Tributes have been paid to Portland’s last blacksmith, who has died aged 89.
John Powell lived on Portland all of his life - he was born in Underhill and moved to Tophill in 1950.
He was the island’s last blacksmith, working in Easton from 1945 until his retirement in 1992. A pupil at Portland Underhill Senior School, he left aged 14 just before the end of the Second World War.
John was a Portlander through and through, his son Warwick said.
He said: “John was the last of Portland’s blacksmiths. He was interviewed for radio, for a local documentary, photographed for a social history project and was asked to donate tools to various museums nationally.
“John left school aged 14, first working as an office boy in the dockyard at the end of the Second World War. He joined his father Chris Powell as an apprentice in the family blacksmith business, aged 15, in late 1945.
“From the 1940s to the 1960s their daily work was making, repairing and sharpening quarry and masonry hand tools for the Portland stone industry.
“Then, from the 1970s, as the stone industry declined, blacksmith work continued with contractors at AUWE and the naval base dockyard, as well as with the quarry tools.”
During the Second World War John witnessed dog fights over Portland and saw HMS Foylebank bombed by Stukas.
He spent nights in the air raid shelter with schooling interrupted after bombing.
John remembered the American build-up before D-Day, waking and they were gone.
On VJ day aged 14, John visited the West End, ‘never saw so many people’ and saw the King and Winston Churchill on Buckingham Palace balcony.
During 1940s rationing, he bred bunnies for the butcher.
When young, John enjoyed many trips to London combining football matches with Variety Shows, often returning on the ‘milk train’ in early hours.
The keen football fan was a supporter of Portsmouth and Portland United, first watching both Pompey and the Blues in the 1940s, spending many Saturday afternoons at Grove Road.
John was husband and best friend to Brenda, who passed away earlier this year.
They met at The Queens Dancehall, Weymouth in 1957. They celebrated their Diamond Wedding Anniversary last year.
John first attended the Court Leet of Portland as juror in 1985, served for over 20 years before retiring as Foreman of the Jury in 2005. He held the Reeve in 1995 for the Beating of the Bounds on Chesil Beach.
He continued as a retired member and served two years’ National Service in REME for Light Aid Detachment.
A life member of the Conservative club in Easton, John played snooker every Friday, and was a trustee of the club.
John was a keen swimmer who played water polo for Portland aged 15/16.
He was a beach hut owner who spent many Sundays with his family at Church Ope Cove, still enjoying swimming into his 80s.
He kept a large fruit and vegetable garden and was very proud of Portland and enjoyed recounting tales of early life in war years, national service years, his work as a blacksmith and his adventures on London trips.
After retirement, John and Brenda enjoyed many European cruises, travel to Hong Kong and Singapore. John was father to Mandy and Warwick, father-inlaw to Karen and much loved Grampy to Rose and Alice.
He died aged 89 on June 30 2020. He remained active in his vegetable garden, doing DIY and helping to care for his wife Brenda, until very recently. He passed away peacefully at home following a short illness.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here