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Frank Westwood
It is with great sadness that we report that Frank passed away on 19th January 2006 at Queen Alexandra Hospital, Portsmouth, after a short illness.
Loving husband, father, granddad and brother; and proprietor of the Petersfield Bookshop since 1958.
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| Frank Westwood 1929 - 2006 |
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| Frank Henry George Westwood was born in Cricklewood, on 31 January 1929. His father, Percival, was a London bus driver, and in the early years of the war, he evacuated his wife Rebecca and sons Frank and John, to the Hertfordshire countryside, to escape the bombings. They lived with a cowman and his family. After a while, the cowman found himself another job in Gloucester, and the young Frank went with him, staying for about a year, before returning again to his own family in Harrow. It was during this early introduction to rural life that Frank developed his lifelong interest in the natural world and country pursuits, particularly angling – a hobby which he continued until very recently – enjoying fly fishing on the Rivers Itchen and Test. |
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| After leaving school at age 13, his first job was with the Oxford University Press, as a general assistant. One of his special duties, which must have been both terrifying and exciting for such a young lad, was to act as look-out on the roof of the building, and sound the alarms whenever a Doodle Bug came into sight, so that the staff could evacuate and take cover! He stayed there for a few months, and just as he was about to start a new job as a plumber’s mate, his uncle told him of a vacancy in a bookshop in London. Frank’s new overalls were never used, as despite his father’s objections, he took up this new career. His new boss was the well-known bookdealer, Francis Edwards, with premises in Marylebone High Street. From here Frank’s passion for books grew, and he acquired his education, knowledge and skills that belied his very basic early schooling, learning from the likes of Tooley, the great maps expert, who also worked at Francis Edwards. Frank’s friend and colleague in those early years was Reg Remington, who still works today as an independent bookdealer. With Reg, Frank developed another interest which he continued for the rest of his life – cricket. Who would have believed that the two of them practiced regularly in the basement of those prestigious premises! |
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| But there was so much more to the young Frank than books and cricket practice. In the late 1940s he was called up for National Service, and having been a sea cadet in his early teens, he naturally chose the Navy. He trained as a signaller on HMS Mercury, and learned to type - another skill that was to prove useful later in his own business as he catalogued and computerised his book stock. He served on board HMS Superb and Cleopatra, took up boxing and trained for the famous Field Gun Trials. Unfortunately he was forced to give up the latter when his leg was injured during one of the training exercises. |
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| On completion of his National Service, Frank returned to Francis Edwards, and in 1955 met Ann Johnson, and they married a year later, when she was just 18. After a day’s outing to Petersfield in Hampshire, they fell in love with the town, and when a vacancy arose for a manager at the Petersfield Bookshop, they relocated from London, and so began their long association with bookselling in the town. At this point, the business was owned by a Mrs Field, and was based at Number One, The Square. Soon after she moved the shop to 2 Chapel Street, but then decided to sell the business, at which point, Frank decided to buy it and make it his own. This was quite a commitment, bearing in mind that Ann was pregnant with their first child! Not satisfied with becoming a new businessman and father, later in 1958 the Petersfield Bookshop acquired new premises at 16A Chapel Street, where it has been ever since. From here he continued to expand the business buying adjacent buildings (including an old abattoir), dealing in second hand and antiquarian books, maps and prints, and starting to provide his customers with picture framing services, together with book and print restoration. He and Ann also travelled widely in the UK, America and Japan, attending annual book fairs. Frank became widely respected for his knowledge and expertise and in 1988 was awarded the Royal Warrant by Her Majesty The Queen for the supply of artists’ materials and picture framing. Seven years later he received another Royal Warrant, this time from The Prince of Wales. |
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| In 2002, at the Olympia Book Fair in London, Frank was honoured by the Antiquarian Booksellers’ Association, for over 50 years service in the book trade. To mark the event he was presented with a specially engraved book rack. Frank, who always had an eye for a pretty lady, was doubly delighted to receive this award from the beautiful Joanna Lumley! |
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| But with all his business successes and varied interests, Frank was above all devoted to his wife and family, and despite working long hours, he always found time to support his children and grandchildren, passing on to them his hobbies and passions, and encouraging them in theirs. The love of books was inherited by both David (who went on to train as a book and paper conservator and now works for The Queen in the Royal Library at Windsor Castle), and by John, who, after leaving school joined his father in the business and worked alongside Frank, buying and selling books from Chapel Street. Frank supported each of them in their respective hobbies – David with his interests in trains and model railways, and John in his following of Portsmouth Football Club. And with his much loved daughter Mary Ann, he took great pleasure in simpler pastimes – holidays in Florida, and trips to the zoo and pantomime. With his three grandchildren he found a renewed zest for life, with shared interests in cricket, football and of course fishing! |
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| Over the last four years, Frank experienced more and more mobility problems despite having received a replacement hip and knee, – and those who knew him well, accepted his almost trademark grumpiness (which was a symptom of diabetes rather than a personality defect). But neither of these deterred him from continuing to work six days a week (right up to the week before he died) or from attending his grandchildren’s school events such as sports days, school assemblies and plays. And everywhere he went and in everything he did, Frank was himself supported, encouraged, scolded and loved for over fifty years, by his devoted wife, companion and best friend, Ann. |
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| After taking ill suddenly on 16th January, Frank was admitted to Queen Alexandra’s Hospital in Portsmouth, where he died on Thursday 19th, surrounded by his family. He is survived by his wife Ann, sons David and John, daughter Mary Ann, three grandchildren Matthew, Marcus and Yasmin, and his younger brother John. |
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| © Margaret Westwood 2006 |
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| Please note that The Petersfield Bookshop, will be open for business as usual from Saturday 28th January, out of respect for Frank. |
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Recent addition to stock:-
*****
Cary (John, c. 1754-1834), Smith's New English Atlas, 46 double page engraved county maps by John Cary (21" x 19"), dated between 1824 and 1828 hand coloured in wash and outline, index complete, lacks engraved title page, disbound, folio, 1832ed?, £4800.00
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