19/07/2025
Today I made a new friend. A wonderful gentleman of some 91 years young in Beverley. A little wheatbelt town on the way to York.
This chap is a fellow collector and custodian of the most amazing shed full of antiques and collectibles and his name is Barry.
I spent the better part of 2 hours following him around soaking up his stories and memories and he has a wealth of knowledge about almost everything worth knowing!
Originally a mechanic by trade he started an apprenticeship at just 14 and ran the Beverley mechanics business for some 38 years. He was also a well decorated volunteer firefighter and has the helmet collection to prove it!
Barry retired in 2002 and so began his full time passion for collectingā¦. āHis superannuation fundā as he called it!
He lost his dear wife Kathleen of 68 years almost a year ago and himself has had a triple heart bypass and pacemaker āinstalledāmuch to his disgust as he has had to shelve his love for electrical welding -it interferes with the old ticker! But wherever you look youāll see evidence of his skills in that department with clever creations and a whimsical sense of humor.
The place is filled with some of the most incredible collections Iāve ever seen ā¦.. machines, tractors, telephones, farm machinery, bicycles, pedal cars, matchbox, Tonka and boomerang toys, kitchenalia of every description, shearing equipment, horse equipmentā¦ā¦ the list goes on and on. It really is spectacular, too spectacular not to share!
So if you find yourself up near Beverley in the not too distant future ā¦.. pop in and have a yarn to the lovely old Barry.
Heās open on Saturdays and Sundays and entry is upon a donation.
Heād be happy to welcome you and glad for the chat ā¦ and I can promise you will come away feeling inspiredā¦. Perhaps even a little sad knowing he wonāt be around forever and all those years of history will someday disappear with him.
If only I could bottle all those wonderful storiesā¦
but at least by visiting we can all help keep them alive.
Cheers Barry x
