The history of Francis Chappell & Sons Funeral Directors

By 1935, Francis Chappell had grown to have nine funeral homes, and together with the nine branches named after John Chappell, the Chappell's network of funeral homes was the single largest of its kind in the whole country. A year later, John's name was removed from the business, and it became what we know it as today, Francis Chappell & Sons Funeral Directors. Francis went on to have four children of his own, two sons and two daughters. His son Stanley joined the family business in 1905 at the age of 14, and together they worked on growing the business and opening new funeral homes to help families in neighbouring areas. Francis retired in 1939, leaving Stanley to manage the business. Francis passed away 10 years later, leaving Stanley with his son Rex, who joined the business in 1946. Rex was 23 years old at the time, having just left the Royal Air Force. Stanley retired in 1958 and passed away in 1963, so Rex hired his son to help him in his venture in the early 1970s. Lee Bridge House remained a funeral home until the 1980s, until it could no longer be used due to the foundations of the building sinking. They relocated this branch to the opposite side of the road, which is where our Lewisham, Lee High Road branch is still operating today.