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Walter Ash - Shoemaker

Walter Ash was born on 30th September 1889. He was my maternal grandfather and from the 1960's time, I remember his shoeshop on Smedley Street, Matlock. I used to take a pathway through houses and trees from Wellington Street down to Smedley Street and then across to Matlock County Junior School. At the bottom of the pathway I could look across the road and see W.ASH written on the shop window. Being just a littlie, I could never understand why my grandfather would write WASH on his shop window!

His speciality was making shoes for deformed feet. His children - 6 of them - helped deliver the shoes when finished, to the various homes in the town. When he eventuallly retired from shoemaking, he and his wife Lydia, moved to Hurst Rise Estate. Their little home looked out over the Matlock hills to Riber Castle. Grandad was also an artist. I wish I had more of his paintings, but I do remember the little 'sunroom' off the lounge where lots and lots of oil paintings adorned every available space with his easel and paints.

He painted Riber Castle - the view from his front room, he copied other pictures and did the 'chocolate box' type paintings. My favourite was a picture which has gone missing. It was painted in oils on a round tin about 12" in diameter, of a little girl in a yellow sou'wester splashing in puddles. The little girl was my mother! He always signed his paintings WA so if you have one, please let me know!

I also have three very small paintings on odd pieces of hardboard about 6" x 3" of ships and used to have one which was painted of the opposite bed in a hospital, during the war I'm told!

A special, although gruff, gentle man. He'd give me 3d, the old octagonal 3d, if I could keep quiet for 5 minutes, and I'm told he let my sister puff on his pipe!

He died on 29th July 1973.

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