Tribute to popular Frodsham man

A man who spent more than 50 years working for a Frodsham haulage company has received a lasting tribute on the site of his former place of work. Jimmy Johnson was a popular worker at Helsby & Longden Ltd, which was based in Bridge Lane – now home to Redrow Homes’ Manor View development.

He joined the company after serving as an engineer during World War II and worked both in the workshop and out on the road, eventually becoming fleet manager.

During his time at Helsby & Longden Jimmy became a close friend of the Longden family, who allowed him, his wife Elsie and daughter Barbara to live in one of the houses that they owned in Langdale Way, overlooking the yard.

When he reached 65, Jimmy stayed on at the company beyond retirement age and in the latter years worked with Simon Longden on renovating Helsby & Longden’s Thornycroft bus.

The pair took the fully-refurbished vehicle to be displayed at numerous Thornycroft Society Rallies and it still runs today.

Unfortunately Jimmy died suddenly in 1999, at the age of 79, in the Bridge Lane workshop which meant so much to him.

As a lasting tribute to Jimmy and his love for the area, Preston Brook based developer Redrow Homes (North West) has planted a tree in his memory at the Manor View development.

Patsy Aicken, Redrow sales director, says: “We were really touched to hear Jimmy’s story and it is a pleasure to be able to honour him in this way. Redrow is more than just a house-builder, we like to get involved in and support the communities in which we build and this is a great opportunity to remember the history and heritage of this particular site in a very personal way.”

The tree planting ceremony was attended by members of Jimmy’s family, who travelled from all over the UK to attend the event, as well as representatives of Redrow and their landscapers.

David Ryder, Jimmy’s great nephew, says: “Jimmy was one of a kind, nothing was too much trouble and he would always be on hand to help.

“He was well-liked by both friends and work colleagues and we feel very fortunate to have been able to say that Jimmy was one of our family.”

Helsby & Longden Ltd relocated its haulage business to the Ashville Industrial Estate, by junction 12 of the M56 motorway, in 2005, when it sold the Bridge Lane site to Redrow, who subsequently built and sold 44 apartments and 15 houses. The development is now completed and fully occupied, but Redrow is building new homes at Chapel Gate in Ditton, near Widnes. For information log on to Redrow.co.uk.