South Yorkshire Times September 6, 1947

Obituary

Mr C. Marks – Well Known Mexborough Grocer

We regret to record the death which occurred on Saturday at his home, “Latrig, ” St George’s Avenue. Swinton, of Mr Charles Marks. Mr Marks ill-health caused his retirement on August 19th last year from a grocery business in Mexborough Main Street, which he had taken over nearly 53 years ago. Among his customers were grandsons and grand daughters of the people he served as a young man. He was 66.

The whole of Mr. Mark’s working life was spent in Main Street. Born at Denaby, the son of a blacksmith, he sold, at eight years old, evening newspapers, and later copies of the “Mexborough and Swinton Times” for the late Mr. Walter Turner. Then he started as an errand boy in the shop he subsequently owned, under Mr. James Clayton, with Mr. Walter Pickford as manager, working often until 10 at night, midnight Saturdays.

After four years with the late Mr. W. T, Tiptaft, he reopened the shop, which, relinquished by Mr Clayton, had been used at a tailor’s on his own account. From that day he endeavoured, with outstanding success, to create a “family feeling”” among his customers. The results he could point out in fact that his clientele during the six years of the war did not change apart from the deaths and people leaving the district.

His memories of old Mexborough” extended to the days when his shop was the only one In Main Street, when the land beyond Hartley Street right over Roman Terrace was devoid of buildings and one could follow the trend of public mainly corn and comfrey fields, the taste In foodstuffs, the rise in price-over the last half-century, with the accuracy of a social historian. One of the oldest members of Mexborough Rotary Club—he joined over 20 years ago—Mr. Marks in 1939 had the honour of representing England at a world conference of Rotary in San Francisco. He was President of the Mexborough Club in 1934. Until he resigned last year he had been for many years treasurer of Mexborough Chamber of Trade, of which he was President in 1936, and the chairmanship of Mexborough Old Folks’ Treat Fund Committee, on which he had served 20 years. He was also on the Mexborough Unemployment Assistance Board.

ROTARY TRIBUTE.

At Tuesday’s luncheon of the Mexborough and District Rotary Club, members observed a silence, and the President, Rotarian J. E. Brooke Smith paid tribute to Rotarian Marks and said that but for him the club would not have been so well known in Rotary. Rotarian Marks had visited the Rotary Conference in U.S.A. and many other European countries and In the British Isles. They had all enjoyed his fellowship and greatly admired the courage with which he had faced ill health in recent years.