Swinton, and for their guidance over their work, were remarkably well
considered and clear; the original document of about 1829, in Mr.
Brameld’s handwriting, is in my own possession, as is also another from
which I learn some particulars as to the overlookers of that time.
Richard Shillito was to have charge of the earthenware department as
general overlooker, with ... Hulme to assist him; William Horncastle
had charge of the Warehouse, &c.; Mr. Wager had charge of the men at
the farm; Mr. Baguley had “charge of all the painting and gilding
department in china and enamel earthenware.” John Speight, “the
painting, &c., &c., in earthenware biscuit work;” George Liversedge was
overlooker and manager of the printing department; Joseph Bullough was
sorter of biscuit ware; William Speight had charge of the mill, and
also “the care of and management of all gold, colours, and glazes, &c.,
he giving them out as they may be properly wanted to use.”
Earthenware of various kinds--“Brown China,” or “Rockingham ware,”
green glazed ware, biscuit figures and ornaments, hard fine white
stoneware, cream-coloured ware, and other varieties of goods were also
still made; and the works, which, at this time--the time when china
began regularly to be made (1826)--with the assistance of the Earl
Fitzwilliam, assumed the name of the “ROCKINGHAM WORKS,” began
to use the crest of the Fitzwilliam family as the mark of the firm.
In 1826 (November 17), Messrs. Brameld & Co. secured the services of
an excellent painter, “Mr. John Cresswell, painter on china,” and
articles of agreement (in my own possession) were drawn up by which
Cresswell engaged himself to them for five years at 7s. 6d. a day for
the first three years; 9s. 3d. a day for the fourth year; and 10s. 6d.
a day for the fifth year. In 1830 the firm received an order for a
service from the Duchess of Cumberland:--
“At Kew, October 23, 1830.
“Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cumberland most graciously
inspected the Pattern Plates (5) prepared for the purpose; and
was pleased to express herself much gratified therewith, and
commanded me to get up her Service with
6 Plates Interiors, style of Original.
6 „ Shells.
6 „ Birds.
6 „ Fruit.
6 „ Landscapes (real views).
6 „ Marine.
and the comports, elevetated, (_Des Assiettes Elevès_) to be
same of those of His Majesty; to be shewn to her as they are
prepared in turns for the King to see.
Price 250 Guineas.
36 Plates, gad g.
12 Comports, or W. S.
2 Cream Bowls.
2 Ice Cellars.
J. W. BRAMELD.”
And in 1833, from the Duke of Sussex:--
_Memorandum of a Dessert Service for H.R.H. The Duke of
Sussex._
Kensington, 30th Nov., 1833.
Forms same as H.M.’s.
Plate--Essex--but same size as H.M.’s.
4 Large Dress Plates.
4 Second size do.
8 Small do. do.
4 Ice Pails (Handles à la Warwick).
4 Pine and Grape Baskets.
8 Peach Baskets--say 4 Mulberry and 4 Pine.
4 Fruit Comports.
4 Shell „
----
40 pieces perhaps 500 guineas.
6 doz. of Plates will be 360 „
---
860 „
Say £600,
for 2/3.
In the same year Messrs. Brameld & Co. became the purchasers from Mr.
George Green of his interest in the Kilnhurst Pottery (which see).
In 1840, Messrs. Brameld were in negotiation for the purchase from
Mr. Dillwyn of the Glamorgan Pottery at Swansea (which see); but the
purchase was not made.
In 1830, the Rockingham Works received an order for a splendid dessert
service for King William IV., which was executed in the highest style
of the art, and gave intense satisfaction. The original sketches for
this service are in my own possession, and are named “Original Designs
for His Majesty’s Dessert, 12th Nov., 1830, per J. W. B.” (John Wager
Brameld). They are pen-and-ink sketches by himself. Of this service
I shall have yet to speak. At this time the works assumed the name
of “Royal Rockingham Works,” and the proprietors called themselves
China Manufacturers and Potters to the King, Queen, and Royal
Family. In 1838, the manufacture of china and earthenware bed-posts,
cornices, &c.--a somewhat novel feature in the art--was added to the
other productions of the Rockingham Works. In that year a patent was
taken out in the name of William Dale[118] for “certain improvements
in constructing columns, pillars, bed-posts, and other such-like
articles;” consisting of several ornamental pieces or compound parts of
china or earthenware,” “united, strengthened and supported by a shaft
or rod passing through the whole length of the same, and furnished with
screw nuts or other description of fastenings, and collars,” &c. These
bed-posts and other similar things were made at the Rockingham Works,
though never to any extent. They are now of very great rarity, but
examples are in my own possession. The body is white, the prevailing
colour being _Rose-du-Barry_, with yellow flowers, &c. Another of
these interesting examples is white with an effective chintz pattern
in colours; while others have small groups and sprigs of flowers,
the outline in transfer printing, and filled in with colour. In my
own possession, too, are several of the original drawings of designs
for beds, window cornices, lamps, candelabra, tables, &c., which are
remarkable for their elegance and beauty. An elegant work-table of this
description of ware, of simple but very effective design and excellent
workmanship, is in the possession of Mr. Wilson of Sheffield. It is 2
feet 6 inches high and 1 foot 6 inches in diameter at the top. Among
the designs to which I have alluded is one representing a small and
remarkably elegant table of somewhat similar, but much more ornate
character, on which is a fish-globe stand of corresponding design.
Although the Rockingham Works were eminently successful in an artistic
point of view, they were not so commercially, and in 1842 were
closed, after involving not only their noble owner, but the absolute
proprietors, in a loss of very many thousands of pounds. Only sixteen
years had elapsed since the introduction of the china manufacture to
the works, but those had been sixteen years of beauty, and of artistic
and manipulative success. No man better understood his art than Mr.
Thomas Brameld, no man laboured harder and more disinterestedly in the
ennobling of that art than he did, and few men, either before his time
or since, succeeded in accomplishing greater or more honourable things.
He and his brother looked to Art instead of commerce, and the result
was embarrassment and loss.
At the close of the Rockingham Works in 1842, the stock, &c., was
sold off and dispersed, and the manufactory which had produced so
large a quantity of elegant services, &c., was entirely discontinued.
A small portion of the building was taken by an old and experienced
workman, Isaac Baguley (formerly employed at the famous Derby China
Works), who was one of Messrs. Brameld’s best painters and gilders.
Here he commenced business in a small way on his own account, and
continued to do some little business until his death. Mr. Baguley did
not manufacture the wares himself, but purchased what he required in
the biscuit and white state, from other makers, and then painted,
gilt, and otherwise ornamented them for sale. At his death, his son,
Alfred Baguley, succeeded him, and, for a few years, carried on this
decorative branch of the business on the old premises. Mr. Baguley
decorated with commendable taste earthenware and porcelain, and
produced some extremely good and effective designs in modelling, and
clever patterns in decoration. One of his specialities was the old
Rockingham ware, which he produced of a far purer and better quality
than any other house. To this branch he paid particular attention, and
produced the Rockingham chocolate or brown glaze on a china body. In
this “Rockingham china,” breakfast and tea services, tea and coffee
pots of the good old designs, drinking horns, jugs, &c., were made,
and, being gilt in the same manner as the old Rockingham ware, have a
remarkably pleasing appearance, while in touch they are all that can
be desired. Mr. Baguley also made the famous old “Bishopthorpe” and
“Wentworth” jugs. His mark was the same as that of the old works--the
crest of Earl Fitzwilliam (Fig. 880) with the name--
[Illustration:
_Baguley_
_Rockingham Works._
Fig. 869.]
In 1852, a small portion of the works was tenanted by some earthenware
manufacturers, who traded as “P. Hobson & Son,” but their occupation
was of only short duration, and now the whole place is closed.
The Rockingham Works--a view of which in their palmiest days is on
a dish made by Twigg, in my own collection--when in full operation,
gave employment to a considerable number of hands and occupied a
large area of ground.[119] At the present time the place is a sad and
desolate-looking wilderness. The buildings have most of them been
removed, and others, at the time of my visit, were being taken down.
The whole place was in ruins, and in the area, where but a few years
ago all was life, activity, and bustle in the execution of a royal
order, “weeds and briars grow;” while in the centre of the wreck stood
a building bearing the almost defaced words, “This way to the China
Room,” where no china, save broken fragments scattered about on the
“shard rucks,” was to be seen.
Of the “brown china” or “Rockingham ware” services, Cadogan pots, &c.,
I have given notices. It will be sufficient to add that although all
which was made at these works were not marked, they usually bore the
impressed marks of “ROCKINGHAM,” “BRAMELD,” or “BRAMELD & CO.,” or the
name of “MORTLOCK.”
[Illustration: Fig. 870.]
In fine hard “white stoneware,” and in fine cane-coloured ware, jugs
of remarkably good design were made, and were decorated with groups
in relief in the same manner; indeed, strongly resembling, both in
body and in design, those of Turner, which are so well known to
collectors. In Mr. Davis’s and other hands are remarkably good jugs
of this kind, decorated with raised groups of figures in blue, and
bearing the embossed mark to be hereafter spoken of. The handles of
these jugs are formed of the leg and tail of a horse. In “green-glazed
earthenware,” dessert services, flower vases, garden seats, and all
the usual varieties of articles were made. The green, as a rule, was
a somewhat lighter colour and not so good in quality as Wedgwood’s.
The pieces were generally marked with the usual impressed mark. In
fine “earthenware,” services of every kind were produced, both white,
blue-printed, painted, and gilt. The glaze on the earlier pieces, it
should be remarked, is of a decided blue tint, and somewhat inferior in
quality. Some of the dessert-services produced in the early part of the
present century are particularly interesting. On each piece is painted
some flower as large as life, and coloured true to nature in every
particular. The name of the plant represented is in each case pencilled
at the back of the piece. The plants represented on the two examples
(Fig. 870) are respectively marked as “_Althea Frutex_” and “_Virgilia
helioides_.” In the late Dr. Brameld’s possession was a service of this
same kind, in which the flowers were beautifully painted. The painter
of these pieces was Collinson, the best flower-painter employed at the
Swinton Works, and they were made between the years 1810–15. The ware
is particularly light, and has a remarkably pleasant feel in handling.
I have been somewhat particular in speaking of this variety of goods,
because similar services were produced far more extensively at the Don
Works, at Swansea, and at other places.
[Illustration: Figs. 871 and 872.]
Of works of Art, in earthenware, the Swinton Pottery produced many
vases and other objects of a high degree of excellence, both in design,
manipulation, and in decoration, and were, indeed, far in advance
of most of their competitors. Fig. 871 represents one of a pair of
remarkably fine _pot-pourris_, which were “thrown” at the Swinton
Works by Mr. Thomas Brameld the year he was out of his apprenticeship,
in 1805, and were, till his death, in the possession of his son, Dr.
Brameld. They are 18 inches high, and have lions’ heads for handles,
while on the top of the lid is a lion couchant, the family crest,
gilt. The jars are beautifully painted in Chinese subjects. The next
engraving shows one of the specialities of the Swinton pottery, a
“lotus vase,” from an example in Mr. Manning’s possession. It is formed
of leaves, &c., and has butterflies, &c., raised, as if resting upon
the leaves. The whole is carefully enamelled, and altogether forms
a flower vase of surpassing beauty. It is pleasant to add that at
the close of the Rockingham Works, the moulds for the production of
these “lotus vases,” as well as others, including the model of the
keep of Conisborough Castle,[120] which, by the way, was another of
the specialities of the Swinton Works, passed into the hands of the
late Mr. John Reed, of the “Mexborough Pottery,” by whose successor
they continue to be made, both in the fine old green-glazed style, and
enamelled.
In “Queen’s ware,” or “cream-coloured ware,” services were formerly
made at Swinton. It was of a very similar quality to that made at Leeds
and at Castleford, and, being unmarked, is generally ascribed to one or
other of those works. In Dr. Brameld’s possession was a teapot of this
material, which is said to have been made in the latter part of last
century by his grandfather. It is here shown. It is of deep buff, or
cream colour, with beaded edges, and bears the name and date--
Amelia Hallam,
1773.
[Illustration: Fig. 873.]
In the late Mr. Reed’s possession, too, was a double-handled drinking
cup of elegant form, with the name IOHN ALSEBROOK, and the date 1795,
within an enamelled border of roses and foliage, and having on the
other side a Chinese figure subject, also enamelled.
That this kind of ware was not made extensively at Swinton until after
the dissolution of partnership with Hartley, Greens & Co., is perhaps
to be easily accounted for in the fact that these proprietors of the
Leeds Pottery, where it was manufactured so extensively and so well,
being also partners here, the cream ware would be made principally at
Leeds, while at the Swinton Works was produced what had not been made
at the other place. From the time the works fell entirely into the
hands of the Bramelds, however, this kind of ware became the staple
production of the manufactory, and an immense trade was carried on in
it in the Baltic and elsewhere. Not being marked, it probably often
passes for Leeds ware in the eyes of collectors. In this material
beautiful open-work baskets, and many other elegant articles, were
made.
Transfer printing was introduced at Swinton, at all events, as early,
as I have shown, as 1788, and was continued to the close of the
works. In the later years, some extremely tasteful groups of flowers,
butterflies, &c., were engraved and transferred in outline, and
then painted in the usual manner. In dinner, tea, toilet, and other
services, the designs were extremely good, and one of them, the Don
Quixote pattern, became very popular.
Engine-turned tea and coffee pots, plates, &c., were also manufactured,
and in manipulation were equal to any produced in ordinary earthenware.
Groups of flowers, figures, trophies, borders, &c., in relief, were
also introduced.
[Illustration: Figs. 874 to 876.]
In “china” the earliest examples are two trial pieces by Mr. Thomas
Brameld, which I saw in the possession of his son, the late Dr.
Brameld. These are a pair of small leaves, the body of which is of good
quality, painted of a salmon colour with gold veins. These are probably
of the date 1820–2, and but few trials were made from that time until
1825. In 1826 china ware began to be made largely, and from that time
(in this year it will be remembered the works changed their name from
“Swinton” to “Rockingham”) to 1842 was one series of successes in all
but profit. Tea, coffee, dinner, dessert, toilet, and other services,
were made in every variety of style, from the ordinary blue printed,
or white with raised blue ornaments, to the most elaborately painted
and gilt varieties. Vases, and numberless ornamental articles for
the drawing-room and the toilet were also made, and were generally
distinguished by good taste in design, and skill in decoration. To show
how Art was, by the taste of the Bramelds, made subservient to the
production of things of every-day use, I give, in Figs. 874 to 876,
three examples in Mr. Manning’s possession.
In vases, some of the finest which had ever been produced were made
at these works. At Wentworth House, the magnificent seat of Earl
Fitzwilliam, among other fine examples of Swinton Art, is one which
is of surpassing beauty. It was the largest china vase produced at
that time in a single piece in this country. It stands three feet
nine inches in height, and is three feet one inch in circumference.
The base, which is of tripod form, has a blue ground, with flowers in
compartments, and is massively gilt. From it rises the vase, supported
on three lions’ paws in white and gold. From between the feet on each
side spring branches of oak, solidly gilt, which entwine their leaves
around the paws, and form an elegant border to each of the large
painted subjects on the sides. The neck of the vase is in honeycomb
open-work, with raised bees upon it; and the handles are of massive
coral in white and gold. On each of the three sides of the vase is a
large subject from Don Quixote, exquisitely painted in enamel colours.
The cover has a blue ground, on which are flowers and trophies in
tablets, surrounded by oak leaves and acorns in gold. It is surmounted
by a large and powerfully-modelled rhinoceros, gilt. The under side
of the cover, quite out of sight except when lifted off the vase, is
painted in a series of small landscapes, alternating with subjects
taken from Bewick’s celebrated tail-pieces. Inside the cover is the
mark of the crest, and the words “Rockingham Works, Brameld,” and the
date 1826. This splendid vase was painted by John Wager Brameld. At
Wentworth House, too, the Earl and Countess Fitzwilliam have, along
with a large number of choice examples of Chelsea, Chelsea-Derby,
and other rare makes of China (which I have examined), several other
notable pieces of Rockingham china. Among these are a set of three
“Canova-shape” vases, painted with groups of flowers; a dessert-service
of white and gold “seaweed” pattern, each piece bearing the crest and
the date 1838; three of the pattern-plates submitted to William IV.
in competition for the royal service; a number of example-plates of
different designs; a breakfast service painted in flowers, each flower
named; an elegant tray with raised flowers and a view of Arundel
Castle; a pair of “monkey” beakers, nineteen inches high; and a pair
of fine biscuit scent bottles, sixteen inches high, decorated with
exquisite raised flowers.
In the possession of the late Dr. Brameld, who had among other things,
a remarkably beautiful ice pail and other pieces of note, was the fine
vase engraved in Fig. 877, which is known as the “Dragon Vase,” and
occasionally by the not very euphonious name of the “Infernal Vase.”
It is 3 feet 4½ inches in height, and has dragons for handles, and
also a dragon on the top of the cover. Another of these “Dragon” vases
is in the possession of Mr. Henry Barker. In the late Mr. Bagshawe’s
collection was a set of three vases, green and gold, with swans for
handles, on which are beautifully painted “named” views of “Bellagio,
Lago di Come,” “Verona,” and “Isola Bella, Lago Maggiore.” Mr. Reed
had pieces bearing views of Newstead Abbey, &c., and in Mr. Hobson’s
possession are vases, with views of Chatsworth and other places.
[Illustration: Fig. 877.]
The _chef-d’œuvre_ of the Rockingham China Works was, however, the
truly gorgeous dessert service made for William IV., which is now
preserved with the most scrupulous care at Buckingham Palace, and is,
we are credibly informed, justly prized by her Majesty as among her
more precious ceramic treasures. This service, which cost no less
a sum than £5,000, consists of one hundred and forty-four plates,
and fifty-six large pieces, and is one of the finest produced in
this or any other country. The plates have raised oak borders in
dead and burnished gold running over a raised laced pattern, also in
gold, and the centres are splendidly painted with the royal arms,
&c. The comports, which were all designed by Mr. Thomas Brameld,
are emblematical of the use to which each piece has to be put. For
instance, the comports for biscuit, are supported by ears of wheat; the
fruit pieces have central open-work baskets of fruit; the ice pails are
supported by holly berries and leaves; and in each case the landscapes
are also in unison with the uses of the pieces, which are of exquisite
design, and have also oak-leaf and lace decorations, so massively gilt
in dead and burnished gold as to have the appearance of _ormolu_ laid
on the porcelain, and each piece is decorated with views of different
seats, the sketches for which were taken expressly for the purpose,
and by groups of figures, &c. This service is, as I have said, at
Buckingham Palace. In Dr. Brameld’s possession was the specimen plate
which was submitted to, and approved by, the king, and some portions of
the comports, &c.; and in Mrs. Barker’s hands was one of the comports
(with views of “Langthwait Bridge,” and “Kentmore Hall,” and a group
of bird-catchers), which, for its extreme beauty and rarity, is an
almost priceless treasure. She also possesses a cup and saucer of the
breakfast service prepared for Her Majesty. In Mrs. Reed’s possession
is an unique example, being one of the specimen plates submitted for
royal approval in a competition with the principal china manufacturers
of the kingdom for the royal order. In this competition, twelve plates
of different patterns were specially prepared and submitted by the
Rockingham Works. Of these plates, the examples in Mr. Reed’s, Dr.
Brameld’s, the Earl Fitzwilliam’s, Mr. Hobson’s, and other hands, form
a part. In the centre are the royal arms, and the rim is decorated
with oak leaves and acorns. Another unique pattern-plate belonged to
Dr. Brameld, and is of the most delicate and exquisitely beautiful
character. In the centre are the royal arms, and on the rim are three
compartments, two of which contain groups of flowers, and the third a
view, while between these the “garter” is repeated. The cost at which
in the estimate it was calculated these plates could be produced, was
twelve guineas each.[121]
The dessert service made for William IV. was first used on occasion
of the coronation of our beloved Queen, and has only, I am informed,
been used on very special state occasions from that time to the
present. Although so large a sum of money was paid for it the cost of
its production was so great, that the actual outlay was, I am told
by those who are in the best position to know, considerably more
than was charged. This royal service had some little to do with the
embarrassments that caused the final stoppage of the works.[122]
In “biscuit,” figures, busts, and groups, as well as vases, of which
splendid examples belong to Earl Fitzwilliam, were produced. Among
other specimens that have come under my notice are a Swiss boy and
girl, a fine bust of Earl Fitzwilliam, Chantrey’s sleeping child,
Chantrey’s full-length statue of Lady Russell, &c.
Among the artists employed at the Rockingham works it will only be
necessary to name a few. These were Collinson, who painted flowers;
Llandig, who was a charming fruit and flower painter; Bailey, who
was the principal butterfly painter,[123] and who also painted
landscapes and crests; Speight (father and son), the latter of whom
painted many of the finest subjects, both landscapes and figures, on
the royal service, and who also painted the heraldic decorations on
the same; Brentnall, who was a clever flower-painter; Cordon, who
executed landscapes and figures; Tilbury, who painted landscapes and
figures; Mansfield, who was the principal embosser and chaser in gold;
Aston, who was clever as a modeller of flowers; and Cowen, who was an
artist of much repute, and for many years enjoyed the patronage of
the Fitzwilliam family. William Eley, too, was employed as modeller,
and executed some admirable works, including a fine bust of Earl
Fitzwilliam.
The MARKS used at the Swinton Works are not many, but have the
advantage of being particularly clear and easily recognised. They are,
so far as I have been able to ascertain, the following.
It should be premised that no mark was placed on the early productions
of these works, and they are, therefore, only to be ascertained by a
knowledge of the body, the glaze, and the style of ornamentation used.
The following are the marks which have come under my notice:--
[Illustration: _Rockingham_
Fig. 878.]
This incised mark, the earliest used by these works, occurs on one of
the famous “Brown China” high-shaped teapots of which I have spoken. It
is a mark of great rarity.
ROCKINGHAM ROCKINGHAM
in large capital letters, impressed into the body of the ware. The same
in small capital letters. These occur on early examples of “Rockingham
ware,” &c. The name MORTLOCK also occurs on examples of this ware.
BRAMELD ✠✠
in capital letters, impressed. This occurs on green glazed ware, &c.
BRAMELD & CO’ or BRAMELD**
also in small capital letters, impressed.
[Illustration: Fig. 879.]
An embossed mark, in an oval, stuck on the ware, from which it
generally differs in colour, being usually in blue.
ROYAL
ROCKINGHAM
WORKS
BRAMELD
in small capitals, in four lines, impressed. This mark occurs in
biscuit figures, &c.
[Illustration: Fig. 880.]
This mark (Fig. 880) is the crest of the Earl Fitzwilliam, and was
adopted in 1825–6 on the commencement of the manufacture of china,
under the assistance of that nobleman, who was owner of the works. It
is usually printed in _red_.
[Illustration]
_Rockinghan Works_
(Same
crest.)
_Brameld_
Same crest.
_Rockingham Works
Brameld_
_Manufacturers to the King_
(Same crest.)
_Royal Rockingham Works
Brameld_]
in writing letters. The first of these marks occurs, with the date
1826, on the Rhinoceros Vase at Wentworth House. The others are also in
writing letters in purple.
[Illustration]
(Same crest.)
ROYAL ROCKINGHAM
BRAMELD
(Same crest.)
ROYAL ROCKINGHAM WORKS
BRAMELD]
in capital letters. Sometimes in gold.
[Illustration]
(Same crest.)
Rockingham Works.
Brameld
Manufacturer to the King
Queen and Royal Family.]
surrounded by a wreath of roses, &c. Printed in purple.
It is only necessary to add to this account of the Swinton Pottery that
collectors will find remarkably good examples of Rockingham china, for
reference, in the Jermyn Street Museum, including pattern plates of the
royal service.
MEXBOROUGH.
_The “Rock Pottery” or “Mexbro Pottery”_ is situated at Mexborough,
a rising town near Swinton, with stations on the South Yorkshire and
Midland lines of railway. The works, at first very small, were, I
believe, established for the manufacture of brown and yellow wares,
and for common red garden-pots, by a person named Beevers, who, with
a partner named Ford--trading as Beevers and Ford--carried on the
business for some years. The workrooms at this time were built close up
to the rock, which, indeed, formed the back wall of the manufactory;
and from this circumstance the place was called the “Rock Pottery,” a
name by which it is still occasionally known. The goods at this time,
and subsequently, during the proprietorship of Ford, Simpson, and
Beevers, were made entirely from native clays, and were confined to
“cane” or “yellow ware” dishes, jugs, &c., for household use; garden
and root pots of red ware; and pitchers, &c., of a brown ware.
The works next passed into the hands of Messrs. Reed and Taylor, who
also owned the works at Ferrybridge (which see), and by them were
considerably enlarged. The manufacture of finer kinds of earthenware
was also introduced by them, and carried on with great success. In
1839 the pottery passed entirely into the hands of Mr. James Reed, who
carried it on until 1849, when he was succeeded by his son, Mr. John
Reed, by whom the manufactory was conducted until his decease. It was
then carried on by his executors under the management of the late Mr.
C. Bullock. During the time of Mr. Reed’s proprietorship, and that of
his father, considerable alterations and additions were made to the
works, and new kilns erected; the character of the productions was
also much improved, and several new varieties of wares were introduced.
In 1873, Messrs. Sydney Woolf & Co., the owners of the “Australian
Pottery,” at Ferrybridge (which see), became the purchasers of this
manufactory, and they now carry it on conjointly with their other works
at Ferrybridge, under the management of Mr. Bowman Heald. By Messrs.
Woolf & Co. the works have been considerably extended and several new
varieties of shapes and patterns introduced. They successfully compete
in several classes of goods with any in the locality, and with many of
the Staffordshire houses. The principal varieties of goods are,--in
ordinary white earthenware,--all the most marketable varieties of
painted, printed, enamelled, and gilt services of different kinds,
many of which are of good design, manufactured chiefly for the home
market. In dinner and toilet services, especially, some remarkably good
patterns, well enamelled and gilt, are produced. In Stilton cheese
stands and covers some good designs have been introduced. In Rockingham
ware all the usual kinds of vessels are made. In “terra-cotta,” which
is of a good colour, and of a fine and durable quality, Mr. Reed
manufactured large-sized flower-vases for gardens and other decorative
purposes; pendant flower-vases for conservatories, entrance-halls, &c.;
root-pots of tasteful design, butter coolers, &c., &c.
In green glazed earthenware, dessert services, in which the plates,
centres, comports, &c., are embossed with leaves, flowers, and other
patterns, are made, many of them from the original moulds of the
Swinton Works, which passed by purchase to the Mexborough pottery; and
others of equally elegant design from moulds expressly belonging to
Mexborough. In this ware garden seats, both plain and foliated, of the
same designs as those produced in the old days of the Rockingham Works;
and also root-pots and flower-vases, are made. Of these the “lotus
vase,” of which I have already given an engraving (Fig. 872), is one of
the most elegant and attractive, and is, I believe, made only at the
Mexborough Pottery, as is also the model of the keep of Conisborough
Castle already alluded to.
The mark used at the Mexborough Pottery, but which is only occasionally
introduced, is simply the name of the proprietor,
* REED *
in large capitals, impressed in the ware.
* * * * *
_Mexborough Old Pottery._--At Mexborough was formerly another
pot-work, known as the “Mexborough Old Pottery.” This was established
at the end of the last century by Messrs. Sowter and Bromley,[124] who
held the works until 1804, when they came into the possession of Mr.
Peter Barker. Peter Barker was the son of Joseph Barker, who came out
of Staffordshire as manager of the Swinton Pottery. He became partner
with Mr. Wainwright at the pot-works at Rawmarsh (afterwards Hawley’s),
and ultimately took to the works at Mexborough. These were continued by
the brothers, Peter and Jesse Barker, who were succeeded by Mr. Samuel
Barker, the son of the latter, until 1834, when they acquired the Don
Pottery. By Mr. Samuel Barker they were continued until 1844. The
Mexborough Old Pottery was then discontinued, and is now converted into
ironworks for the manufacture of wheels for locomotives. At these works
the commoner descriptions of earthenware, including blue printing, were
produced.
RAWMARSH.
In the latter part of last century a pottery was carried on here by
Mr. Peter Barker and his partner, under the style of “Barker and
Wainwright.” He afterwards joined his brother Jesse at the Mexborough
Old Pottery.
ROTHERHAM.
_North Field Pottery._--This pottery was established in 1851 by
Joseph Lee, a working potter, who had previously carried on a small
manufactory (now disused) in the town of Rotherham. In 1855 it was
purchased by Mr. George Hawley, of Rawmarsh; who, on his death, was
succeeded by his sons, the late Mr. William Hawley, father of the
present proprietors, Mr. Matthew Hawley, and his two brothers. The
firm was for a time carried on as “W. and G. Hawley,” but its present
style is Hawley Brothers. The goods manufactured are the commoner
descriptions of earthenware; and a large trade is carried on in
furniture polish bottles and articles of a similar class.
* * * * *
_Holmes Pottery._--These works were built on part of the Holmes
Hall Estate--the kitchen garden, in fact--formerly belonging to
the Walker family, who owned the large ironworks there, where at
one time the notorious Tom Payne worked. The pottery was at first
extremely small, but has gradually extended itself until it is now
of considerable extent. It was first worked by Messrs. Earnshaw and
Greaves, who were succeeded by Messrs. Dickinson and Jackson; it was
then continued by Mr. Thomas Jarvis until some few years back, when
it passed into the hands of Messrs. John Jackson & Co., the present
owners. The goods produced are the commoner class of white and blue
printed earthenware. Some years ago an attempt at china manufacture was
made here, but was abandoned.
THE DON POTTERY.
_The Don Pottery_, closely adjoining the canal at Swinton, on which
it has a wharf, was established in a very small way about 1790, and
considerably increased in 1800 by John Green, of Newhill. He was one
of the Greens of Leeds, of the same family as the proprietors of the
Leeds Pottery, and a proprietor in the Swinton Pottery. He is, in fact,
stated to have been the manager of the Leeds and the Swinton potteries,
and to have sustained considerable losses on the breaking out of the
French war. About 1800, or a little later, he purchased a plot of
almost waste and swampy land at Swinton, and, with the aid of partners,
set about the erection of the present works. At this time a person
named Newton, father to the more than octogenarian from whom, some
years ago, I picked up many scraps of the information I record, had an
enamel kiln at the back of his house at Swinton, where he used to burn
such wares as he decorated. To this man, for the first twelve months,
Green, of the Don Pottery, brought his pattern pieces to be fired, as
he prepared them. In 1807, other members of the family united with John
Green, who also had partners named Clarke; the firm trading as “Greens,
Clarke, & Co.” In 1831, Mr. Green was proprietor of the Don Pottery.
In 1834 the Don Pottery passed by purchase to Mr. Samuel Barker, of
the Mexborough Old Pottery; which latter works he closed in 1844, and
confined his operations entirely to the Don manufactory. In 1851 the
firm became “Samuel Barker and Son,” under which style it is still
continued, the present proprietors being Mr. Henry Barker and Mr.
Edward Barker.
From a list of goods prepared by the firm in 1808, it appears that a
considerable variety was produced at that time. This list, which is in
my own collection, is thus headed:--
“Greens, Clarke, & Co., Don Pottery, near Doncaster, Make, Sell,
and Export Wholesale all the various kinds of Earthenware,
viz., Cream-colour, Brown, Blue, and Green Shell, Nankin Blue,
Printed, Painted, and Enamelled, Egyptian Black, Brown, China,
&c., &c. Also Services executed in Borders, Landscapes, Coats of
Arms, &c., and ornamented with Gold or Silver.”
Of the ordinary fine earthenware made soon after the opening of
the works, some specimens, whose actual date can be satisfactorily
ascertained, have come under my notice, and show to what perfection in
body and glaze, in manipulation, and in decoration, the manufacture had
already arrived. The most remarkable of these early specimens is a jug,
commonly called the “Jumper Jug,” which is of great rarity. On either
side of the larger jugs is the figure of a very uncouth, coarse, and
slovenly-looking man, in red coat, pink waistcoat, striped green and
white under-waistcoat, orange-neckerchief, orange breeches, above which
his shirt is seen, top boots, and spurs. In his hand he holds his hat,
orange, with red ribands, on which is a card bearing the words “Milton
for ever.” Beneath the spout, on a scroll, is the following curious
verse:--
“The Figure there is no mistaking,
It is the famous Man for--_breaking_.
Oh that instead of Horse and Mare
He had but broken Crockery-ware,
Each grateful Potter in a bumper
Might drink the health of
Orange Jumper.”
This man, who was known all the country round as “Orange Jumper,”
was a very eccentric character, and a great mover in the political
“stirs” of his county. He was a horse-breaker at Wentworth, and many
extraordinary stories are remembered in connection with him. One of
these, as connected with the story of this jug, is worth repeating.
In the great Yorkshire election of 1807--the most costly and the most
strongly contested election on record--when the candidates who were so
mercilessly pitted against each other were Lord Milton, Wilberforce,
and Lascelles, “Orange Jumper” was employed to carry dispatches
regularly backwards and forwards from York to Wentworth House, the
seat of Earl Fitzwilliam, the father of Lord Milton, who eventually
won the election, and was returned as the colleague of Wilberforce.
Orange was the Fitzwilliam colour, and blue that of Lascelles (son of
the Earl of Harewood), his opponent; and on one occasion “Jumper” was
seen entering York decked out as usual in orange, but riding on an
ass gaily decorated with bright blue ribands. On being jeered at for
this apparent inconsistency in wearing both colours, he replied that
_he_ wore the right colour, orange, and that his ass was only like
other asses, for they were all donkeys that wore blue! The election was
gained by the party he espoused, and in commemoration these jugs,[125]
with his portrait and verse, were made. They are marked
Don. Pottery.
pencilled in red on the bottom.
An engraved pattern-book was issued by the firm, in the same style,
and of the same size, as that of Hartley, Greens, & Co., of the Leeds
Pottery. A careful comparison of the two books reveals the fact,
that whereas in the latest edition of that of Leeds 269 patterns are
engraved, in that of the Don Pottery 292 are given. It also reveals
the important fact that many of the Don patterns are identical with
those of Leeds, the engraver of the former having evidently traced
from those of the latter (Leeds) in preparing his plates. Many of the
remaining patterns are slightly altered from Leeds, while others do not
appear in the book of those works at all. In this pattern-book Figs.
1 to 8 are covered tureens; 10 to 12 are leaves; 13 to 18, covered
vegetable dishes; 19 to 23, sauce tureens with covers, stands, and
ladles; 24, a two-handled drinking cup; 26 to 30, butter-boats; 31 to
49, dishes and plates, &c.; 50 to 69, fruit bowls, side dishes, &c.; 70
to 76, perforated, open-work, and embossed baskets and stands, some of
which have covers, and are precisely of the same kind as those of the
Leeds works; 77, a perforated chestnut tureen, like that of the Leeds
works; 78, also perforated and embossed; 79 to 83, perforated dishes
and plates; 84 to 91, covered sugar bowls, &c.; 92 to 96, spoons and
strainers; 97 to 110, bowls, &c.; 111 is a melon bowl of the same kind
as those made at Leeds; 113 to 116 are egg cups and stands; 118 to 130,
cruets, &c.; 131, an asparagus holder, like the Leeds; 139 to 145, mugs
and jugs; 146, a toast rack; 147, an invalid’s feeding cup; 148 to 159,
dishes, tureens, &c.; 160 and 161, vegetable trays in compartments;
163 to 176, ice pails and domestic vessels; 177 to 183, ink stands;
184, 185, flower-pots; 186 to 202, toilet services and shaving basins;
201 is a _scaphium_; 206 is a quintal flower horn; 207, a
pastile-burner; and then come candlesticks, egg-cups, flower-vases,
flower-stands, vases, crosses with cup for holy water, &c. Another
series of plates, the figures numbered from 1 to 54 and from A
to K, are devoted to tea equipages, consisting of a remarkable
and very striking variety of teapots, coffee-pots, milk jugs, sugar
bowls, cake trays, tea canisters, basins or bowls, tea, coffee, and
chocolate cups and saucers, &c., &c. On each plate throughout the
series the name “_Don Pottery_” is engraved in a scroll.
[Illustration: Figs. 881 to 883.]
Open-work baskets, tureens, &c., twig baskets, in which the “withies”
were of precisely the same form as those of Leeds and Wedgwood, &c.,
perforated plates, dishes, tureens, spoons, ladles, and other articles,
ice-pails, salt-cellars, flower-vases, cruets and stands, inkstands,
seals, bird fountains, smelling-bottles, and, indeed, every variety
of articles, as well as services of all descriptions, and ornamental
vases of several designs, were made in these wares, and such as were
adapted for the colour were made in green glazed ware. Of teapots, many
patterns, with raised groups, trophies, &c., and others for loose metal
“kettle-handles” are also engraved.
In the cream-coloured ware, and also in the fine white earthenware,
excellent dessert and other services were made, and were painted with
flowers, &c., with a truth to nature which has seldom been equalled. In
my own collection are also some remarkable plates of small size of fine
earthenware. In these the underside of the plate is left white, while
the whole of the rest is tinted of a deep buff. The edge, and a line on
the inner side of the rim, is black, and in the centre of each plate
is a landscape, which has all the beauty and effect of a well-executed
Indian ink drawing.
About 1810–12, _china_ of an excellent quality was, to a very small
extent indeed, made at the Don Pottery, and examples of this are
of extreme rarity. In Mr. Manning’s possession is a coffee mug of
excellent body, and of remarkably good soft glaze, well painted with
Chinese subjects, which is marked “Don Pottery” in very small letters,
pencilled in red. This interesting specimen is the only marked one
which has come under my notice. Two other specimens of this very rare
china ware, which are equally curious and interesting with the one just
spoken of, are here engraved. One is a jug which will hold rather more
than a pint, and has a curious story attached to it. The china body of
which it was made was mixed by Godfrey Speight and Ward Booth, both
of whom were originally from Staffordshire; the latter, it is said,
was brought from that county “with a whole regiment of hands” to work
at the new Don Pottery, of which he became the manager. The jug was
painted by his son, Taylor Booth, who was brought up with Enoch Wood,
of Burslem, and afterwards was at the old Derby China Works, and given
to Speight, from whose aged son’s hands it passed into my own. It is
beautifully painted with groups of flowers on either side, and a sprig
of jasmine beneath the spout, and has a broad gold line round the top.
The curious part of the story connected with this jug is, that in the
body of which it is composed, by one of those strange and unaccountable
freaks to which potters as well as other people are liable, are two
of the fingers of a noted malefactor, Spencer Broughton, who was
gibbeted on Attercliffe Common at the close of the last century. It
appears that a party of the Don and Swinton potters, who had been to
Sheffield for a carousal, and had stayed there till the small hours of
the morning, were, when not sober, returning over the moor, when, on
passing the gibbet on which the gaunt skeleton of the malefactor still
hung, as it had for years, in chains, one of them, saying, “Let’s ha’
a rap at him,” picked up a stone and threw it, knocking off the bones
of two of the fingers. These were picked up, and carefully carried
home as trophies of the exploit; and some time afterwards, when trials
in the manufacture of china were being made, they were brought out,
calcined, and mixed with some of the body. Of this body a seal was
made, “with a gibbet on it,” and the jug (Fig. 882) just described.
This story I had from the lips of one of the party of potters, a man
then fast nearing “fourscore years and ten” in age. The horrible and
brutal taste displayed by the potters has, it must be admitted, its use
in authenticating the example, and in giving it, at all events, an
approximate date.
The other example is a comport (Fig. 881) of remarkably fine body and
excellent glaze, and has a plant of the tiger-lily exquisitely painted
of natural size, occupying the whole of its inside.
In fine cane-coloured ware, tea-services, jugs, &c., were made, and
were ornamented with figures, borders, and other designs in relief. Of
this kind of ware the accompanying engraving of a sugar-box will serve
as an example. It is ornamented with figures, trophies, &c., in relief
in black and is marked “Green’s Don Pottery.”
In green glazed ware flower-vases of large size, root-pots, dessert
and other services; in red ware, scent jars of bold and good design,
large-sized mignonette vases, and many other articles; and in “Egyptian
black,” teapots, cream-ewers, jugs, &c., were made.
The “brown china” spoken of in the list of goods was the “Rockingham
Ware,” which was attempted to be made at the Don Pottery, and is still
made of the common marketable quality.
A considerable trade was carried on with Russia, with France and
Belgium, and with South America, to which markets the greater part of
the goods produced were consigned.
At the “Don Pottery” at the present day, Messrs. Barker produce all
the usual varieties of the commoner classes of earthenware to a large
extent; the works giving employment to between two and three hundred
hands. In toilet services many excellent patterns are produced, both
enamelled, gilt, and lustred. They also produce dinner, tea, dessert,
and other services, as well as all the usual varieties of goods for
home and foreign consumption, including in “Egyptian black,” teapots,
cream-ewers, &c., Rockingham ware, and “cane,” or yellow ware.
Some of the painted patterns recently introduced are of good design,
and their pressed jugs are of superior shape.
The marks adopted by these works have been but few, and these only very
occasionally used. They are, so far as I have been able to ascertain,
as follows:--“Don Pottery” pencilled in red on the bottom of the
vessel, or “DON POTTERY” impressed on the bottom of the pieces.
GREEN
DON POTTERY
also impressed.
[Illustration: Fig. 884.]
[Illustration: Fig. 885.]
The first of these (Fig. 884) was impressed, the second (Fig. 885) was
printed and transferred on the ware. It was the first mark used by
Samuel Barker, and was adopted by him on purchasing the Don Pottery on
its discontinuance by the Greens.
[Illustration: Fig. 886.]
[Illustration: Fig. 887.]
The first of these marks (Fig. 886), also in transfer printing, an
eagle displayed rising from out a ducal coronet, was adopted by the
firm when it became Samuel Barker and Son, at which time the old mark
was discontinued. The eagle displayed is not now used, the firm having
adopted the old mark of the demi-lion rampant holding in his paws the
pennon, and enclosed within a garter, beneath which are the initials
of the firm, “S. B. & S.” (Fig. 887) On the ribbon of the garter is
usually given the name of the pottery, as for instance YORK.
DENABY.
The Denaby Pottery was established for the manufacture of fire-bricks,
&c., but was, about 1864, taken by Mr. John Wardle (from Messrs.
Alcocks, of Burslem), who was shortly afterwards joined in partnership
by Mr. Charles W. Wilkinson, the business being carried on under
the style of “Wilkinson and Wardle.” The works were situated near
the railway, from which they had a siding direct into the premises.
The goods produced were the general ordinary classes of printed
earthenware, pearl body, cream ware, &c., which were of good ordinary
quality. In these all the more popular and favourite patterns were
produced, and all the copper plates being new, were sharp and fresh
in appearance. Dinner, tea, coffee, toilet and other services were
produced, as well as jugs and other articles, some of which are of
really good and effective design. Yellow, or cane-coloured ware, was
also made, as well as tiles for external decorative purposes. These
were made from clay found at Conisborough, where branch works were
established. The mark adopted by the firm, for what reason it is
difficult to divine, unless it be that the wares were intended to
pass for Staffordshire make, was the Staffordshire knot, with the
words “Wilkinson and Wardle, Denaby Potteries.” These works, after an
existence of a few years only, were closed in 1869 or 1870, and the
buildings converted into bone and glue works.
KILNHURST.
At Kilnhurst, a place which one would naturally say took its name from
pot-works, is a manufactory of earthenware, known as the “Kilnhurst Old
Pottery.” This was established about the middle of last century, soon
after the Act for the navigation of the river Don was obtained. It was
erected on the estate of the Shore family. It was held at the beginning
of this century by a potter named Hawley, who had also a pottery at
Rawmarsh. From him it passed into the hands of George Green (one of the
family of the Greens at Leeds), by whom, on the 25th of April, 1832,
they were purchased by Messrs. Brameld & Co. (subject to Mr. Shore, the
owner, accepting them as tenants), at a valuation, Mr. Green to retain
all the manufactured goods, copper plates, moulds, &c., and to reduce
as much as convenient the stock of raw materials. In 1839 it came
into the hands of Messrs. Twigg Brothers. It is now carried on by the
surviving partner, Mr. John Twigg, who produces the usual varieties of
earthenware, and has made some unsuccessful trials in china.
WATH-UPON-DEARNE.
The “Newhill Pottery” was established, about 1822, by Mr. Joseph Twigg,
who up to that time had the management of the Swinton Old Pottery, by
whom, in partnership with his sons John, Benjamin, and Joseph Twigg,
it was carried on until about 1866, when it passed into the hands of
Messrs. Binney and Matthews, who were shortly afterwards succeeded by
Messrs. Dibb and Coulter. In April, 1872, the works were purchased
by Messrs. Bedford and Richmond, the present proprietors. The goods
produced are the ordinary useful classes of earthenware, both for
home consumption and for export. In these all the usual services and
articles of every-day use are made, both in white, in printed (in which
some good patterns are employed), sponged and coloured varieties, and
they are produced of the usual qualities.
WAKEFIELD.
A pottery existed on Wakefield Moor in the latter part of the
seventeenth century, where vessels were made from clay found on the
spot. This clay Houghton, in 1693, calls “The potters’ pale yellow clay
of Wakefield Moor.”
POTOVENS.
The village of Potovens lies about two miles from Wakefield, and, as
its name implies, takes its origin from some old potteries established
at this place. Ralph Thoresby in his Diary (1702) says, under date
of March 16th, “From Wakefield then by Allerthorpe (Alverthorpe) and
Silkhouse to the Pott-Ovens (Little London, in the dialect of the
poor people), where I stayed a little to observe not only the manner
of their forming their earthenware--which brought to mind the words
of the prophet, ‘As clay in the hands of the potter, so are we in the
Lord’s’--but to observe the manner of building the furnaces, their
size and materials, which are small, and upon the surface of the
ground, confirming me in my former apprehensions that those remains at
Hawcaster-rigg (Philosoph. Trans. No. 222) are really the ruins of a
Roman pottery.” These works were carried on, about the time, or in the
time, when Thoresby wrote, by one Caleb Glover. In his will, dated 29th
of January, 1728, recorded in the Rolls Office, February 6th, 1729,
this Caleb Glover “of Pott-Ovens, pott-maker,” bequeaths to his wife
all his chattels excepting his “working tools and oven house,” and to
his son Daniel Glover he leaves all his “working tools belonging to
the trade of a pot-maker, and the pot oven.” He was succeeded at his
death, in 1728–9, by this son Daniel Glover, who continued the works.
No manufactory of the kind now exists at this place, and the name of
the village itself is somewhat ambiguous, for it is occasionally known
as Wrenthorp.
YEARSLEY.
The earliest, and, indeed, only potters of whom anything is known
at this place, are members of the Wedgwood family, as recounted in
my “Life of Josiah Wedgwood” (p. 583), where these works were first
brought into notice. One branch of the Wedgwoods of Staffordshire
settled at Yearsley, in the Yorkshire Wolds, at an early date, and
commenced pot-making, which was carried on successfully for some
generations. In 1682 John Wedgwood, of Yearsley, was “buried in
woollen,” as were also in 1692 William Wedgwood, and in 1690 Isabell,
who was wife of one of these. John, the son of this John Wedgwood, who
died in 1707, was, I have reason to believe, the John Wedgwood whose
name appears on the puzzle jug here engraved, with the date 1691. It is
in the Museum of Practical Geology, in the Catalogue of which museum is
an engraving of the opposite side from Fig. 888. It is of brown ware
body, coated with green lead glaze, and has, round the body, the name
“John Wedg Wood 1691. incised in writing letters.
[Illustration: Fig. 888.]
The ware made by the Yorkshire Wedgwoods was the common hard brown
ware, made from the clays of the district, and consisted, of course,
mainly of pitchers, pancheons, porringers, and other vessels of homely
kind. From researches I have made, I have succeeded in tracing out,
with tolerable accuracy, a pedigree, of the Yorkshire Wedgwoods for
seven or eight generations, ranging from the middle of the seventeenth
century down to the present time, when their descendants are still
living in the district, not as potters, but in other equally useful
walks of life.
So well known were the Wedgwoods of this district, that one member of
the family has been immortalised in song, thus:--
“At Yearsley there are pancheons made
By Willie Wedgwood, that young blade.”
For this interesting fragment of a Yorkshire ballad I am indebted
MM
to my late friend the Rev. Robert Pulleine, Rector of Kirkby Wiske.
“Pancheons” are thick coarse earthenware pans, made of various sizes,
and used for setting away milk in, and for washing purposes. They are
made in several localities, and besides being sold by earthenware
dealers, are hawked about the country by men who make their living in
no other way.
Several fragments of brown pottery have at one time or other been dug
up at Yearsley, and, among the rest, a brown earthenware oven, green
glaze, semicircular, open at top, with a hollowed ledge round the inner
side about half way, and a flat bottom, having two handles at the
sides, and between them a crinkled ornament, bearing some letters and
the date 1712.
WORTLEY.
The works at Wortley, near Leeds, were established in 1795 by Mr. John
Cliff, father of the present Mr. Joseph Cliff, the head of the now
firm of “Joseph Cliff and Son,” for the manufacture of fire-bricks,
for which the clay of the locality was considered highly valuable.
In 1820 the manufacture of clay retorts was commenced and continued
very largely until 1830, when it gradually died out, but was revived
about 1850 and has continued to the present day one of the most
successful branches of the trade--the retorts being considered to be
both better and cheaper than those in iron. About 1847 the manufacture
of drain-pipes was added, and these were, and still are, made at the
rate of several miles per week; blast-furnace lumps being also largely
made, and, owing to their excellent quality, extensively used. In 1866,
terra-cotta was added to the other productions of this firm and is
still carried on. About the same time white and coloured glazed bricks
were made, and now form one of the staple trades of the works, as do
plumbago crucibles, the manufacture of which was introduced in 1869.
The goods principally produced by Mr. Cliff are, in terra-cotta,
vases, tazzas, and pedestals; figures and brackets; capitals,
trusses, keystones, terminals, and other architectural enrichments;
flower-boxes, baskets, and suspenders; chimney-shafts, and many other
articles, some of which are characterized by extreme chasteness of
design and by excellence of finish. In stoneware, tubes, pipes, and
sanitary goods of every description; troughs, mangers, and sinks;
enamelled retorts for gas, and chemical goods, &c. Fire and other
bricks and tiles are also very extensively made, as are garden edgings,
fire-backs, for which a patent has been obtained by the firm. Messrs.
Cliff and Son were awarded a medal in 1862, and at the Paris Exhibition
of 1867.
HEALEY.
A mediæval pottery existed here, in the parish of Masham, in the North
Riding of Yorkshire. Its site was on the spot where Healey church now
stands, the ground bearing the name of “Potters Field.” When the church
was erected in 1848 considerable quantities of “wasters” and fragments
of pottery were dug up by the workmen.
COLSTERDALE.
A pottery of a similar character existed at this place on a spot called
“Potter’s Pit.” Here many vessels have been found, as well as the
clay pits which had been worked for their manufacture. The place was,
according to some old maps, a very ancient enclosure from the moor.[126]
END OF VOL. I.
PRINTED BY VIRTUE AND CO., LIMITED, CITY ROAD, LONDON.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] For articles upon this subject see the “Reliquary, Quarterly
Archæological Journal and Review,” vol. ii.; Bateman’s “Ten Years’
Diggings;” Jewitt’s “Grave-Mounds and their Contents;” Sir John
Lubbock’s “Pre-historic Times,” &c.
[2] Lib. III. c. 5, § ii.
[3] Warne’s “Celtic Tumuli of Dorset.”
[4] From Borlase’s “Nænia Cornubiæ”--a recently published and most
excellent work on the early antiquities of Cornwall; it contains a vast
amount of valuable information upon discoveries of Celtic pottery in
that county, and enables me, through the courtesy of its author, to
present these remarkable looped examples to my readers. This work is a
valuable addition to archæological literature.
[5] Wright.
[6] “The Durobriva of Antoninus Identified and Illustrated.” 1828.
[7] Vol. i. p. 1.
[8] Vol. iv. p. 80, and vol. vi. p. 179.
[9] In the furnace of one kiln was a layer of wood ashes from four to
five inches thick. The kiln, in a very perfect state, was covered in
again undisturbed.
[10] “Collectanea Antiqua.”
[11] Artis.
[12] Sloane MSS., 958, fol. 105.
[13] “Illustrations of Roman London,” p. 79, and “Collectanea Antiqua,”
vol. vi. p. 173.
[14] Conyers had previously described the red, lustrous (Samian) ware,
and also the vessels termed Castor ware, with figures of animals and
foliage, but which he did not find in the kilns.
[15] Stone ware, the kind imported from Cologne, was commonly called
_Cullen_. In 1626, too, Abraham Cullen took a patent for the
making of these stone pots. It is this kind of ware to which Conyers
refers.
[16] Wright.
[17] “The New Forest, its History and Scenery,” by John R. Wise (Smith,
Elder, & Co.), p. 214.
[18] “Archæologia,” xxxv. 91.
[19] Vol. ii. p. 36.
[20] Vol. v. p. 159, and vol. vi. pp. 52 to 67.
[21] This curious and unique potter’s mould is in my own possession.
[22] For a further account of this ware see p. 51.
[23] “Col. Ant.,” vol. v. p. 193.
[24] _Journal of the British Archæological Association_, vol. vi.
p. 64.
[25] These three engravings are reproduced from Messrs. Buckman and
Newmarch’s “Ancient Remains of Cirencester,” an admirable and truly
useful work, to which I refer my readers for much information.
[26] It was also a common practice to place a tile as the covering of a
cinerary urn.
[27] This is extremely interesting, as illustrating the custom of
funeral garlands, which still obtains in some parts of our country.
[28] These glasses were made rounded or pointed at the bottom; thus
they must have been filled while held, and could not without spilling
have been set down till emptied. From these the name of “tumblers”
takes its origin. For a drinking-cup and wine-pitcher, see our cut,
Fig. 225, and for two of these “tumblers,” see Figs. 228 and 231.
[29] See notice of pot-works at King’s Newton on a later page.
[30] For an account of the pottery here discovered see the “Reliquary,
Quarterly Archæological Journal and Review,” vol. ii. p. 216.
[31] Marryatt.
[32] See p. 79, _ante_.
[33] _Arch. Journ._, vol. iv. p. 29.
[34] Edwards.
[35] Vol. iii. p. 63.
[36] Page 182.
[37] Lansdowne MSS., 108, fol. 60.
[38] Probably written about ten years before printed.
[39] Page 98, _ante_.
[40] Not 1693, as stated by Chaffers, who has evidently not understood
that the date given by Houghton is “old style.”
[41] Aubrey, in his “MS. Natural History of Wiltshire,” had also, a few
years previously, thus spoken: “In Vemknoll, adjoining the lands of
Easton Pierse, neer the brooke and in it, I bored clay as blew as ultra
marine, and incomparably fine, without anything of sand, &c., which
perhaps might be proper for Mr. Dwight for his making of porcilaine. It
is also in other place, hereabout, but ’tis rare.”
[42] I perceive that Mr. Chaffers, in the 1870 edition of his work,
says: “the discovery of the two patents granted to John Dwight ... now
published for the first time, in treating on this matter,” &c.; but
here he is in error. In 1863 Mr. Woodcraft printed abridgments of these
very patents, and to these abridgments Mr. Chaffers is indebted for the
knowledge he possessed of them. In 1864 I, too, gave notices of these
patents, four years before the date of his publication.
[43] November.
[44] This is evidently the material for the white-brown and white
gorges to be made of, which were to be decorated with incised lines.
[45] November.
[46] Guineas.
[47] Those entries which I thus indicate are all crossed out in the MS.
Evidently they have been crossed out as the money was withdrawn.
[48] October, 1862.
[49] This collection afterwards passed into the hands of Mr. C. W.
Reynolds, and has since been dispersed by auction.
[50] See page 90.
[51] Page 98.
[52] See “Stamford.”
[53] See under “Blackfriars Road.”
[54] It would seem from this that General Conway and Mrs. Dimer had
figures, &c., probably their own modelling, fired privately.
[55] See “Runcorn.”
[56] This plan is in possession of my friend, Mr. T. Hughes, F.S.A.
[57] No. 829, folio 21.
[58] In 1757 the following notice appeared: “The Publick is hereby
acquainted that the Chelsea Porcelain Manufactory has been very much
retarded by the sickness of Mr. Spremont; nevertheless several curious
things have been finished, and are now exposed to sale at the warehouse
in Piccadilly, with the lowest price, for ready money, fixed on each
particular. All warranted true enamel.”
[59] The horse was used for turning the flint and clay mills.
[60] Mr. Lygo was London agent and salesman to Mr. Duesbury.
[61] These are mentioned by Walpole as twelve earthen plates in blue
and white delft, painted with the twelve signs of the Zodiac by Sir
John Thornhill, in August, 1711, bought at Mrs. Hogarth’s sale. They
were bought for seven guineas, and are said to have been of Dutch make,
and then painted by Thornhill.
[62] I know of one service of flowered cups and saucers where the whole
of the saucers have the raised anchor, and the cups bear the usual
anchor drawn in red.
[63] Or Barnett.
[64] Or Parker.
[65] Mr. Rhodes was the Clerk.
[66] For an account of this, _see_ Kentish Town.
[67] Sir Patrick Blake, Bart., of Langham, co. Suffolk.
[68] Sir James Lake, Bart., of Edmonton, who died in 1807, married, in
1764, Joyce, daughter of this Mr. John Crowther; she died in 1834.
[69] This is an error; it was at Cornhill.
[70] This is very doubtful.
[71] See Chelsea.
[72] The portrait here engraved is copied from an engraving by Daniell,
after a drawing by George Dance, R.A.
[73] Chambers’s “Biographical Illustrations of Worcestershire.”
[74] At Pirna.
[75] The battle of Prague.
[76] The battle with Ct. Daun, 18th of June.
[77] The battle of M. Lehwald, with the R.
[78] The battle with the Prince Soubise, November 5.
[79] Chambers’s “Biographical History.”
[80] The Battersea works were carried on, it is said, by Alderman
Jansen, who failed in 1756, and soon afterwards the Worcester printing
began.
[81] Mr. Binns, in his “Century of Potting in the City of Worcester,”
8vo., 1865, says--“We may here state that the copper plate from which
not only this Chinese porcelain was painted, but some of the finest
specimens in our cabinet, was discovered by Mr. Jewitt at Coalport.”
[82] For full details of all the changes which have taken place, and
for an immense fund of information on every point connected with the
works, the reader is referred to Mr. Binns’s “Century of Potting in
Worcestershire.”
[83] It may not be out of place to allude to the Prince Consort’s
unqualified approval and appreciation of these enamels. In 1854, Mr.
Binns obtained permission to exhibit specimens of his new invention
to his royal highness, whose commendations were most emphatically and
unhesitatingly expressed, and he at once purchased all the examples
which had been shown him, saying they were the best things he had seen.
Her Majesty subsequently ordered some specimens of this work, which
was all on dark blue ground; and latterly an order for a magnificent
dessert service, in the same style of work, on a turquoise ground, has
been ordered by her Majesty. The Worcester works owe much to the pure
taste of his late Royal Highness the Prince Consort.
[84] Pages 270 and 271.
[85] “A few Words on ‘Fairy Pipes,’” _Reliquary_, vol. iii., pp. 72 to
84.
[86] Pipes of three feet long and more, with barrel bowls, are still
imported in small quantities.
[87] “They are called “Fairy Pipes” in this neighbourhood, and the
small bowls with broken stem have been occasionally found on my estate
at St. James’s.”--_H. S._
[88] “Maund” is the Devonshire name for basket, or hamper. In Plymouth
it is not unusual to hear of a “maund o’ cloam,” which is only “a
basket of pots”--_cloam_ being the Devonshire word for crockery ware.
[89] Mr. Owen has shown that previous to December, 1765, china had
been attempted to be made in Bristol. In November of that year,
Champion wrote, in reference to some clay from Carolina, “I sent
part to Holdship, as you desired, and gave part to a new work just
established.... This new work is from a clay and stone discovered in
Cornwall, which answers the description of the Chinese,” &c.; and on
December 15th, “I have had your clay tried at the works here, which is
now given up, as they could not burn the ware clean.” Probably either
Cookworthy was connected with these short-lived works, or they were
carried on under license from him.
[90] This allusion to the time occupied in the journey from Bristol
to Plymouth is very interesting. It was then, it seems, a hundred
years ago, a two days’ journey by the “machine” (which was, of course,
the coach). Cookworthy intended to set out, it seems, on the Tuesday
morning, and hoped to reach Plymouth by the machine some time on the
Thursday. On my last journey, in fact while making these notes, I left
Bristol at eight o’clock, and arrived at Plymouth at ten minutes after
twelve, the journey occupying only four hours and ten minutes! What a
contrast between the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries this simple
fact presents.
[91] “Two Centuries of Ceramic Art in Bristol,” by Hugh Owen, F.S.A.
[92] See the account of the Plymouth china works, p. 329.
[93] This Act I first printed _in extenso_ in the _Art-Journal_, for
1863, page 214.
[94] This specification of Cookworthy’s I have given _in extenso_ in my
history of the “Plymouth China Works,” _Art-Journal_, September, 1863,
and on page 329, _ante_, of this volume.
[95] My notice of the Bristol china works in the _Art-Journal_ for
1863 was the first occasion in which these “Reasons” were reprinted, in
connection with the porcelain works of this kingdom.
[96] This would have formed a straight line, and is omitted in the
figure.
[97] _Felix Farley’s Journal._
[98] _Felix Farley’s Journal._
[99] John Hope was apprenticed to Richard Frank, and became a stoneware
potter in Temple Street.
[100] Thomas Patience, “victualler and potter,” kept the Cross Keys,
Temple Street, the “potters’ house of call.”--(_Sketchley’s Directory._)
[101] Enamel.
[102] For this extract I am indebted to the librarian, Mr. J. P.
Briscoe.
[103] Vol. xiii. p. 161.
[104] _Reliquary, Archæological Journal and Review_, vol. xv. p. 207.
[105] The whole of the dated examples which I have described (with the
exception of this last, which I now make known for the first time) and
those of 1765 and 1782, I fully described in the _Art-Journal_ for
1863, and they have served, unacknowledged, as the foundation upon
which Chaffers and every other later writer have built up their notices
of Lowestoft.
[106] It is worthy of note that Mr. Chaffers, speaking upon this, says
(p. 619): “There is such a peculiarity in the form and quality of the
Lowestoft porcelain, that we are surprised any one at all conversant
with or accustomed to see collections of china could ever mistake
it for Oriental;” and yet a few pages later on he says (p. 636), “a
punch-bowl representing similar harvest scenes is in the collection of
the Author, which has been in his (Mr. Chaffers’) family for nearly
a century, painted evidently by the same artist; former possessors
_supposing it to be of Oriental manufacture_.” How is it that, being in
his own family for nearly a century, and he being assuredly “conversant
with and accustomed to see collections of china,” Mr. Chaffers did not
previously find out that it was Lowestoft, but should have allowed his
family always to suppose it to be Oriental?
The same writer relies in great measure on a statement made by Mr.
Abel Bly, in 1865, that “No Oriental porcelain ever came into it to be
decorated.” The statement is as follows:--“From my Father working at
the Factory I was in the habit of going daily to the premises, and can
most positively affirm that no manufactured articles were brought there
to be painted; but that every article painted in the Factory had been
previously made there. I remember that the ware produced in the Factory
was deemed far superior to anything to be obtained in the country.”
The statement is almost too ridiculous to notice, and how any careful
writer could give credence to it is somewhat mysterious. Abel Bly
begins his statement (which evidently was drawn up for him to sign) by
saying, “I ... am now in the 84th year of my age.... My father’s name
was Abel Bly, who was employed in various departments in the china
factory at Lowestoft. He died when I was eleven years of age.” It will
be seen that he says that, from his father working at the factory, he
was in the habit of going there daily, and so can “positively affirm”
as above, and yet his father died when he was only a little boy eleven
years old! and he was only four years old when hard paste porcelain,
according to Chaffers, _began to be made_ there. I think one can
judge pretty well what amount of weight can be attached to a statement
made seventy-three years afterwards, of the internal and commercial
arrangements of a manufactory where, till he was only eleven years
old, a boy was in the habit of going daily, probably with his father’s
dinner! The statement is just as ludicrous as the next, where he says,
“I remember that the ware produced at the factory was deemed _far
superior to anything to be obtained in the country_.” Where was the
Chelsea? the Bow? the Derby? the Bristol? the Plymouth? and a host of
others?
[107] A copy of this most interesting pattern-book--from which,
however, three plates are missing--is in the Museum of Practical
Geology, Jermyn Street, London, which has the English list, 1786;
German, 1783; and French, 1785. I have also copies bearing the date
1794, and others undated.
[108] In the Pattern Book of 1783 the plates represent the various
articles as follows:--
Nos. 1 to 4 are covered terrines; 5 to 8 are sauce terrines with
spoons and stands; 9 and 10 are the same articles with fast stands;
11 to 13 are a pickle leaf, a sea shell, and an escallop shell; 14 to
17 are sauce-boats; 18 to 21 are oval dishes; 22 to 25, table plates;
26 to 29, covered, or ragout dishes; 30 to 34, sallads; 35, a turtle
dish; 36 to 39, compotiers; 40 to 46, pierced dessert dishes, with
open-work rims; 47 and 48, fish drainers; 49 to 54, salts, with covers;
55 to 57, egg-cups; 58 and 59, pierced double salts; 60 and 61, jugs;
62 and 63, salts; 64 to 67, mugs covered and uncovered; 68, melon
terrine and spoon; 69, round terrine and stand; 70 and 71, covered
bowls; 72 and 73, covered dessert, pierced covers, and bowls, &c.; 74
to 79, butter-tubs and stands; 80 to 82, single castors; 83 to 85,
mustards; 86 and 87, strawberry dishes and stands; 88, platt menage;
89, water-bottle and basin; 90, ice cellar; 91 and 92, bakers; 93 and
94, ice-pails; 95, glass tray; 96 and 97, double and single pails; 98,
hot-water dish; 99, asparagus shell; 100, escallop’d nappy; 101, salad;
102 and 103, large furnished castors; 104, oil and vinegar stand; 105
and 106, grand platts menage; 107 to 115, various candlesticks, some
highly ornamental; 116, vase candlestick; 117, composite candlestick;
118, flat candlestick; 119 and 120, ewers and basins; 121 and 122,
scaphia; 123 and 124, “spitting pots;” 125 and 126, shaving basin;
127 to 130, spoons and ladles; 131, pierced fish trowel; 132 to 136,
fruit-baskets and stands of elegant basket, twig and open work; 137,
pierced chesnut basket and stand; 138, ornamented jar, or pot pourri;
139, a cockle pot, or potpourri; 140, caper jar, or pot pourri; 141,
covered flower cup; 142, a quintal flower-horn; 143 and 144, sweetmeat
cups; 145, confectionery basket and stand; 146, a pot pourri, whose top
inverts to form a candlestick; 147, inkstand; 148, a wafer-box; 149, a
fountain inkstand; 150, a sand-box or pounce-box; 151, inkstand; 152,
a cross with holy water cup. Tea ware: Nos. 1 to 4, teapots; 5 to 8,
coffee-pots; 9 to 11, tea-cannisters; 12 and 13, milk pots with covers;
14 and 15, slop-bowls; 16 and 17, milk ewers; 18, tea or coffee-tray,
with open-work border; 19 to 24, sugar-basins with covers; 25 to 32,
cups and saucers of various kinds.
[109] Henry Ackroyd died in 1788. In a letter from John Green, of the
Leeds Pottery, to his partner, John Brameld, at the Swinton Pottery,
dated “Leeds Pottery, 15 April, 1788,” the following curious allusion
is made to him:--“Our worthy friend Ackroyd is dead, and I doubt not
but is alive again. It was a pleasant reflection to me, being one of
the pall-bearers, to think I was bearing the Cover over a dead Carkess
whose soul I had not the least doubt was in heaven. He left this world
with as great Composer and Confidance in his future state as was
posable for a man to do; and I sincerely wish that you and me may be as
well prepared as friend A^d for a future state.”
[110] A letter of John Green’s in June, 1788, says, “Letters are to be
directed to me at Flint Mill Grange, near Wetherby.”
[111] The Act of Parliament for the formation of this line of railway
was passed in January, 1758, and it is therein stated that Charles
Brandling, the owner of the collieries, had made agreements with the
owners of the lands through which it was intended to pass, “to pay
yearly rent or other considerations” for the privilege. The Leeds
pot works must, therefore, have been established some length of time
previous to the year 1758. It may be interesting to add that by this
act Mr. Brandling bound himself for a term of sixty years to bring from
his collieries at Middleton, to a repository at “Casson Close, near the
Great Bridge at Leeds,” “20,000 dozens, or 240,000 corfs of coals,”
each corf containing in weight about 210 lbs., and in measure 7,680
cubical inches, and there sell the same to the public at the price
of 4¾d. a corf. As the town increased in size, and its manufactures
spread, fresh acts of parliament were applied for and obtained in 1779,
1793 (two), and 1803, by which last the quantity of coal undertaken to
be supplied was increased to 1,920 corfs per day, and the price raised
to 8d. per corf.
[112] In the same year (1825), to add to the perplexities of the
proprietors, there appears to have been a strike among the potters.
The following “Appeal” was printed for the men by Mr. Baines, who
afterwards became one of our statesmen:--
“_An Appeal to the Public from the Journeymen Potters of Leeds and
its Neighbourhood._
“It is with painful feelings that we are under the necessity of laying
before a discerning public the following brief statement of Facts
relative to those differences now existing between us and our Employers.
“At a time like the present, it is very strange that our Employers
should attempt an unparalleled Reduction of our Wages, amounting from
20 to 30 per cent. upon the prices we have received, when those prices
were barely sufficient to support a Man and his Family, and at the same
time raise the price of his goods to the Public at least 50 per cent.
“We feel confident the above Statement of Facts will at once convince
every thinking individual that our conduct in standing out to oppose
such uncalled-for proceedings is just and right. We should have exposed
ourselves to the censure of every reasonable Man, and all who have
alive in their bosom a spark of honest indignation, had we tamely
submitted to the fiat of our Employers, and not have made every effort
in our power to preserve that which is every man’s natural right--a
fair remuneration for his labour.
“We respectfully solicit the aid of a generous Public, to enable us to
withstand the unjust proceedings of those who have driven us to this
alternative, by their unceasing endeavours to reduce us to a state of
misery and degradation from which we hope to be preserved by your kind
assistance, and enabled to withstand those encroachments which would
inevitably plunge ourselves, our families, and our successors into
inevitable ruin.--Dec. 13, 1825.”
[113] Jewitt’s “Life of Wedgwood.” London: Virtue Brothers, p. 177,
_et seq._
[114] Letter from Josiah Wedgwood, M.P.
[115] Vessels of this construction, of early Japanese make, are in
existence.
[116] These teapots were of high and somewhat peculiar form, like what
are now usually sold as coffee pots, and were universally known as
“Rockingham Teapots.” This high form was said to be the reason of the
tea being produced of a better quality than in the ordinary shaped ones.
[117] Mr. Allen, of Lowestoft, at one time was in the habit of
purchasing white wares from the Rockingham Works, which he painted and
burnt in an enamel kiln, erected at the back of his shop.
[118] The following is a copy of the agreement in my own possession:--
“MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT THE 28TH OF FEBRUARY, 1838.
“Brameld & Co. agree to buy from Mr. Wm. Dale, of Shelton, his interest
in a certain invention he has now in the Patent Office in London for
the manufacture of China, Ironstone China or Earthenware Pillars,
Columns or Rails, &c., for Bed-Posts, Window-Heads, &c., &c., and for
obtaining the Patent-right of which he has entered a Caveat and taken
other preliminary steps.
“B. & Co. agree to employ the said Wm. Dale in the manufacture of and
superintendance of the completion of the articles to be manufactured by
them under the Patent, and also in the general management of the China
Clay department at the Rockingham Works for seven years, to be computed
from the 1st of , this year--at the yearly salary of
Eighty Pounds.
“The whole expences incurr’d from this time in obtaining the proper
security of the Patent to be borne and paid by Brameld & Co. at their
sole cost and risk.
“The said Wm. Dale to have no extra allowance above his salary as fixed
above, for the first year of his servitude. But for the second, and
each and every of the succeeding years of the term the allowance or
premium of Fifty Pounds, as a compensation for giving up his interest
in the Patent, making in the six years terminating this agreement a
total of _Three Hundred Pounds_. But it is understood and provided that
if the amount of sales of the articles made under this patent does not,
in any of the said six last years of this agreement, amount to _Five
Hundred Pounds_ or upwards, at wholesale or trade prices, _nett money_,
then, in such case, the premium or compensation for the Patent-right
shall be reduced exactly in the same degree or proportion as the sales
may fall short of the amount of _Five Hundred Pounds_ in any or all the
said six years of this agreement.
“For the considerations agreed as above to be given by Brameld & Co.
to the said Wm. Dale, it is fully and clearly understood that he shall
give up to them the whole of his designs, models, and moulds of every
sort connected with the execution of the articles to be produced under
the Patent.
“It is also further agreed between the parties to this contract, that
if it shall turn out that the said Wm. Dale cannot from any cause
whatever substantiate his claim to, and fully secure an available and
efficient Patent so that the advantages to be expected from it shall
fail of being obtained, then, in such case, this Agreement, in every
part, shall be considered to be annulled, and to cease and determine.”
The specification, of which I possess a copy, was enrolled on the 10th
of September, 1838, and is accompanied by illustrative drawings.
[119] I possess two original copper plates engraved with views of these
works in their best days.
[120] Conisborough Castle is in the neighbourhood of these works, being
only four or five miles distant from Swinton. It is one of the finest
Norman keeps in existence.
[121] This truly exquisite plate, which is a perfect _chef-d’œuvre_
of ceramic art-decoration, was designed by Mr. Thomas Brameld, after
the death of King William IV., and submitted to her present Majesty,
Mr. Brameld proposing to substitute it for the plates made for his
late Majesty. The Queen, however, did not give her consent to the
alteration. The cost of the substitution would, it is stated, have been
£1,700.
[122] Services were also made for the King of Hanover, the King of
the Belgians, the Dukes of Sussex, Cambridge, &c., for the Duke of
Sutherland, and for many others of the nobility.
[123] Butterflies were more frequently introduced into the decorations
at these works than at any others, and were beautifully painted from
nature. They were also introduced as “knobs” to muffineers, sauce
tureens, &c., and were for that, and other decorative purposes,
charmingly modelled.
[124] Of Mr. Bromley, and his connection with these and the Whittington
Works, some notice will be found under Whittington.
[125] On the quart jugs the figure appeared on one side, and the verse
on the other.
[126] Fisher’s “History of Masham,” p. 68.
Transcriber’s Notes:
1. Obvious printers’, punctuation and spelling errors have been
corrected silently.
2. Where hyphenation is in doubt, it has been retained as in the original.
3. Some hyphenated and non-hyphenated versions of the same words have been
retained as in the original.
4. Where appropriate, the original spelling has been retained.
5. Superscripts are represented using the caret character, e.g. D^r. or
X^{xx}.
6. Italics are shown as _xxx_.