James Robert Bensley (1885-1972) of Martham

James Robert Bensley was an unrivalled public servant to Martham and a prominent businessman trading as an animal feed supplier, miller & corn merchant. But he is probably best known for being the only person to run a coach company in the village, simply referred to by everyone as Bensley’s.

Known as Jimmy, he was born on 2^nd January 1885 at Winterton-on-Sea, Norfolk as the eighth child of Edmund & Ann Bensley and he was baptised on 11^th March that year at Winterton Methodist Chapel. He had nine siblings, namely: Sarah Elizabeth (b1869), James Robert (b1872), George Henry (b1874), Mary Ann (b1876), Charles Edmund (b1878 d1879), Charles Edmond (b1880), Margaret Virtue (b1883), Ann (b1887) and Henry Arthur also known as Ernie (b1889).

By the time he was six, and at school, James and his family had moved to 9 The Corner at Horsey. He left school when he was 10 and went to work at Horsey Hall where he was also listed in the 1901 census when he had turned 16 and was a groom and domestic worker. A few years earlier The Hall was owned by the very successful landowner and barrister Robert Rising. Following his death in 1885 The Hall had passed into the hands of Harold Harmsworth who extended it with an East Wing so that he could bring his servants to live there. The Hall was just about the only house in the village large enough to have stables and domestic staff.

In 1911 James was probably still normally living at home at 9 The Corner, Horsey but on the night of the census (2^nd April) he was staying with the Jeary family of butchers at White Street in Martham and he worked a few doors away, at Pyman’s General Store as a grocer’s assistant. He either already knew Clara Jeary or as a result of staying there the 18-year-old caught his eye as she would go on to become his future wife.  Clara was the daughter of Herbert & Georgianna Jeary. James & Clara married, when he was 29 and she was 21, on 21st October 1914 at Martham Methodist Chapel in Repps Road. After they got married, they lived in North Walsham where he worked, up until he went into the army. On his return from war, they moved back to Martham where he set up in business using his wife’s savings from her teaching post.

James & Clara went on the have the following children who were all baptised at Martham Methodist Chapel:-

1. Joan Elizabeth Bensley (known as Betty) who was born on 16^th October 1915. She married Richard Stokes. She died on 30^th September 2012, aged 96.
2. Herbert James Bensley who was born on 19^th May 1919. He married Doris Sylvia Grimes in 1944. He died on 3^rd June 1995 at James Paget Hospital, Gorleston, Great Yarmouth having previously lived at Grove Close, Martham.
3. Raymond John Bensley who was born on 11^th January 1922 and died on 10^th February 1987 at Grahamstown, Western District, Eastern Cape, South Africa.
4. Molly Bensley who was born in 1924 and married Geoffrey Alexander in 1947. She died on 21^st December 2019, aged 95. She was particularly well known for producing the Parish Magazine for many years and for her support of the Old Folks Club.
5. Gladys Lilian Bensley (known as ‘Shrimp) was born in 1928 at Great Yarmouth. She married Ivor Seeley in 1948.

Clara’s father was a local parish councillor and he encouraged James to join Martham Parish Council. James became a prolific community servant volunteering for all sorts of roles and took an active part in representing the village in over 25 different clubs and organisations over the whole of the rest of his life. Just some of his incredible voluntary work included the following:-

• Between 1911 and 1972 he was a Lay Preacher and choirmaster at Martham Methodist Chapel. He was also the Sunday School Superintendent and Circuit Steward for ten of those years.
• Between 1918 and 1967 he was a Councillor with Martham Parish Council and he was  the Chairman from 1932 to 1967.
• He was a Councillor on the West Flegg Rural District Council representing Martham between 1923 and 1935.
• He was  a Councillor representing Martham on the Blofield and Flegg District Council from 1935 to 1974.
• He was elected to Norfolk County as a Councillor & Alderman representing Martham between 1950 and 1967.
• Between 1936 and 1960 he was a JP, magistrate and Chairman of the Bench from 1956 to 1960.
• From 1940 to 1948 he did voluntary work with Martham and District Ambulance Service.
• He was a member of Martham Playing Field Committee for many years.
• For 52 years he was the manager of Martham Primary School and Vice-chairman of the Governors of Martham Secondary Modern School.
• He was a Governor of the East Anglian School for 17 years.
• He was a member of the Lingwood Board of Guardians for 24 years.
• He was a member (and Chairman for 24 years) of Martham Old Folk’s Club.
• He did voluntary work as a Trustee of Martham Memorial Institute (Village Hall).
• He was President of Martham Royal British Legion.
• For many years he was the President, Chairman and Treasurer of Martham Football Club and the Flegg Football League.
• He had a deep love of cricket and was a member, umpire and President of Martham Cricket Club and the Flegg Cricket League.
• For 26 years he was a Special Constable in the village.

My thanks to Lisa Webber for providing the above four leaflets.

It was no doubt as a result of his work on local councils that he was later commemorated by having two streets named after him. One was Bensley Road, Martham and the other Bensley Close, Acle.

The coach at the front with registration JVF 528 is a Bedford “O” type and was introduced in August 1939 in a coach-chassis version by Duple Coachbuilders. It was 14 ft 6 in (4.42 m) long and had a six-cylinder overhead valve power engine  with a capacity of 3519cc. Only 73 OB buses were built in the two months before production ceased at the outbreak of World War II. This bus was later sold to a company called Mulleys of Bury St Edmunds and is shown below below in their livery. The coach still exists and can be seen at the Oxford Bus Museum,  Main Road, Long Hanborough, Oxon. (See www.oxfordbusmuseum.org)

Some of James’ drivers were Geoffrey Alexander (the husband of his daughter Molly), Benjamin Dowe, Sid Smith and Billy Cox. Billy was part-time and was also a shoemaker operating out of the small hut shown on the right of the garage site below.

James’ business interests grew and by 1939 he operated from a garage and yard at the corner of Rollesby and Repps Roads in the centre of the village. James & Clara lived there with their, then, three children at Station House. The house and workshops backed directly onto Repps Road with the entrance facing Rollesby Road as shown in the photo below with the Methodist Chapel peeping over the roofs. Station House is shown on the left of the photo and backed directly onto Repps Road without any pavement between the house and the road.

By the 1950’s James had established his coach company but could not break the Eastern Counties monopoly of services to Yarmouth, having an application turned down by the Traffic Commissioners in 1950 to run excursions to the speedway and the Wellington Pier. During the 1950’s James & Clara lived at Ivy Holme, Back Lane, Martham which you can read more about by clicking its name.

Later in life James & Clara retired to a bungalow a few doors along Repps Road called ‘Handel’ but even in retirement he kept busy with a furniture business as well as continuing with many of his voluntary roles. James died as one of the best regarded men of his generation in the village on 7^th October 1972 and is buried at St Mary the Virgin graveyard, section I, plot H20 along with Clara who died on 28^th September 1982.

My grateful thanks to the considerable help given by the Bensley family and especially Jimmy’s daughter Gladys (known as Shrimp) for providing most of the information for this page.

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