Alfred Quinton Barton – The early years and the Army
Alfred Quinton Barton 2 – the life of a rural pharmacist (PDF, 4.3MB)
This article details the work of Alfred as a pharmacist in the Forest of Dean from 1920 until his death in 1956. It was written by his daughter Margaret Barton and contains very full details of this part of Alfred’s life and work. Other sections of the website address his earlier life, his photographic work, and his wartime diary from 1917.
The article was published by the Forest of Dean Historical Society and is reproduced with their kind permission. Copyright rests with the Society and Dr Margaret Barton. The publication details are as follows:
‘Alfred Quinton Barton: Chemist and Optician 1889 – 1956’, by Dr. Margaret E. Barton (Daughter), The New Regard, Volume 17, (2002), pp 41-6.
Alfred Quinton Barton was born in 1891 at Newport (Isle of Wight), one of the nine surviving children of Alfred and Emma Barton.
Figure 1: Alfred around 1899, aged 10
By 1911 he was already working as a school teacher, when he was living in Newport with his sister Irene and her husband, Frederick Lock.
Figure 2: Alfred (at right) teaching gymnastics
Figure 3: Alfred as a young man
Alfred later switched career to pharmacy and was living in Twickenham in 1915 when he enlisted in the Army. Poor eyesight prevented him from joining a fighting unit and he enlisted as a dispenser with the Royal Army Medical Corps. On 29th April 1917 he sailed for France and from that day until 1st January 1918 he kept a diary that is detailed separately. In brief, the diary records his frustrations with the leadership, his affection for other troops and nurses, his love of the area and his suffering at the loss of friends through a bombing raid.
After the war Alfred settled in the Forest of Dean and set up his first pharmacy in Cinderford in 1920. Details of this are given separately.
On 11th November 1920 he married Amy Elizabeth Child, who had been brought up at Tidenham near Chepstow. The couple had three children, Helen (1922), Margaret (1926) and Richard (1929). The childhood years are recorded by a vast collection of photographs and some cine films.
Alfred died in 1956, having never formally retired, but leaving a lasting legacy of records and memories.
Figure 4: Alfred in Army uniform about 1915
Figure 5: Alfred at Army camp, standing second from the left
Figure 6: Alfred with his car, Amy, Helen and Richard. This photo was taken in 1937 for an outing to the Three Salmons in Beachley
Figure 7: Alfred and Amy in 1941
Figure 8: Alfred in later years