D. H. Evans & Co. (aka D. H. Evans & Co. Ltd): History

 

The Company[1]

The firm known as D. H. Evans & Co. was originally established in London as a drapery business in 1879[2] at 147 Oxford Street[3] by Dan Harries Evans who at the time was in possession of £1,500 (equivalent to £99,277[4] today).  A draper[5] was a dealer in cloth but often sold clothing and other dry goods.  By 1881[6] the Evans family was living at the same address on one of the upper floors of the building with the drapery shop being on the ground floor and lower levels.  That year 9 assistants, 2 servants and a porter also residing somewhere in the building.  By 1888 the Evans family moved to another location because the business had expanded considerably and occupied three contiguous premises on Oxford Street, nos. 314-320.  The company’s merchandise also expanded; it became more of a department store with products displayed in the windows on the first two floors of the building and millinery workshops on the upper floors.  Additionally, the named. D. H. Evans & Company was displayed in large letters across the front of the building so everyone walking by knew its name.  The illustration seen here on the left was published in Modern London, The World’s Metropolis in 1888[7] when the Evan’s store was considered one of the largest drapery establishments in London.  In 1894[8] Dan Harries Evans decided to convert the business into a limited liability company and it became known as D. H. Evans & Co. Ltd with Mr. Evans acting as the managing director with an annual salary of £750.

 

As the business continued to prosper new departments were added and the company continued to expand with additional properties being acquired.  In 1897 Mr. Evans resigned as managing director in order to pursue other interests, although he remained on the board of directors until 1914[9] when he retired due to his financial position.  Several of the other directors were associated with Harrod’s, one of London’s most prominent stores.  As the Evans company continued to flourish and profits increased, a decision was made to erect a new building on Oxford Street between Old Cavendish Street and Chapel Street.  An architect was hired and the building was modeled after other large trade buildings in Paris, Vienna and Berlin with a large open area throughout the first and second floors, featuring a main staircase covered with Austrian oak and enclosed with a wrought-iron balustrade.  Other features included a restaurant on the second floor, a lady’s lounge and a gentleman’s smoking room.  When it was completed in 1909[10] the advertisement on the right showed the company now had two five story buildings from 290-320 Oxford Street, the  new one was on the west side (left) and the old one was on the east side (right) of Old Cavendish Street (middle).  In 1928 the firm merged with Harrods and although Harrods become the senior partner, D. H. Evans retained its name presumably because the store had such a good reputation which attracted more customers resulting in higher profits.  Additional land was purchased, and a new building was built on Oxford Street in 1937.  Seventeen years later in 1954 Harrods was purchased by the House of Fraser and D. H. Evans continued at Oxford Street with a second store added at Wood Green in 1980.  The Oxford Street store was refurbished twice in the 1980’s and was rebranded with the House of Fraser name in 2001 when it became known as Fraser’s flagship store.  The House of Fraser closed its Oxford Street store in January 2022[11] due to financial difficulties and the Covid pandemic which changed how people purchase goods.

 

The Quadruple Golden Casket - Butterfly on Leaf is the only Avery style needle found to date with the D. H. Evans  & Co Ld name as seen in the close-up picture here.  Although this needle case was patented by William Avery of Redditch in 1868, this one was obviously made for D. H. Evans & Co Limited at a later date because the company did not exist until 1894. 

 

 

 

The Evans Owners

(Note:  Limited information has been found regarding this company’s original owner because the surname Evans was quite common in the UK during the Victorian Era).

 

Dan Harries Evans was the youngest son of Daniel and Elizabeth Evans.  His father was born in Abergwili[12], Carmarthen, Wales c1812 and married Elizabeth Harries there in 1840.  Both came from farming backgrounds and Daniel was also a farmer.  The Evans family lived on a 55-acre farm in a section of Abergwili known as Baily Glas.  Daniel and Elizabeth had 7 children born there between 1841 and 1859: Eliza, John, Ann, Thomas, David, Dan Harries and Mary.  The drawing on the left shows what Aberwili looked like in 1853[13].  Elizabeth died in 1859 of consumption less than nine months after the birth of their last child.  Presumably their eldest daughter Eliza, who was in her late teens when her mother died, helped raise the younger children.  Further details about these individuals except Dan Harries Evans have not been located because the surname was very common in this section of Wales.

 

Dan Harries Evans was born in 1857 at Baily Glas in Abergwili, a small village in Wales 214 miles west of London.  When Dan was 15 years old, he was apprenticed to John Roderick a draper near Llandeilo[14], Wales, located 14 miles east of Abergwili.  At some point he moved to Llanelly, Wales, 51 miles east of Llandeilo, where he continued to work as a draper.  Dan married Elizabeth Harris in 1877 in Aberdare in the district of Merthyr Tyfil, Wales, 20 miles west of Llanelly.  They had one child born in late 1878 while living at Stepney Street in Llanelly.  The Evans family moved to the London area shortly thereafter and in 1879 Dan established the draper business known as D. H. Evans at 147 Oxford Street.  In 1881 the family was living in rooms above the shop at the same address with 9 assistants, 2 servants and 1 porter who were also living at that address.  Their second son Tudor William was born there in 1884.  Dan’s degree of business success can be seen in the fact that the family moved to Cornwall Terrace in Regents Park and by 1891 had a governess and 6 servants.  When Dan’s drapery business was converted to a limited liability company in 1894, he acquired £130,000[15] and became the managing director with a salary of £750 a year[16].  Around that time, he purchased the Shooter’s Hill House estate in Pangbourne, Berkshire about 50 miles west of London where the family was living in 1891.  Then his focus began to change and in 1897[17] he resigned as managing director but kept his position on the board of directors.  Over the years he spent £60,000[18] developing the Pangbourne property and became a director at Louise & Co. Limited, Pepper Corn Brothers Limited and Mansions Consolidated Limited[19].  “He built houses, shops and a clubhouse at Pangbourne, which did very well, but his investment in the Mansions Consolidated Ltd, set up to acquire property in and around Hampstead, prove a financial disaster and led to him borrowing from money lenders.”[20]  By 1901 Dan and Elizabeth returned to the London area and were living in the upscale area of Knightsbridge, located south of Hyde Park and northwest of Belgravia, in London’s West End.  His wife and sons opened a drapery store on Brompton Road in Kensington named Tudor Brothers for a period of time and later the family operated a hotel at Marble Arch[21].  In 1914[22] because of his financial difficulties, Dan gave up his seat on the board of directors at D. H. Evans & Co. and filed for bankruptcy.  At some point thereafter, Dan and Elizabeth moved to Norfolk Crescent, just north of Hyde Park, and Dan worked as a hotel proprietor until his death in 1929.   He left an estate valued at £120 to his son Tudor who at the time was a hotel manager. 

 

Frank David Evans the eldest son of Dan and Elizabeth was born in 1878 in Llanelly, Wales and spent his early years living with his parents.  In 1896[23] he entered Trinity College in Cambridge and received an B. A. in 1901 and an M. A. in 1904.  In 1911 he was living with his parents and working as an accountant at a drapery firm, possibly the business started by his mother and younger brother.  Not much else is known about Frank because his name is quite common in the London area.  The youngest son was born in 1884 in Marylebone with the name William Tudor Evans which was shortly thereafter changed to Tudor William Evans as that is how he was listed in all other records.  In 1901 he was living at a boarding school in Hendon, Middlesex and five years later in 1906 he married Maud Mary Nicholas in Westminster who was five years his senior.  By 1911 they were living in Paddington and Tudor was also working as a draper employer.  Although Maud’s death has not been found because of how common the Evans surname was she apparently died and Tudor married his second wife Violet Sarah Evans sometime before 1939.  Tudor and Violet were listed in the 1939 register living in Cranley Gardens, Kensington with 5 others while Tudor worked as a sales manager for a carpet cleaning business and Violet was a private hotel keeper.  Violet may have worked at the same Marble Arch hotel as the one Tudor’s father was involved with years earlier.  Later in life Tudor became an airport manager.  He died in 1954 at age 70 at a hospital in Hendon, Middlesex and left an estate of £440 to his wife.  Victoria lived another 11 years and died in 1965 at the Middlesex Hospital in the Marylebone section of London at age 81.  

 

D. H. Evans & Co. (aka D. H. Evans & Co. Ltd): Images

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Advertizement from the Gentlewoman dated May 5, 1894, page 19 (S=https://www.british newspaperarchive.co.uk).

 

Quadruple Golden Casket - Butterfly on Leaf needle case.

 

Oxford Street sign, 2023.

 

Currently the modern building seen here (above and below) is located between Old Cavendish Street and Holles Streets at 300 Oxford Street where the Evans business was originally located, 2023.

 

These two other older buildings on Oxford Street give one a better idea of what the original Evans business may have looked like.

 

The H & M business at 174-176 Oxford Street, 2023. 

 

The Samsung business at 125 Oxford Street, the southeast corner of Oxford Street and Wardour Street, 2023.

 

 

D. H. Evans & Co. (aka D. H. Evans & Co. Ltd):  Genealogy

 

Generation 1:  Daniel Evans (c1812-??) and Elizabeth Harries (c1816-1859)

·       Born: c1812 Abergwilly, Carmarthen, Wales (S4).

·       Baptized: not found.

·       Marriage: May 22, 1840 Abergwilly, Carmarthenshire, Wales (S3).  Listed a Daniel Evans a bachelor and farmer who resided at Baily Glas whose father was Thomas Evans a farmer and Elizabeth Harries a spinster who resided at White Mill whose father was David Harries a farmer. (Note: the marriage index incorrectly lists the father’s name as Thomas Evans Evans and the wife’s surname as Harris).

·       1841 Census: Bailylas, Glantowy Hamlet, Abergwilly, Carmarthen, Wales (S4).  Listed as Daniel Evans age 25 a farmer born in the county with Elizabeth age 25 born in the county and 1 servant and 1 agricultural laborer. (Note:  the census index incorrectly does not include the agricultural laborer).

·       1851 Census: 27 Bailyglas, Abergwilly, Carmarthen, Wales (S4).  Listed as Daniel Evans age 39 a farmer of 55 acres born in Abergwilly, Carmarthenshire with wife Elizabeth age 35 born in Llanllawddog, Carnarthen and 4 children all born in Abergwilly: Elizabeth age 10, John age 8, Ann age 4 and Thomas age 2 and 1 servant. (Note:  the census index incorrectly lists Ann as Ray).

·       Wife’s Death: December 17, 1859 Carmarthen, Wales (S8d).  Listed as Elizabeth Evans age 43 the wife of Daniel Evans a farmer who died at Baily Glas, Abergwilly of consumption with Daniel Evans present at her death.

·       Wife’s Burial: not found.

·       Wife’s Probate: not found.

·       1861 Census: 31 Bailyglase, Abergwilly, Carmarthen, Wales (S4).  Listed as Daniel Evans age 49 a widower and farmer of 55 acres born in Abergwilly, Carmarthenshire with 7 children all born in Abergwilly: Eliza age 20, John age 19, Ann age 14, Thomas age 12, David age 7, Dan age 5 and Mary age 2.

·       Death: not found.

·       Burial: not found.

·       Probate: not found.

·       Children: (Note: these are the only births with these exact names in Carmarthen during these years with the mother’s maiden name as Harris).

1.     Eliza (aka Elizabeth) Evans (1841 -??).  Born: 3rd QTR 1841 Carmarthen Union (S=GRO online index), listed as Eliza Evans with mother’s maiden name Harris.  1851 and 1861 Census: with parents (S4).

2.     John Evans (1843 -??).  Born: 1st QTR 1843 Carmarthen Union (S=GRO online index), listed as John Evans with mother’s maiden name Harris. 1851 and 1861 Census: with parents (S4).

3.     Ann Evans (1847 -??).  Born: 2nd QTR 1847 Carmarthen Union (S=GRO online index), listed as Ann Evans with mother’s maiden name Harris. 1851 and 1861 Census: with parents (S4).

4.     Thomas Evans (1850 -??).  Born: 1st QTR 1850 Carmarthen (S=GRO online index), listed as Thomas Evans with mother’s maiden name Harris. 1851 and 1861 Census: with parents (S4).

5.     David Evans (1853 -??).  Born: 4th QTR 1853 Carmarthen (S=GRO online index), listed as David Evans with mother’s maiden name Harris.  1861 Census: with parents (S4).

6.     Dan Harries Evans (1857 -??). - See Generation 2.

7.     Mary Evans (1859 -??).  Born: 2nd QTR 1859 Carmarthen (S=GRO online index), listed as Mary Evans with mother’s maiden name Harris.  1861 Census: with parents (S4).

 

Generation 2:  Dan Harries Evans (1857-1929) and Elizabeth Harris (c1855-??)

·       Born: February 28, 1857 Carmarthen, Wales (S8b).  Listed as Dan with parents Daniel Evans a farmer and Elizabeth Evans formerly Harris who was born at Baily Glas, Abergwilly.

·       Baptized:  not found.

·       1861 Census: with father and siblings (S4).  Listed as Dan Evans age 5 a scholar born in Abergwilly, Carmarthenshire, Wales.

·       1871 Census:  No. 3 King Street, Ivy House, Llanndilo-fawr, Carmarthenshire, Wales (S4).  Listed as Daniel Evans age 15 a draper’s apprentice born in Llanndilo-fawr, Carmarthenshire living with John Roderick age 33 a draper employing 7 persons, his wife and daughter, 2 other apprentices and 2 servants.

·       Marriage:  December 19,1877 Aberdare, Merthyr Tyfil, Wales (S8m).  Listed as Dan Harris Evans age 24 a bachelor and draper who resided at Llanelly, Carmarthenshire and whose father was Daniel Evans deceased a farmer and Elizabeth Harris age 23 a spinster who resided at Park Place, Aberdare.

·       1881 Census: 147 Oxford Street, Cavendish Square, Marylebone, London (S4).  Listed as Dave H. Evans age 30 a draper born in Abergwilly, Carmarthen, Wales with wife Elizabeth age 26 born in Cymmer, Glamorgan, 1 child: Frank D. age 2 born in Laneal, Carmarthen, 9 assistants, 2 servants and 1 porter.  (Note: the census index incorrectly lists Dan’s forename as Dave).

·       1891 Census: 10 Cornwall Terrace, Marylebone, London (S4).  Listed as Dan H. Evans age 34 a silk and linen mercer employer born in Felinwenth, Caerfyrddin, Wales with wife Elizabeth age 35 born in Porth Morganwg, Wales, 2 children: Frank D. age 12 and Tudor W. age 7, 1 governess and 6 servants. (Note:  the census index incorrectly lists Frank as age 10).

·       1901 Census: 94 Shooters Hill House, Pangbourne, Bradfield, Berkshire (S4).  Listed as Dan H. Evans age 43 a retired draper born in Abergwilly, Carmarthen with wife Elizabeth age 44 born in Cymmer, Galmorgan, 1 visitor and 5 servants.

·       1911 Census:  28 Rutland Court SW, Mayfair and Knights Bridge (S4).  Listed as Dan Harries Evans age 54 a retired merchant born in Abergwilly, Carmarthenshire, Welch with wife Elizabeth age 57 born in Cymmur, Glamorgan, Welch, 1 child: Frank David age 31 and 2 servants.  Indicated they were married 33 years and had 2 children who were both still living.

·       Death:  March 29,1929 Paddington, London (S8d).  Listed as Daniel Evans otherwise Dan Harris Evans age 73 a hotel proprietor who died at 11 Norfolk Crescent of heart failure, pneumonia and bronchitis with his son Tudor Evans in attendance.  March 29, 1929 (S6).

·       Burial: not found.

·       Probate:  June 21, 1929 London (S6).  Listed as Dan Evans of 11 Norfolk-crescent, Middlesex with Effects £120 to Tudor Evans hotel manager.

·       Wife’s Death: not found.

·       Wife’s Burial: not found.

·       Wife’s Probate: not found.

·       Children:

1.     Frank David Evans (1878-??).  Born: November 7, 1878 Llanelly, Wales (S8b), listed as Frank David with parents Dan Harries Evans a draper and Elizabeth Evans formerly Harris who was born at Stepney Street, Llanelly.  1881, 1891 and 1911 Censuses with parents (S4), listed in 1891 as Frank D. Evans age 12 born in Llanelly, Carmarthen (Note:  the census index incorrectly lists his age at 10) and in 1911 as Frank David Evans single age 31 a counting house manage drapery firm accountant born in Llanelly, Carmarthenshire, Welch.  Death: not found.

2.     Tudor William Evans (1884-1954).  Born: March 14, 1884 Cavendish Square, Marylebone, Middlesex (S8b), listed as William Tudor with parents Daniel Harris Evans and Elizabeth Evans formerly Harris who was born at Oxford House Chapel Place (Note: the GRO index incorrectly lists this birth as during the third QTR of 1884).  1891 Census with parents (S4), listed as Tudor W. Evans age 7 born in Marylebone, Middlesex.  1901 Census: 147 Grove Hill, Harrow, Hendon, Middlesex (S4), listed as Tudor Evans a boarder age 17 born in London living at a school (Note: the census index incorrectly lists Tudor’s age as 19).   Marriage #1: May 29, 1906 St. Gabriel, Warwick Square, Pimlico, Westminster, London (S3), listed as Tudor William Evans age 22 a bachelor and gentleman who resided at 4 Wellington Court S.W. with father listed as Dan Harries Evans a merchant and Maude Mary Nicholas age 27 a spinster (Note: the marriage index incorrectly lists the father’s surname as Evary).  1911 Census: 6 Leith Mansions, Grantully Road, Elgin Avenue, Maida Vale  W, Paddington, London (S4), listed as Tudor Evans age 27 a draper employer born in Marylebone, London with wife Maude age 32 born in Westminster, London, indicates they were married 4 years and 10 months with no children.  Wife #1’s Death: not found.  Marriage #2: not found. 1939 Register: 21 Cranley Gdns, Kensington, London (S9), listed as Tudor Evans married and born March 14, 1884 a sales manager carpet cleaning with wife Violet S. Evans married born March 14, 1884 a private hotel keeper living with 5 others.  Death: June 9, 1954 Hendon, Middlesex (S8d), listed as Tudor Evans age 70 an airport manager who died at the Hendon District Hospital of coronary thrombosis with a nephew G. J. Nicholas as the informant, June 9, 1954 at the Hendon District Hospital in London (S6).  Probate: July 7, 1954 London (S6), listed as Tudor William Evans of 15 Foscote-road, Hendon, London with Effects £440 to Violet Sarah Evans widow.  Wife #2’s Death: March 20, 1965 Marylebone (S8d), listed as Violet Sarah Evans age 81 the widow of William Tudor Evans an airport manager who resided at 73 Sevington Road, Hendon who died at the Middlesex Hospital in St. Marylebone of carcinoma of the tongue.

 

 

Avery style needle case with the D. H. Evans & Co. Oxford St London name stamped on it.

1.     Quadruple Golden Casket - Butterfly on Leaf:  Mechanical patent #3517 registered November 19, 1868 by William Avery, needle manufacturer and Albert Fenton, machinist, from Redditch, UK (S=British Library - Business and Intellectual Property Centre, London).