The ‘Rogers’ depot was located on the western side of the High Street, opposite the Knoll. The premises were built partly on the site of an old blacksmiths shop, and to the day that the company closed, some of the correspondence came addressed as ‘The Old Smithy’.

The company was engaged in the sale, maintenance and repair of agricultural, horticultural and industrial machinery over a very wide area.

The company was formed by Michael and Neville Rogers at Great Barford, just outside Bedford. Michael ran the agricultural engineering side and Neville had an aircraft business in Cranfield.

The Sherington depot was built in 1956 as their second depot, with a Massey-Ferguson agency. Up until closure in 1994, the company was part of the same family group, with eight depots stretching from Stamford in Lincolnshire to Coleshill, Birmingham.

As well as the Massey-Ferguson side of the business, the company undertook repairs on most makes of farm machinery and sold a very wide range of implements and equipment. Horticultural machinery was catered for by special workshops at four of the depots, which covered most makes available.

Over the years a large number of Sherington people have worked in the depot. Fred West, who lived at 18 School Lane for a number of years, actually helped build the premises then stayed on as a fitter for some years afterwards. He was joined by Rex Line, who lived with his parents in the High Street. A number of Sherington lads started their working life with an apprenticeship there, as a start to their careers. Mrs Eileen West, who lives in the village was employed there for 21 years, commencing work in the office in March 1970. Warwick Line, who lives just across The Knoll, worked in the workshop from August 1963.

Gilbert Brown, from Perry Lane, worked there for many years. In fact the day that Gilbert retired in 1985, he still drove the spares van which circulated the depots daily, moving parts as instructed by, by then, the computerised stock control system. Maurice Thorpe, who lived in Church Road, worked here for many years and helped extend the workshop at the rear, in the late 1960’s, before joining the Anglian Water Authority

Changes took place over the years to meet the needs of the times in 1986 part of the store was altered to form a small retail area, which sold work and leisure wear clothing, footwear, oils, paint and tools, etc. in addition to sundry items needed around the farm or garden.

The above text was taken from the article written by Brian W. Holpin, (Parts and Service Manager) 13th November 1987 for Phyllis Loxley-Walton's book, "A Walk Around Sherington."

Further to the above article, Brian Holpin spoke to the Sherington Historical Society and also divulged to us the following:

The house to the north of Rogers engineering, (Ex-Hickson's butchers, still with its bay (shop) window and shop door entrance in the front garden) was owned in 1963 by an Italian, Signor Travigoni, an ex-prisoner ofwar, from the POW camp in Sherington. He married a local girl and stayed on in Sherington to turn the area behind the house into a small market garden.

Mrs Travigoni died of cancer circa 1964. The daughters of Signor Travigoni still live in the locality, but he returned to his native Italy. Mary and Vince Pipes moved into the property next, from there they ran their one lorry haulage company.

Harriet's End had its thatch roof burned off in 1981/82. They were to have a small repair done to the thatch that hot dry summer. A load of dry thatch had been unloaded onto the side of the road, and the thought is that a cigarette end from a passing car set fire to this dry straw and the wind fanned this to a flame. The men from Rogers saw this happen but before anything could be done the flaming straw had blown up into the air and landed on the roof of Harriett's End, where, in the words of Brian Holpin it seemed to "explode into flames." It went up with "an explosive whoosh". Many of the local villagers and the workers from Rogers rescued as much furniture from the house as was possible and the fire engine from Newport arrived very quickly. Bill Norton, landlord of the Swan, provided the firemen with refreshments. It was a hot disastrous day.

On the South side, in 1963 the Crown & Castle was in the hands of Mr Owen Lawrence, landlord, who kept pigs on the lower floor the building, that is now David Byrnes house and studio, and chickens in the top floor.

Further information:

The depot closed in 1994, when the whole business was taken over by a new owner and moved to a site in Newport Pagnell. Most of the existing employees moved with the company. The application to build 4 dwelling houses on the site was approved by MK planning, and was published in the local press on August 11^th 1994. The 4 new houses were built during 1995 and the road is now known as Maryot Close. The whole business was asset stripped and totally closed by 1998.