Childhood playground became place Bega resident worked for 45 years

Bega resident’s childhood playground became the place he worked for 45 years

Transcript

00:00For 95 years, Stafford's Hardware has become a staple on the far south coast.

00:06But without its people, it wouldn't be here today.

00:09Neil Brown, Ned, is more commonly known, and I'm the Yard.

00:15What am I? The Yard.

00:18You could say this place is in his blood.

00:21I used to come over here on my school holidays and work with my father.

00:25He was here for 30 years before me.

00:29Giving him a hand to make the blocks on the old Koyo machine.

00:33The original machine we had.

00:36We used to have to, my job was to clean the top of the blocks off.

00:41And I used to have to stand on a box and clean the top of the block off with a turkey feather.

00:46My mum was a Stafford, yeah.

00:49Her and her and Ron Stafford were brother and sister.

00:52Generally keeping the yard clean, stocking the shelves with the timber, unloading and loading of the trucks that come in.

01:01If just anybody needs a handle, I'm there to do it basically.

01:05When asked what the biggest change in the past 45 years in the construction industry was, this is what Ned had to say.

01:16Here in particular we don't make concrete blocks anymore.

01:19We buy them all in.

01:21Which in a lot of cases was the foundation of the place, was production.

01:26In the early years we did the clay bricks and then progressed into cement blocks.

01:33And now we don't do either.

01:35We buy all the blocks in.

01:38The last brick production was done 33 years ago.

01:42We built the last kiln, I think, it was 1992 when we stopped making clay bricks.

01:50The first of these kilns were built in 1939 and were used for manufacturing large quantities of brick.

01:56In the earlier years was the Stafford Red.

01:58It was probably the most popular.

02:00And then moved into other colours as time went on.

02:04We did the manganese and always did commons, obviously, the common brick.

02:12These days, you'll find Ed working in the hardware yard, still bringing the same expertise that has kept Stafford strong for generations.

02:19Two other Staffords that still work for the company, so I'm not the only one left.

02:26This is all.

02:27The Thundercisex.

02:29This 2007 was treated about very well for all of the people.

02:32The third power was done being another day of Everyone by dominating the building.

02:33This is just a patrol at.

02:34The third part of the construction installation left.

02:36The First

02:45what the plan was feito is, the訂 Action ball, the second part of your cabinet,

02:49the opponent was made before the building, the other large part of the building.