In about 1918 Harry Wells started a taxi and cycle repair business from his home in Beaulieu. Two years later in 1920 Alec Marvin worked with Harry and a motor repair business was started. Then at about the same time Alfred Cecil Marvin (Alec's brother) joined them and in 1921 started running services in this part of the New Forest, to Hythe and Southampton, using a Trojan van. A second hand one ton Studebaker bus was soon purchased, followed by a Ford model T hard-top: painted bright red it acquired the nickname of The Strawberry Basket. A soft top charabanc was also acquired at this time. In addition to "Cecil" Marvin, other drivers were Jack Gay and Ernest Crouch. They were joined later by Harry Jennings, Bert Thomas and Arthur Hendey.
Despite the arrival of Hants & Dorset Motor Services on the Lymington to Beaulieu road in 1925 (extened to Hythe in 1927) the services grew with loyal passengers. A list of the routes in 1933 is below, including the services of A Rowe-Davies of East Boldre that were recorded as taken over in 1932. There were obvious difficulties with operations during the war, perhaps benefitting to some extent from the nearby RAF station. In 1943 a utility Bedford OWB 29-seater EOR384 was allocated to Beaulieu Motor Services, blue livery with wooden slatted seats.
I recall a dark blue Bedford OWB at Marvin's garage and petrol station by the river in Beaulieu in the early 1950s. The Wednesday only route to Lymington via East Boldre was withdrawn in 1955 and the other route to Lymington via Bucklers Hard dropped from three times a week to Saturday only.
The remaining services passed to Jennings Coaches Ltd of Dibden Purlieu from the Spring of 1959, who ran them for a few more years. (Harry Jennings had learnt the country bus business by driving part-time for Marvin's!). The Lymington service was withdrawn in the Spring of 1965, whilst the Southampton service was progressively reduced in frequency, dropping to Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday operation from Autumn of 1959; then to Tuesday only from Summer of 1961. It was still running on that once a week basis until withdrawn in 1972.
