Henry James Stretton-Ward was born in Coventry in 1895. He was the son of James Ward (a lodging house keeper) and Florence Rose Squirrell (the eldest daughter of the Rev. Christopher Squirrell), thus making him the Reverend Squirrell’s grandson.
In 1912, after a private education, Henry joined the Great Northern Railway in the chief engineer’s office at King’s Cross, London. He was with the GNR when the First World War started and tried on several occasions to join the armed forces. However, on each occasion he was refused due to being medically unfit.
He still managed to serve his country however, when in 1915 he left the railway and moved to Coventry to take up a position at the Premier Cycle Company as a motorcycle tester for the War Office. This was a position he also held after a move to the Triumph Motor Cycle Company.
Forfield Motors
1919 was a momentous year for Henry, as not only did he get married but this was also the year he left the Triumph to set up his own business as a motor cycle engineer. He set up Forfield Motors in the former stables of Warneford House , joining his mother, aunt and grandparents who were living at Warneford House at the time.
It was also around this time that he took up competitive motorcycle trials riding, becoming very successful in the years following the First World War. Plus it may also be around this time that he hyphenated his third Christian name and his surname to Stretton-Ward.
Leamington’s first motorcycle club
His three great passions were veteran motorcycles, having organised Leamington’s first motorcycle club, early cinematography and steam locomotives. Sadly, increasing ill health meant he had to give up active involvement with the first two but remained Hon. Secretary of the Railway Correspondence and Travel Society up to his death. This was a position he had held for 25 years.
Henry passed away at Gower House, 11 Radford Road on 28th May 1958 and was cremated at Canley crematorium.
Comments
Good article. He also took lots of cine film of working railways. Some of his film was used in a series of videos produced by WH Smith. There were 5 videos, titled memories of 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s.
Thanks for this, am always interested in the contributions of the cottage industries to Britain’s motor heritage.
Mr and Mrs Stretton-Ward were my uncle and aunt and my memories of them go back quite a long way! To the best of my knowledge the stables at Warneford House were only used for storage, the motor cycle business itself being carried on from a house on the opposite corner of Forfield Place and Radford Road. That building is still there but looks very different as there was a very large plate-glass window in the front at street level which was still there when my aunt sold the building. When she established Gower House Preparatory School there, my uncle ran the magazine business from Warneford House with the help of his secretary, Miss Pinder
Hi, I am looking for a picture of the Forfield motorcycle. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
I’d like to see one too. The best I could find after hunting high and low was the front guard on the Triumph as featured!
Add a comment about this page