HARROD FAMILY
The name Harrod had its origins in Norse history, namely then Haerhred. The earliest account of that name was a king back about the year 1000 AD. They came to England as Vikings, and most of the Harrods have been, and still are in the County of Norfolk, and the number decreases, per County, through Suffolk, Essex, Kent, etc. Mostly down the east side of England. The migration can be seen, a few went westwards, but only one county and some went down to the south coast.
The earliest Harrod in our family was John Harrod whom was married to Sarah Humphrey, and they had five children, the fourth of whom was Jeremiah. He was born on the 20th August 1809 at Croydon in Surrey. Jeremiah married Mary Hind Diss in 1834 at Chipstead in Surrey, and they had thirteen children. Mary Diss’ ancestors can be traced back six generations to Edward Rayner and Mary Kemp, married in 1662. Jeremiah worked as a farm labourer in Kent and died in 1884.
Some of their children stayed in England, but some followed their Viking ancestors and moved to other countries, Michigan, USA, New Zealand and Australia.
Their sixth child, Jeremiah was born on the 12th December 1845 in Kent. He married Elizabeth Anne Keates on 6th October 1872 at Islington n Middlesex. They moved to Dunedin, N.Z., arriving in the ‘Atrato’ on the 8th June 1874, as assisted immigrants, costing the N.Z. Government £30. Jeremiah’s sister Jane Macey with her husband James Beagley also arrived on the same boat. It was not a very good trip with 33 deaths from measles on the voyage from Plymouth, and on arrival in Dunedin, the rest were quarantined for some time, with several more deaths occurring in quarantine. Jeremiah and Elizabeth had six children, all born at Currie St, Port Chalmers, where Jeremiah worked as a bricklayer and stonemason. They moved to Australia in 1884, and lived first at Stanmore and then Harris Park in Sydney. He worked for the Department of Public Works, Harbour and Rivers Branch, and was foreman bricklayer on the Prospect Reservoir, driving a horse and sulky to work each day. A copy of a reference on completion of the job;
Grange House
Prospect
July 22nd 1892
I have known Mr J Harrod for over eight years to be a very superior bricklayer, he having worked under my superintendence all the time most important work was in progress at the Prospect Reservoir, such as the Tunnel, Tower, and the Valve House, where none but the most experienced were allowed to work.
A great part of this time Mr Harrod was Foreman for the Contractors, he fully understands Plans, and can successfully carry out any work he undertakes, he is also a first class manager of men. I have also had him employed at various kinds of work and have always found him a thoroughly good and sound man.
He is exceptionally steady, energetic, and obliging, and will I am confident give satisfaction to any one that employs him.
Edward Jackson
Govt. Inspector
Sydney Water Supply
Prospect.
He didn’t like his name, Jeremiah and preferred to call himself Harry Harrod. When asked if he was related to the Harrod of London Store fame, he replied yes, but we don’t associate with them, because they are in trade, and he was a craftsman. Jeremiah moved to 36 Alexandria Avenue, Eastwood after Elizabeth died in 1900. Their children, William, Annie, and Gertrude married, while Alice, Emma and Grace did not and lived at Eastwood with their father. Jeremiah continued laying bricks up to his 80th birthday and died in 1942, at the age of 96.
Jeremiah seemed to think that the owners of the Harrod Store were related. Charles Harrod, the founder of Harrods was born in 1800, so could have been an older brother of Jeremiah Snr., or perhaps a cousin.
Harrods of Knightsbridge
In 1849 Charles Henry Harrod took over a small grocery store in the narrow alleyways between London and Kensington known as Knightsbridge.
From those modest premises Harrod and his family sold soap, biscuits, candles and tea from a single counter at the centre of the shop’s saw-covered floor.
By 1870, turnover had reached £1,000 a week and a new shop-front allowed for perfumery, medicine and stationery departments to be added to the existing grocery. Later china, ironmongery and turnery also became part of the store.
In 1883, a major fire just before Christmas destroyed the store and threatened the entire business. However, the Harrod family was not easily beaten and managed to continue trading whilst re-building took place. In September 1884 the new store, on a much grander scale than the original, was re-opened with a staff of 200.
The business continued to flourish over the years and today Harrods is one of the most celebrated department stores in the world and a famous landmark in London. It’s reputation as the “top people’s store” has been maintained for over a century, helped by the patronage of our own Royal Family, as well as royalty from many overseas countries and rich and famous personalities from around the world.
Charles Henry Harrod would be proud that the small grocery store he opened in 1849 is today an empire, and testament to the legend: ‘anything from a pin to a piano.’
Doreen Hope Skinner
Normanhurst 1980