Harry Dolman
Henry James "Harry" Dolman OBE (6 August 1897– November 9, 1977) was a well-known Bristol businessman, starting off as an engineer who later bought out the firm he worked for, Brecknell, Dolman & Rogers Ltd. (formerly Brecknell, Munro & Rogers Ltd.). He later became chairman and president of Bristol City FC.[1]
Early life[edit]
Harry Dolman was born in Kington Langley near Chippenham, Wiltshire. His father was by trade a farmer and also landlord of a village pub.
He enlisted as a reservist in the Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry at the age of 16 in 1913 and was called up for active service in the First World War on the day before his 17th birthday. He served in France from 1915 to 1917 and was then selected for officer training, being commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Gloucestershire Regiment. He subsequently volunteered for the newly-formed Royal Air Force and commenced pilot training, but was transferred back to the Glosters in February 1919 and was demobilised in October. He briefly reenlisted as a reservist in the Yeomanry as a private.[1]: 19, 21, 24–35
Brecknell, Dolman & Rogers Ltd.[edit]
Starting out as a 21-year-old junior draughtsman in the engineering firm within six years Dolman had become chief engineer and by 1929, managing director. The company's products ranged from egg grading machines to ticket and change issuing machines, many of them Dolman's own inventions. It was also credited with making turnstiles for the London Underground. At its height the business employed 1,600 people. The scope of its original purely mechanical machines was expanded considerably when in the 1960s BDR acquired the Brislington-based electronics company Redcliffe Electronics which was renamed Brecknell-Redcliffe Electronics and continued in the development of electronically actuated ticket and coin machines, obtaining a number of patents in this field.
The company was given the Queen's Award to Industry in 1968, for "technological innovation in food packaging machines".[1]: 139–140 [2] Dolman himself was made an OBE for his services to export in the 1970 New Year Honours.[1]: 178 [3]
The firm then known in 1969 as BDR Machines (or with affection in Bristol as Dolman's) was sold to the Vokes Group and in turn was taken over by Thomas Tilling in 1972. A year later in spite of protests by the employees and trade unions, the decision was taken by Tilling Group, to abandon the business altogether.[4]
Association with Bristol City F.C.[edit]
Dolman was a keen footballer from an early age. During his military service he turned out once for the prestigious Aldershot Command team.[1]: 30 . After moving to Bristol in the 1920s he both played as an amateur and supplemented his earnings by refereeing.[1]: 39 Living in the Eastville area, he was a regular attender at the nearby Eastville Stadium of Bristol Rovers, eventually becoming a season ticket holder. In the late 1930s he was invited to a Rovers board meeting but found he disagreed with the business decisions being taken, and was not invited to become a director. Former Rovers manager Albert Prince-Cox then suggested he meet Bristol City chairman George Jenkins, who had a similar business outlook, and he was subsequently appointed as a director of City in 1939.[1]: 59–63
Harry Dolman was chairman of City between 1949 and 1974,[5] he designed the first set of floodlights installed at Ashton Gate stadium in the early 1950s and was fundamental in the design and build of the Dolman Stand which opened in 1970 at the cost of £235,000.[6]
In 1974 having been deposed as chairman, he took on the presidency which he held until his death in 1977, aged 80. His wife, Marina, now holds this position.
Personal life[edit]
After his brief service in the RAF, Dolman retained an interest in aviation and in 1935 built a Mignet "Flying Flea" aircraft in his garage. It was granted a permit to fly and registered as G-AEHM. Dolman made a few short flights from Bristol (Whitchurch) Airport in 1936 but the plane proved difficult to control and he "broke a propellor every time". The type was subsequently banned after a number of fatal accidents. His aircraft is now part of the Science Museum Group's collection.[1]: 52–58 [7]
Dolman married Doris Parnell on 2 September 1919.[1]: 32–33 They had four children born between 1920 and 1929: Ron, Ray, Frances ("Frankie") and Hazel.[1]: 47 The marriage broke down by about 1945, at which time another couple were divorced on the grounds of the wife's "misbehaviour" with Harry, and thereafter they lived separate lives in the same house in Staple Hill.[1]: 72–73 Harry and Doris were finally divorced in April 1961, and in the same month 63-year-old Harry married his 24-year-old secretary Marina Crossley.[1]: 118–119 . They settled at Chew Magna and remained married until his death in 1977. Marina Dolman subsequently became president of Bristol City and in the 2017 Birthday Honours was made an MBE for her services to football, whereas Harry's OBE had been for his business career.[1]: 192
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Powell, Martin; Burlton, Clive (2017). Harry Dolman: the Millionaire Inventor Who Became "Mr Bristol City". Wraxall: Bristol Books. ISBN 9781909446144.
- ^ "No. 44568". The London Gazette (Supplement). 18 April 1968. p. 4521.
- ^ "No. 44999". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 January 1970. p. 10.
- ^ [1]| Hansard, the Official Report of debates in Parliament, May 10th 1973.
- ^ http://www.bcfc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10327~907099,00.html%7C Bristol City FC Website 'A Big Day For Ashton Gate', posted: October 6th 2006
- ^ http://www.bcfc.co.uk/page/Records/0,,10327~63412,00.html%7C Bristol City FC Website - 'Potted History', posted: June 6th 2008.
- ^ "'Flying Flea' light aeroplane". Science Museum Group. Retrieved 9 June 2024.
External links[edit]
- http://www.bcfc.co.uk Bristol City Football Club's official website
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