Fred Boardman (1895-1975) was born in Sheffield, the son of John Middleton Boardman (a ‘silversmith maker up’) and his wife, Mary Ann. The family lived at Heeley. In the Census (1911), Fred was working as an ‘engineer tool maker’. When he married in 1921, however, he stated his occupation as musician. By 1931 (when he advertised for workers), Fred had started John Boardman & Co as a cutlery manufacturer. It was based at Imperial Works, Eyre Lane, and seems to have been a small operation.  It advertised for women canvassers and agents (part and full-time, either sex) to sell privately and on commission all classes of cutlery (Hull Daily Mail, 2, 16 April 1931).  

According to the Boardman family (in communications to the Hawley Collection), Fred named the firm after his son, John (known as ‘Jack’). The firm soon became bankrupt and Fred "fought in court to keep his tatty old jag so he had transport for his next attempt at cutlery manufacture and transport to and from dances where he played clarinet in a band to help make ends meet. To economise he famously used a Newcastle Brown Ale label as a tax disk; a ploy which nearly backfired one evening as he was playing at the annual Police Ball!"

In 1939, Fred was working as a maintenance fitter (Register of England & Wales, 1939). After the War Fred was determined to start another cutlery venture. In 1948, Boardman Plate Ltd was registered as a private limited company, with £1,000 capital. Jack Boardman was employed as a hands-on director. It later operated from Enterprise Works, St Mary’s Road. Boardman’s apparently undertook contract work for other firms and it prospered, especially after the war when lots of newly married couples wanted cutlery. The largest order they undertook was to supply just about every utensil imaginable to the Royal Navy of Thailand. The company was wound up in 1962, when negotiations were conducted to sell its stock to Butler / Leppington.

As the cutlery firm was winding down Fred Boardman bought the café on Howard Street and named it the Mary Gentle Café after his daughter Mary Boardman (Jack's sister), who had married Gerry Gentle in 1947. Jack and his wife Brenda eventually took over and ran the café for several years.

Fred Boardman died at Naylor Avenue, Gotham, Nottinghamshire, on 14 July 1975, aged 79.

Information on the Boardman family was kindly supplied by Fred's granddaughters, Pauline Winn & Julie Hardwidge.