Does anyone remembers Hurleys of Balham?
By allinthegenes | Thursday, February 03, 2011, 11:51
I'm not talking about the eponymous Hurley's Office Suppliers on Balham Boulevard. I'm talking about Hurley's Library and Bookshops located at 223 Balham High Road - that's where Argos is now - and 14, 16 and 18 Ritherdon Road, probably around the time of the General Strike in 1926.
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Hurley's Library and Bookshops
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Hurleys Library Service
J M Hurley then issued a 'Free Library Bulletin', twice daily filled with news headlines, whilst the printing of all newspapers was suspended during the General Strike. The Proprietor of the new Hurley's has been given a copy of one of these fascinating documents by a customer and try as I might, I can't seem to find any other historical evidence of Hurley's being there and what happened to their library of 50,000 books.
On the facebook group of the Tooting Local History Group there is a discussion on the Balham and Tooting Gazette, where a book is referred to, written by A J Hurley entitled 'Days that are gone'. I suspect this could be the descendant of the aforementioned J M Hurley, but I can't be sure.
If you want to get an eyeball on the document I refer to, you'll need to get yourself into Hurley's and ask the Proprietor to have a look. Does anyone out there have any local knowledge from long ago who could shed light on this conundrum?
Comments
Re Hurley's of Balham.
My grandfather was JM Hurley. He started a newspaper and confectioners shop in Ritherdon Road in the early 1900s, and then retired to Worthing, leaving his parents in charge. Retirement did not suit him, and he returned to run the business in 1907 with a growing family, expanding it to include a library and print department. As each child left school he asked them what they would like to sell and opened a new department for them! During WW2 the business was badly bombed but he kept it going, putting a large ad in the Balham News & Mercury [20/9/40) saying:
'Hurley's
of Balham
Have been in business in Balham
for over 40 years, and are
still carrying on in spite of Hitler
at
Chapman's Corner,
Balham High Rd.
We thank you for your kindnesses and want -
Your Business As Usual'.
He died in 1958 and the business was then run by the next generation until the 1970s when the site was sold.
There is absolutely no family connection between him and the AJ Hurley that you mention, nor the New Hurleys of Ballham.
I can answer questions about the business if anyone is interested.
By val4321 at 12:12 on 29/04/12
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