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The Variety Shop, Histon High Street (MoC1254/86)

Post office, The Variety Shop, 4 High Street, Histon

History of the Variety Shop

High Street Histon, Barley Mow (l), The Variety Shop (r)

The Variety Shop later became the Post Office. The Variety had been opened in 1922 by Miss Phillips and Miss Lane. On Fridays the ladies sold toys, sweets and haberdashery.

According to ‘Sent By Mail – The Story of Histon and Impington’s Post’ by S J Harper-Scott (1998), Frederick A Floyd took over Histon post office from Amy Tolliday and moved it to new premises. Soon after a telephone kiosk was erected outside.

On Frederick’s retirement he was replaced by his son W H Floyd. He retired in 1952.

1939 (4 High Street)

Frederick A Floyd, b 1882, sub postmaster grocer

Ethel F, b 1882, postal assistant

William H, b 1913, tea salesman

Histon Post Office c.1940

The next sub postmaster was Fred Brown from Harpenden. He bricked around the old wooden and corrugated iron structure and the new post office opened in 1953.

Histon Post Office, 1952

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This work is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

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