(click image to enlarge)
David Shepherd produced this highly atmospheric portrait of the cattle market in Reading, Berkshire, early in his career. It follows in the tradition of works by both William Gunning King (1859-1940) and James Bateman (1893-1959). King’s images advertised the animal feed manufacturer, J Bibby, and a poster for the same company can be seen on a wall in Shepherd’s painting.
A cattle market has existed on the same site in Reading since 1850, when a public company was established to found such a building as a replacement for the slaughterhouses in the centre of the town. The company chose as its site a meadow south of the railway line and north of Great Knollys Street. To a design by a local architect, John Berry Clacy, the ground was raised above flood level, and the area divided into two parts, for fat and lean stock. The work was completed in eight weeks, and the market opened in the November.
In 1901, the auctioneers, Bailey & Thimbleby, approached the farmer, George Shorland, to run the agricultural side of its business at Reading Cattle Market. By 1903, the firm had become known as Thimbleby & Shorland, and it still operates from the market. The present buildings – including the ring that probably features in Shepherd’s painting – were constructed in the late 1930s, by which time Thimbleby & Shorland was bringing loads of Ayrshire cattle from Scotland to the market. However, since the closure of the slaughterhouse in 1996, the focus of sales has been on goods rather than animals, from antiques to contractors’ plant.
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