Ditchfield's grocery store

Ditchfield's grocery store, "Ditchfield's House of Quality", was a business in Redan, <1878-1930>.

Location
The store is on the corner of Drummond and Darling Streets, Redan. Now numbered as 624, 626 and 628 Drummond Street.

History
The business was established before 1869 by George Prescot Ditchfield. In October 1878, Ditchfield was called as a witness in a case of alleged rape. The licensee of the Redan Club Hotel told him that she had been assaulted and raped by a customer. Ditchfield told her to go straight to the Redan Police Station and report it.

The store was robbed in September 1900: "Yesterday Detective Armstrong and Constable Hooley arrested a boy named Albert Flowers on a charge of larceny of tobacco and cigars from the premises of Mr Ditchfield, Redan, on the 5th inst. Flowers will this morning appear at the City Court in company with another lad named Charles Milner, who was arrested some days ago for the same offence, and is now on bail. Flowers confessed to having committed the robbery and led the police to a house near the Redan Racecourse, beneath which several of the stolen articles were discovered." "Albert Flowers, the youth who was arrested by Detective Armstrong and Constable Hooley on a charge of being concerned in the robbery from Ditchfield’s store at Redan, was remanded to appear on the 14th, in company with Charles Milner, who was arrested on the same charge."

After G. P. Ditchfield died in 1902, the business was operated by his son, John Prescott Ditchfield.

J. P. Ditchfield promoted Dr. Sheldon's cough mixtures, and wrote testimonials for advertising purposes. These were published in various newspapers and magazines, including the Age, the Bulletin, and the Broken Hill Barrier Miner: "Mr. J. P. Ditchfield, Grocer, corner Skipton and Drummond streets, Ballarat, writes as follows:— 'Can heartily recommend DR. SHELDON'S NEW DISCOVERY for COUGHS, COLDS and CONSUMPTION. 'I have used it in my own home, and found it very effective, and my customers speak of it in the highest terms.' Dr. Sheldon's New Discovery is sold everywhere at 1/6 and 3/.— (Advt.)"

Next to the shops is a small brick shed, with matching brickwork: "The from door on the street was for the horse drays to pull up and load and there is another door on the side to put the hay and grain in when delivered to the shop. It's behind the fence which was an open alley way when in operation...the alley way between the main shop and the storage used to go out the back leading to a backyard which was open to the main house in Drummond St and the first house in Darling St where my grandparents lived. At the back there were horse stables and the delivery dray. My grandfather was the delivery man for the shop taking groceries to customers. I remember playing on the dray with my cousins."

Later businesses
After the grocery store closed, the buildings have been used by a number of different businesses: "'The Ditchfields building...was a secondhand furniture shop at one stage (I have a piece or two we bought there when we first married) operated by the Nesbitt family. Another business operated there called Cameo furnishings."

628

 * Redan Post Office, has been in the corner section, No. 628 of the building since about c.2000.

626
"A small company, offering a personal and extensive service including experience gained over many years. My service assists people who are setting out to build their home, alter a home or build a investment property. the package provides design and planning. Founding date May 1975. Awards: City of Ballarat Design Excellence Award panel member 2003/2004"
 * Pickwick Designs operated from 626 until c2015.
 * A children's hairdresser, c.2015.
 * A gift shop, all about kids and gifts, was in the middle shop (626) in 2016.
 * Tech Studio, an IT company, moved into 626 c.2020.

624

 * Country Wide Specs operated from the northern end of the building (624) from c.2010 to 2019.
 * A new health business opened in 624 in 2020, Heal and Glow Holistic Wellness.