Luton history: For the love of chocolate

A National organisation the "English & Scottish Co- operative Wholesale Society" opened it's own Cocoa factory in Dallow Road Luton after moving it's activity from London.

The opening on September 8th 1902 was welcomed by the town, with 300 workers employed.

All spheres of unadulterated chocolate was produced by good quality cocoa beans carefully roasted, the shells cracked producing the "nibs" that are ground under heat and the chocolate brown fluid oozes out, followed by additional ingredience and pressed through hydraulic presses the liquid chocolate poured into moulds ,cooled and ready for packing .

A few years later the factory was extended , New High Speed engines installed enabling to produce the ever increasing demand for Chocolate.

The total output over the first 7 years was just over a ton of chocolate doubling to 2 and half tons within months, employing a further 200 workers to meet the increased production.

All employees worked a 44 hour week with 14 days paid holiday, a vast improvement compared to the erratic seasonal Hat trade, Christmas time the factory was in full swing ,filling fancy and useful articles with "quantities of chocolate ".

The Cocoa Industry didn't escape the general waves of depression,especially during the 1st War ,however they manged to overcome them.

Mr E J Stafford was the appointed manager in 1902 , having previous connections with the Lemans Road , London factory, but in 1917 his health was failing a new manager was sought.

Mr Oliver Henry Edwards moved to Luton from Glasgow in 1914, he had 30 years experience working in the chocolate industry, in 1917 he was appointed the new manager of the Luton Cocoa factory .

Searching into Oliver's past turned up a rather unexpected surprise 20 years earlier, that had it been revealed would have changed his life dramatically.

Rewinding to 1887 in Birmingham Oliver married a young widowed Johanne Barden ,she had 2 daughters, shortly they move to Dundee where Oliver finds employment at the Chocolate factory, 3 more children were born however in 1897 Johanne died.

Oliver grieving and 5 children to raise ,within 12 months he surprisingly marries again in Dundee , but not is all it appears.

The marriage recorded in 1898 was an " irregular marriage " attended by only 2 witnesses and in the presence of a " Sheriffs Warrant", 3 weeks later a child is born, however the new bride( mother of the child ) vanishes, no death record and no evidence she is alive, just disappears.

The stigma attached to this extraordinary event , Oliver and the children leave Dundee and return to Warwickshire where he marries again in 1902 registered as a widow.

Oliver and his new bride Mary travel to Ireland, returning to Lancashire, finally settling back in Glasgow , his occupation is foreman of the Chocolate factory.

The opening of the Luton works offered Oliver and his expanding family a new start, whether his undiscovered secret emerged within the family is unknown, however the 1898 marriage in Scotland was illegal due to a lawful impediment which was overlooked to protect the forthcoming birth of a child.

The mysterious bride never returned, however her sister disappeared at the same time emerging 10 years later.

Oliver Henry Edwards resided with his family at the " Limbury Manor House " Blackswan Lane Luton , he died in 1943.

I wonder how much chocolate went amiss, Cyril Vincent the nightwatchman at the Luton factory pleaded guilty of 4 offences , he pilfered a suitcase full every night.!!