drawn wagon, so the tractor superseded the horse on the farm. As usual, Gibbs was quick to supply this wonderful new invention, together with all the implements which it could operate. They had a long as…
Gibbs specialised in building vehicle bodies to meet customers’ specific needs. They bought in the chassis frames and built on a body for a particular purpose, often to the customer’s specification. Lorries used to carry crates of produce to market…
Herbert had four sons, the eldest William John (1896 to 1916) was killed in the First World war. Herbert commissioned a stained glass window in William’s memory which is sited in the chancel area of St Mary’s Church in Bedfont. His three remaining…
Awarded first prize at the Middlesex Agricultural Society Show on the 5th October 1900. The winner’s plaque can be seen in the Gibbs history display at the Rural Life Centre.
As time passed the business flourished and the range of goods and clientele expanded. Although agricultural wagons and implements remained the mainstay of the business, the firm expanded into building private carriages, commercial vehicles and other…
The expanding business resulted in Herbert renting more land adjoining the original site and then in 1907 he purchased the original site and the plot next door. Herbert bought lots 5 & 6. The Spinney is the building shown in Lot 6 in the bottom ri…
This petrol station was built on land which Herbert originally rented in 1898 and later purchased. The building is still in existence and can be seen from the A30.
Joseph’s eldest son, Herbert John, joined the business as a wheelwright’s assistant. He was described as a thin, delicate man, but his skills led to a considerable expansion around the turn of the century. Herbert was interested in new developmen…
John’s grandson, Herbert John Gibbs, continued the family tradition, designing many items including the horse-drawn marker seen here. This horse-drawn marker was used to mark out the fields so that the seed could be planted quickly and evenly.
The…
John Gibbs quickly realised that he could specialise in equipment for the expanding fruit and vegetable industry. One of his innovations was a lightweight cart for transporting strawberries. It was important that the fruit should arrive at market…
The load was then pulled to the road by horses and taken to the grower’s yard by steam engine. Here they were watered by hose to keep them fresh and taken to Covent Garden early next morning in wagons pulled by horses for speed.
When John Gibbs began the business, the horse was an essential form of transport and vital for most agricultural work. As Bedfont was in the middle of a busy farming area, there was plenty of work for the new firm, making and mending both horse draw…
The founder of the business, John Gibbs was born in Chalfont, Bucks in 1792. He began his working life in Cowley, Middlesex and then in 1844 he started his own business in Bedfont as a wheelwright and blacksmith. It is likely that he chose this are…
