Chapter IX (1)

Salopian Wares--Uriconium--Caughley Works--Thomas
Turner--Introduction of “Willow Pattern”--Worcester Works--Close
of Caughley Works--Marks--Transfer Printing--Hancock and
Holdship--Coalport Works--Jackfield--John Rose--Swansea and
Nantgarw--Productions of the Coalport Works--Marks--“Willow
Pattern” and “Broseley Blue Dragon,” &c.--Broseley
Pipes--Coalbrookdale Iron Works--Terra Cotta--Madeley--Martin
Randall’s China--Jackfield Pottery--Maurice Thursfield--“Black
Decanters”--China--Craven Dunnill & Co.’s Tile
Works--Broseley--Benthall--Maw’s Tile Works--Broseley
Tileries--Benthall Potteries--Coalmoor.

In the midst of one of the most historically interesting districts of the kingdom--a district abounding in spots rendered famous in various ages by the events which have occurred within its boundaries, and full of associations as varied as they are interesting--within a few miles of Boscobel, and Tong, and numberless other places possessing a sad interest as connected with the wanderings and the painful vicissitudes of King Charles II.,--within a short distance of those two glorious monastic ruins, Buildwas Abbey and Wenlock Priory--not far from the “English Nineveh,” Uriconium, and within easy distance of Shrewsbury and Ludlow,--is a group of manufactories whose simple history is as interesting as that of many of these places.

Broseley, whose pipe manufactories two hundred and fifty years ago were as famed as they are now, and whose makers then got rid of their goods without advertising the emphatic words, “When you ask for a Broseley pipe, see that you get it!”--Jackfield, famed of old for its earthenware, and where it is still to some little extent made;--Caughley, formerly a successful rival of Worcester in the excellence of its porcelains;--Coalport, a rival of all other works at the present day;--Horsehay, with its discontinued pot works;--Benthall, where “yellow ware” works are in constant operation, and where the magnificent encaustic and enamelled tile and mosaic works of Messrs. Maw are situated;--Ironbridge, with its famous one-arch bridge, the first iron bridge erected in England, from which it takes its name, spanning the Severn:--Madeley, with its extensive iron furnaces;--Benthall Edge, with its limestone works;--Coalbrookdale, whose iron works are known throughout the world, and where _terra cotta_ is manufactured,--and a score of other busy hives of industry, are here gathered together, and demand careful attention. To the history of some of these I therefore devote this chapter.

Like those of Worcester and Derby, the Salopian manufactory of porcelain dates from the middle of last century; and, like them, has continued from its first introduction to the present time without interruption. Indeed, it may be said of the district that an almost--if not an entirely--unbroken historical chain may be traced from the Romano-British period down to the present day; for, as I have already shown, the same beds of clay which, fifteen hundred years ago, produced some of the fictile ware of the Roman occupiers of the soil, have been worked in the intermediate ages, and still produce, more largely than ever, articles of daily use for every class of the people of England. The same beds which supplied the magnificent city of Uriconium with jugs, mortaria, bowls, and colanders of white ware, still supply the neighbourhood with innumerable articles of daily use.

CAUGHLEY.

The Worcester porcelain works, as I have shown, were established in the year 1751; and the commencement of those in Shropshire must have been, if not coeval, at all events closely subsequent to that event. Indeed, the two works may be almost said to have sprung into existence at the same time. The site of the first Salopian china works was at Caughley, about a mile from the present manufactory, and on the opposite or south side of the river Severn. The works were situated on the hill overlooking the valley of the Severn, as it flowed on to Bridgnorth, and commanding a magnificent view of the surrounding country. On this spot, it is said, a small pottery was begun by a Mr. Browne, of Caughley Hall, and after his death managed by a gentleman named Gallimore, who was a relative, to whom, in 1754, a lease of the place was granted for the term of sixty-two years. This Mr. Gallimore does not appear to have been long connected with the works; for the only name, as proprietor, which I have at present been able to establish, is that of Mr. Thomas Turner, who married Dorothy, daughter of Mr. Gallimore and niece to Mr. Browne, and carried on the manufactory.

Mr. Thomas Turner was the son of Dr. Richard Turner, of Magdalene Hall, Oxford, rector of Cumberton, vicar of Elmly Castle and Norton, all in Worcestershire, in 1754, and who was also chaplain to the Countess of Wigtoun. This Dr. Turner, who took his degree at Magdalene Hall, Oxford, was the author of several works on astronomy, gauging, trigonometry, education, history, &c., and, in 1765, was a “teacher of geometry, astronomy, and philosophy” at Worcester. He died in 1791, and was buried at Norton-juxta-Kempsey, near Worcester. Besides his son Thomas, he had two other sons, Richard, LL.D., and Edward, the first of whom also published some works on geography, &c., and the latter was a general in the army in India, where he died; and two daughters, Elizabeth, married to Abraham Wyke, of Broseley, surgeon, and Sarah, married to Dr. William Hancock Roberts, rector of Broadwas and minor canon of Worcester Cathedral. Mr. Thomas Turner, by his first wife, Dorothy Gallimore, who died in 1793, had issue two children who died in infancy; and by his second wife, Mary, daughter of Thomas Milner, of Dothill, and widow of Henry Alsop, had issue one son, George Thomas Turner, of High Broughton, near Manchester, who died at Scarborough March 17, 1869, without issue, and one daughter, Catherine Georgiana Cecilia, who married John Jacob Smith, of St. James’s Priory, Bridgnorth, for more than half a century town clerk of that borough, by whom he had issue the present Hubert Smith, Esq., of St. Leonards, Bridgnorth, the gifted author of “Tent Life with English Gipsies in Norway,” who is the lineal and only representative of the main line of the Turner family. Mr. Turner was born in 1749, and is said to have been brought up as a silversmith at Worcester; but this is an error, as, for the purpose of obtaining the freedom of the city, he was, as a matter of legal form only, apprenticed to his father. It seems pretty certain that he was, at an early period, connected with the Worcester china works, and it is an established fact that he was an excellent chemist, and had thoroughly studied the various processes relating to porcelain manufacture. He was also a skilful draftsman and designer, and occasionally engraved: he was also a clever musician. He became a county magistrate for Shropshire, and was a freeman of the city of Worcester and the boroughs of Wenlock and Bridgnorth. He was also chairman of the Court of Equity for the three counties, which he had been mainly instrumental in establishing. In 1772, he succeeded his father-in-law, Mr. Gallimore, at the Caughley works (Mr. Gallimore having leased them from Mr. Browne in 1754), and carried them on until 1799, when he sold out all interest in the works and retired from business. He died at his residence at Caughley in 1809, aged sixty, and was buried in the family vault at Barrow, where, later, his daughter, Mrs. Smith, was also buried. After his death the commissioners of Oldbury Court presented his widow with a memorial silver cup of large size, bearing on one side the arms of Turner, and on the other an appropriate inscription. This is in possession of his representative, Mr. Hubert Smith.

Mr. Turner had a partner named Shaw. They had a warehouse in London, and, as was usual in those days with other works, had periodical sales by auction of their goods. In my own possession is a bill of this firm, dated January 24th, 1794, and headed “Salopian China Warehouse. Bought of Turner and Shaw.” The lots in this bill were bought “at public sale,” and consisted of “jugs,” “bakings,” “china dishes,” and other “sundry pieces;” the lots were “put up at half price” at the sale. In 1795, Mr. Turner’s manager at Caughley was one Thomas Blase; and I have a letter of his, dated 20th February in that year, concerning a painter, named Withers, at that time employed there, but who had wrongfully left his employment at the Derby china works, where he was “Mr. Deusbury’s articled servant.”

No doubt the incentive to the establishment of the Caughley works were the experiments long carried on at Worcester by Dr. Wall, and the knowledge that at this spot the two principal materials wanting in a pottery of this kind could be had at a trifling cost. With abundance of coal within twenty feet of the surface, with clunch of the best quality for the making of seggars overlying the coal, and with the navigable river at hand for bringing the materials and for carrying away the finished goods, the inducements were strong for the fixing on this spot the manufactory which was destined ultimately to grow into such enviable importance. To Worcester, of course, coal and clunch and other materials had to be conveyed at great cost; but here they were ready to hand, and indeed were cropping out in every direction, inviting to be used. In 1756 the works had attained a considerable degree of excellence; and an example is in existence, bearing that date, which gives most satisfactory evidence of the excellence of the body at that time--a body, however, which speedily became greatly improved. In the early years of the Caughley manufactory, the ware was not many degrees removed from earthenware; but it gradually assumed a finer and more transparent character. Like the early Worcester examples, the patterns were principally confined to blue flowers, &c., on a white ground; and in this style and colour the Caughley works excelled, in many respects, their competitors. An excellent example of the body, as made in 1776, is exhibited in a mug, bearing that date, now in the possession of a family at Coalport. This interesting mug, here engraved, is white, with blue and gold flowers, and bears the words “Francis Benbow, 1776,” surmounted by an anchor; the Francis Benbow, for whom it was made, being a barge-owner.

In 1772, as I have shown, Mr. Turner succeeded Mr. Gallimore in these works, and set about enlarging them. In 1775 we read, “The porcelain manufactory erected near Bridgnorth, in this county, is now quite completed, and the proprietors have received and completed orders to a very large amount. Lately we saw some of their productions, which in colour and fineness are truly elegant and beautiful, and have the bright and lively white of the so much extolled oriental.” In 1780 he visited France, for the purpose of “picking up knowledge” on the porcelain manufactures of Paris and other places. He is said to have been an excellent draughtsman, and this added to his chemical knowledge--for he had a regular laboratory fitted up at the top of his house--must have been a great advantage to him while in that country of beautiful and chaste designs. On his return from France he brought with him some skilled workmen, and at once entered with increased spirit into the manufacture of porcelain in his own works at Caughley. One of the men whom he had brought over appears to have been a clever architect; and from his design a very tasty and elegant château, which he called “Caughley Place,” and where he resided, was built for Mr. Turner, near the works. This building being of a novel design in England--more especially in the sequestered neighbourhood of Caughley--attracted much attention; and its peculiarities of construction and arrangement are still often talked about by the old inhabitants of the place. This house and Caughley Hall, after Mr. Turner’s death, came into the hands of Lord Forester, and were pulled down in 1820 or 1821; part of the materials being used for making additions to the present works at Coalport. At the present time no vestiges of the house or works remain at Caughley, with the exception of traces of foundations, and here and there a spring flower or two which still make their appearance where once the elegantly laid out gardens existed.

In 1780 Mr. Turner introduced the making of the famous “Willow Pattern”--the first made in England--at Caughley, and about the same time the “Broseley Blue Dragon” pattern. The willow pattern is still commonly known in the trade as “Broseley pattern.”

An excellent example of dated Caughley ware is the puzzle-jug in the possession of Mr. Edmund Thursfield, here engraved. It is eight inches in length, and is formed of the usual body of these works. It is decorated with blue sprigs, and bears on its front the name, in an oval border, of “John Geary Cleak of the old Church Brosley 1789.” On the bottom is written in blue, “Mathew the v & 16,” though one would fail to see any allusion in the text here referred to either to the vessel or to its purpose. In Mr. Smith’s possession is a fine Caughley mug; white, with blue flowers of bold character: it bears the words, “Wm. Haslewood, 1791,” and has the mark S on the bottom. This William Haslewood was the representative of an old family of that name in this neighbourhood, and his property passed to the Mr. J. J. Smith already spoken of.

In 1788 Mr. Robert Chamberlain commenced his china works at Worcester, and for some time bought his ware at Caughley, had it sent down by barge to Worcester, and there painted and finished it. The same thing was also done when Grainger’s works were first started at Worcester. The number of hands employed at Caughley must have been somewhat large, as the premises were extensive, and the quantity of goods required by Mr. Turner, for his own trade and for Worcester, was considerable. In 1798 or 1799, in consequence of the increase of the trade of Mr. Rose, who had been apprenticed to Mr. Turner, and afterwards commenced on his own account, by which the Caughley business was much injured, the works were disposed of to Mr. Rose and his partner; Mr. Turner entirely retiring from the concern. The Caughley works were then carried on by Messrs. Rose and Co., in conjunction with their own. The coal at Caughley beginning to work out, and the cost of carrying the unfinished ware from thence down the hill and across the water to Coalport was so great,--the unfinished ware being carried on women’s heads the whole distance,--that Mr. Rose determined to remove the works to Coalport, which he did at different times, gradually drafting off the workmen, until about 1814 or 1815, when they were finally removed, the kilns and rooms taken down, and the materials used for the enlargement of the works at Coalport. The last of the buildings, with the house, were not, however, destroyed until 1821, when the materials were brought to Coalport to build the present burnishing-shops and some workmen’s cottages.

The works were built in form of a quadrangle, with an entrance gateway surmounted by an inscribed stone. Of these historical works I am enabled, through the courtesy of my friend Mr. Hubert Smith, to give an engraving from an original drawing in his possession. The entrance building, it will be seen, was three stories in height, the remainder two stories, and the kilns were of large size.

The marks used at Caughley and Coalport have been very few, but they are very important, and require careful attention at the hands of the collector. In my account of the Worcester works I have given several varieties of the _crescent_ as a mark of that establishment, and have also stated that it was used at Caughley. I believe the first mark used at Caughley to have been the crescent alone, and that it was, as I have before stated, intended to have the signification of a C for Caughley, and that its connection with the Worcester works may, in a great measure, be traced to the fact of the goods on which it appears being printed, not at that city, but at Caughley. I have seen examples of this mark on undoubted Worcester body, and also on equally undoubted Caughley make, bearing precisely the same printed patterns. The following are some of the varieties of the crescent occurring on Caughley specimens, and show pretty clearly its transition from a common “half-moon” (I have often heard it called “half-moon china”) to the finished and engraved C.

Figs. 588 to 592.]

Another mark said to have been used at Caughley, but of which at present I have met with no example, is the accompanying, which is very similar to the mark ascribed to the Leeds manufactory.

Another distinctive mark of the Salopian works was the capital letter S, of which the following are varieties:--

Figs. 594 to 600.]

When the S was introduced it is difficult to say; but, at all events, it appears on the dated example alluded to above in 1776, and it was used at the same time as the C for a considerable period. On many of the engraved plates still in existence, indeed, both the C and the S occur, and this leads me to suspect that the one was used to mark the goods sent to Caughley to be printed, and the other those made and printed for their own market. I have seen precisely similar articles in pattern, bearing each of these letters. Occasionally the S and crossed daggers occur.

Vol.I.

PLATE III.

ORIGINAL COPPER-PLATES--CAUGHLEY AND COALPORT.

(The letters C and S are the marks alluded to on page 270; they
here occur side by side on the original copper-plate.)]

Another circumstance is also worthy of note. On two mugs printed from the same engraved plate, which I have seen, the one bears the S, and the other the accompanying curious mark (Fig. 598), which is evidently of the same character as the examples of assimilated Chinese ones, which are occasionally ascribed to Worcester, but which are in reality, I believe, those of Caughley. Of these I give the following as examples; many of these are disguised figures.

Following the C and S, two _impressed_ marks, bearing the word “Salopian,” were used. These are as follows:--

and it is worthy of remark that, on some examples of plates bearing this impressed mark, the blue printed S also appears; as, on others, does also the crescent. Others, probably merely workmen’s marks, are

The subject of _printing_ upon porcelain, to which I have already alluded under “Worcester,” is one so intimately and intricately connected with the Caughley and Coalport works, that it will be necessary to consider the period of its introduction at some length. I have already shown that transfer-printing was used as early as 1757 on Worcester porcelain (p. 229, _ante_); and I have little doubt that quite as early, if not a few years before that period, it was practised at Caughley. Indeed, in the early years of the manufactory, the two works, Caughley and Worcester, seem to have been closely connected, and to have worked “in and in,” if I may be allowed the use of so unscientific an expression, and I believe, with ample reason, that a great proportion of the printed goods bearing the Worcester mark were printed at Caughley. Indeed, it is known that the ware was sent up from Worcester by barge to be printed at Caughley, and returned, when finished, by the same mode of conveyance. I have closely examined the style of engraving and the patterns of a large number of examples, and I am clearly of opinion that they are the work of the same hands.

I do not, by this, claim for Caughley the honour of _inventing_ the art of transfer-printing on to porcelain; but I feel assured that that art must have been there practised at quite as early a period as the dated example of Worcester make; and I am led to this belief partly from the fact that the Robert Hancock whose beautiful productions I have before spoken of, and to whom the engraving of the dated example is ascribed, also engraved for the Caughley works. And I have an impression of a plate, of an identical pattern with the famous tea group, which bears his monogram on the Worcester specimens, on which his name, _R. Hancock fecit_, occurs in full at Caughley. Collectors, therefore, in a case of this kind, must not be too hasty in ascribing, from appearance _alone_, examples to either one or the other make, but must be guided, in a great measure, by the _body_ on which the engraving occurs.

It cannot be wondered that an art, then such an important secret, should have been followed at Caughley,--a place so perfectly retired from the world, situated in the midst of woods and wilds, almost unapproachable to strangers, and with every facility for keeping the workmen away from all chance of imparting the secret to others,--in place of in Worcester, where secrecy would be almost impossible, and where the information would ooze out from the workmen, at the ale-house or elsewhere, and be greedily caught up by those interested in the process. At Caughley every possible precaution seems to have been taken to secure secrecy; and the workmen--the engravers and printers--were locked up and kept apart from every one else. Who the engravers were I cannot satisfactorily say. It is, however, certain, that Hancock engraved for the works; and it is said that Holdship, of whom I have before spoken, was also employed. Among the other engravers was a man named Dyas, who was apprenticed as an engraver at Caughley about the year 1768, and who continued at the works until his death, at the ripe age of eighty-two. It is also worthy of note that Mr. Minton, the father of Mr. Herbert Minton, was in his early days employed as an engraver at these works. It is not too much to say, that the style of engraving adopted at so early a period was remarkably good, and of really high character. Indeed, some specimens which I have seen of the plates used at Caughley are far superior to most of the productions of the period.

Vik. I.

PLATE IV.

ORIGINAL COPPER-PLATES--CAUGHLEY AND COALPORT.]

Of the painters employed at Caughley, it will be sufficient to say that amongst those apprenticed there were John Parker, Thomas Fennell, and Henry Boden, famous for their skill in flowers; and that Muss, Silk, and others, excelled in landscapes and figures--some sepia landscapes being remarkable for their pure artistic treatment; while among the gilders, a most important art, and one to which special attention has always been directed at these works, were men of the names of Rutland, Marsh, and Randall who were considered proficients. Of the latter, a nephew, who is the author of pleasant little volumes on the “Severn Valley” and “The Willey Country,” is still employed at the Coalport works, principally on birds.

I have named above that Robert Hancock engraved for Caughley as well as for Worcester, or at all events that plates of his were printed from at the former place possibly for the latter. His name appears on one of the plates as follows:--[in-line illustration] and other plates are evidently the work of his hand, though without name. I engraved a curious mark, the monogram RH, anchor, and name of Worcester, in the account of those works. This I reproduce on Fig. 611, and give another which occurs on a plate from Caughley, with the anchor and the word Derby, which I introduce for the purpose of comparison, and to suggest the probability that the place which produced the one with the word Derby (for whatever reason that may have been done), which was undoubtedly Caughley, also produced the one with the word Worcester. The engraved plate, with the anchor and Derby, is a curious one (for a mug), and represents a landscape--a river, with trees on either side, swans sailing in the foreground, behind them two fishermen in a boat drawing a net, beyond them a boat with sails, and in the background a bridge, and church with ruins to the left, and a tall gabled building on the right, over which are the words “Sutton Hall,” whilst above the whole picture is “English Hospitality.”

COALPORT.

One of the most flourishing, most important, and most successful in art-productions of any in the kingdom are the Coalport works, at one time also known as “Coalbrook Dale,” to whose history I now devote a few pages. The founder of these works was Mr. John Rose, a man of wondrous skill and enterprise, to whom the ceramic art is indebted for many important improvements. Mr. Rose, who was the son of a farmer in the neighbourhood of Caughley, was apprenticed to Mr. Thomas Turner, of the Caughley China Works, by whom he was taken into the house, and taught the art of china making in all its branches. Here he remained for several years; but ultimately, from causes which it is not necessary to enter upon, a difference arose between them, and Mr. Rose left Mr. Turner, and commenced a small business on his own account at Jackfield, in the immediate neighbourhood. Here he did not remain long, but removed his works to Coalport, on the opposite bank of the Severn, where he fixed himself in some buildings which had previously been a small pottery belonging to a Mr. Young, a mercer of Shrewsbury, and in these buildings in part they have continued to the present day. Mr. John Rose had not long established himself at Coalport, it appears, before he met with opposition; for other works were started on the opposite side of the canal, and only a few yards distant, by his brother, Mr. Thomas Rose, and partners, who commenced business under the style of “Anstice, Horton, and Rose.” These works, however, did not continue long, but passed into the hands of Mr. John Rose and his partners, who, with other additions, formed them into one establishment. In the space of three or four years from the establishment of the Coalport works by Mr. Rose, he had so successfully carried on his business that the Caughley works of Mr. Turner had become greatly reduced, and were gradually beaten out of the market. In 1799 Mr. Turner, of the Caughley works, gave up the business and sold the concern to Messrs. Rose & Co., who thus became proprietors of both works, as well as of those commenced by the brother of Mr. Rose. Both manufactories were then continued by them, thus giving a great increase to the establishment, and rendering it one of the most extensive in the kingdom.

In 1803 Messrs. Blakeway, Rose, and Horton having become bankrupt, a question as to the ownership of the remainder of the Caughley manufactory arose and was submitted to arbitration. The following is the award, for which I am indebted to my friend Mr. Hubert Smith:--

“TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME we Ralph Wedgwood
of Bransford in the county of Worcester Gentleman and William
Horton of Coalport in the county of Salop Gentleman send
greeting Whereas by articles of agreement in writing bearing
date the Thirteenth day of December last past and made between
Thomas Turner of Caughley in the county of Salop Esquire of the
one part and Timothy Yate of Madeley in the county of Salop
Charles Guest and Elias Prestwich of Broseley in the county of
Salop Gentlemen of the other part Reciting that by a Memorandum
of an Agreement bearing date the Twelfth day of October One
thousand seven hundred and ninety nine and made between the
said Thomas Turner of the one part and Edward Blakeway John
Rose and Richard Rose of Coalport in the said county of Salop
porcelain manufacturers of the other part The said Thomas Turner
did agree to assign amongst other things all his interest in
a Lease from Mr. Browne to him of the several works buildings
and erections called Caughley China Works and also the colliery
then held under lease by him from Mr. Browne to the said Edward
Blakeway John Rose and Richard Rose The said Thomas Turner
also agreed to assign to the said Edward Blakeway and Co. the
unglazed stock of goods then in and about the said manufactory
and all the materials implements fixtures moulds copper plates
and machinery belonging to the said manufactory and colliery And
it was agreed that the said Edward Blakeway and Company should
have and be entitled to the same liberties and privileges so
far as respected the said manufactory and colliery as the said
Thomas Turner was entitled to and that the said colliery should
be worked in a fair and workmanlike manner and that the clod and
middle coals so far as they were getable together or separate
to be got so that the best coals should not be got without the
clod and middle coals The said Edward Blakeway and Company to
pay Mr. Turner Five hundred pounds per annum for the residue of
the term and interest in his lease by half-yearly payments as
herein mentioned provided the said coals so to be got should not
be sufficient for the use of the said manufactory and the best
coals should be exhausted the said Edward Blakeway and Company
should be at liberty to give up the said works and premises to
the said Thomas Turner at the end of any half year during the
remainder of the term by which the same premises were held upon
giving him six months notice in writing for that purpose and
leaving the materials implements fixtures moulds copper plates
and machinery then employed thereat not diminishing the same
in the mean time But if the said Edward Blakeway and Company
should be desirous of continuing the said works and premises
till the expiration of the said term the said Thomas Turner
agreed to make an allowance of Two hundred pounds per annum
out of the said sum of Five hundred pounds per annum from the
time the said best coals should be exhausted if the quantity
of best coals used had not exceeded upon the average eighteen
tons per week, each ton containing forty eight hundred and it
was thereby further agreed that in case any dispute or question
should arise between the said parties touching any clause
article matter or thing therein contained the same was to be
referred to and settled by two indifferent persons one to be
chosen by each party and in case they should not agree as to
the same then by an umpire to be named by the said two persons
whose determination should be final And further reciting that
the said Edward Blakeway and John Rose together with Robert
Winter their partner who then lately held the said works and
premises had lately been declared Bankrupt and the said Timothy
Yate Charles Guest and Elias Prestwich chosen assignees of
their estate and effects and that they the same assignees had
lately contracted to sell all their right title and interest
to and in the said Caughley China Works Colliery and Premises
unto Cuthbert Johnson and William Clarke Esquires And further
reciting that a doubt or question had arisen whether the said
materials implements fixtures moulds copper plates and machinery
were to be the property of the said Thomas Turner at the end of
the said term or whether they were to become his property in
the event only of the said Agreement being determined before
the expiration of the said term And that the same parties had
therefore mutually agreed to refer the said doubt or question
to the decision of the said Ralph Wedgwood and William Horton
and in case they could not agree then to such person as they
should name umpire in the premises And that the said Thomas
Turner had agreed to sell and the said Timothy Yate Charles
Guest and Elias Prestwich had agreed to purchase all the right
and interest of the said Thomas Turner of and in the said
materials implements fixtures moulds copper plates and machinery
at such a price or sum of money as should be fixed thereon by
the said Ralph Wedgwood and William Horton or their umpire to
be named as aforesaid And further reciting that a dispute had
arisen between the said Thomas Turner and the said Timothy Yate
Charles Guest and Elias Prestwich respecting the manner in which
the said colliery or coalwork had been managed and carried on
which dispute or any other difference which might arise pending
that reference as a consequence of the investigation of the
claims of the respective parties the said parties had agreed
should be adjusted and settled by the said Ralph Wedgwood and
William Horton or their said umpire to be appointed by them
in manner aforesaid It is by the Articles of Agreement now
in recital witnessed that as well the said Thomas Turner as
also the said Timothy Yate Charles Guest and Elias Prestwich
did thereby for themselves severally and respectively and for
their several and respective Heirs Executors and Administrators
covenant promise and agree to and with each other and to and
with his and their Executors and Administrators that they
the said parties respectively their respective Executors and
Administrators should and would well and truly stand to abide by
perform fulfil and keep this award order or determination which
the said Ralph Wedgwood and William Horton or their said umpire
should make between them as well concerning the said doubt or
question concerning the right and interest of the said Thomas
Turner of and in the said materials implements fixtures moulds
copper plates and machinery and the price or sum of money to
be paid him for the same as also concerning the dispute which
had arisen or which pending the said reference might arise
between the said parties respecting the manner in which the said
colliery or coalwork had been managed and carried on so as the
award or umpirage be made in writing under the hands of the said
Ralph Wedgwood and William Horton or their said umpire within
twelve weeks from the date thereof But it was thereby agreed
that that Agreement or any clause therein contained or the
said award or umpirage to be made in pursuance thereof should
not alter or extend to alter the rent and royalty reserved and
made payable by the therein recited Agreement but that the same
should remain payable upon the terms and conditions therein
mentioned And for the true performance of that Agreement each
of the said parties bound himself and themselves his and their
Executors and Administrators to the other of them his Executors
and Administrators mutually and reciprocally in the penalty of
One thousand pounds As by the said recited Agreement reference
being thereunto had will appear Now know ye that we the said
Ralph Wedgwood and William Horton having duly examined and
considered the said Agreement and the proofs and allegations of
the said parties to the said reference and all such accounts
documents and evidence as have been produced to us relating to
the said materials implements fixtures moulds copper plates and
machinery and also the said colliery coal-mines and premises do
hereby award order decide and determine that the said materials
implements fixtures copper plates moulds and machinery were
by the said Agreement to be the property of the said Blakeway
Rose and Rose at the end of the term mentioned in the said
agreement and not the property of the said Thomas Turner but in
the event only of the said Agreement being determined before
the expiration thereof by six months notice being given in the
manner in the said Agreement specified And we do further award
order decide and determine that the said Timothy Yate Charles
Guest and Elias Prestwich as such assignees as aforesaid shall
pay unto the said Thomas Turner his Executors Administrators or
Assigns for all his contingent or present right and interest
of and in the said materials implements fixtures moulds copper
plates and machinery the sum of One hundred pounds on or before
the Twenty first day of May next And we do further award order
decide and determine that the said colliery or coalwork hath
been worked and carried on in a fair and workmanlike manner and
according to the spirit of the said Agreement of the Twelfth day
of October One thousand seven hundred and ninety nine and that
therefore the said Thomas Turner not having been injured is not
entitled to any compensation or damage from the said Blakeway
Rose and Co. or their said Assignees in respect thereof Given
under our hands this Sixth day of March One thousand eight
hundred and four.

“Witness } “RA WEDGWOOD
JN. PRITCHARD } WILLM HORTON”

On the 23rd October, 1799, an event occurred in connection with the works at Coalport which was most sad in its results. At that time a considerable number of the work-people and painters employed at the works resided at Broseley, and were in the habit of passing backwards and forwards across a ferry near the works. On this night, thirty-two persons, including the best artists, went on board the ferry-boat, which, about midwater, owing to the intoxicated state of the ferryman, was capsized, and twenty-nine were drowned. The principal painter at this time was an artist named Walker, and an unfinished piece of work of his--the piece he left in progress only a few minutes before he lost his life--is still preserved, with almost religious care, in the factory.

Soon after this time considerable additions were made at Coalport, and since then the manufactory has been constantly and considerably enlarged, and now occupies, I am told, considerably more ground than any other porcelain works in the kingdom.

Figs. 618 to 621.--Coalport Vases.]

The view of the Coalport China Works given on page 274 will show its extensive character in the early part of the present century, and its pleasant situation on the banks of the Severn. The view is copied from an interesting painting by Muss, who, before his successful artistic career in London, was employed as one of the painters at this establishment. Since the period when Muss made this painting, the works have been constantly increased, and at the present time are about doubled in extent.

The commercial style of the firm has been, ever since its establishment at Coalport, and still is, “Messrs. John Rose and Company,” although many changes in the proprietary have taken place. These changes have been as follows:--“Rose and Blakeway;” “Rose, Blakeway, and Rose;” “Rose, Johnson, and Winter;” “Rose, Johnson, Clarke, and Winter;” “Rose, Winter, and Clarke;” “Rose, Clarke, and Maddison;” “Maddison, Pugh, Rose, and Rose;” “W. Pugh and W. F. Rose;” and the present sole proprietor is “William Pugh;” but the firm is still known by its old style of “John Rose and Co.” Mr. John Rose died in 1841, and was buried at Barrow. He was succeeded by his nephew, Mr. W. F. Rose, of Rock House, Coalport, who retired from the firm in the autumn of 1862, and died in London in 1864, having in the meantime started some small works at Hanley, where he shortly afterwards failed, and unsuccessfully attempted to commence others in Derbyshire. He was a man of the most generous disposition and kindly nature, and his losses were a subject of deep sorrow to myself and his other many friends.

It will be seen from what I have said, that the Coalport works had already, before the commencement of the present century, absorbed those of Caughley, of Jackfield, and of the opposition establishment of Messrs. Anstice, Horton, and Rose. Some years later, the Swansea Porcelain Works, which had risen somewhat into repute, were discontinued, and the moulds, &c, bought by Mr. Rose, who removed them, along with the workmen, to Coalport, about the year 1820. Another famed manufactory, though small, that of Nantgarw, established by Billingsley, the famous flower painter, of Derby, and his son-in-law, Walker, also of Derby, in 1816 (under the assumed name of _Beeley_ and Walker), and which produced, perhaps, the finest examples of porcelain with granulated fracture ever made, also soon afterwards was merged into the Coalport establishment. Billingsley and Walker, on discontinuing the works at Nantgarw, removed to Coalport, with all their moulds and processes, and continued employed there until Billingsley’s death, which took place in 1828. Walker was a remarkably clever workman, and did much during the time of his continuance at Coalport to improve the art of china-making. He removed thence to America, where he established a pottery, which, I believe, he still continues to work. The Nantgarw porcelain was very expensive to make, but was remarkably fine in its body and texture. The original recipes for this peculiar body are in the possession of Messrs. Rose & Co.; and it can be made at Coalport of as fine a quality as ever. I have carefully examined specimens made _at_ Nantgarw with others made by Billingsley and Walker when they first came to Coalport, and these again with examples made by Messrs. Rose in 1860, and they appear all to be of equal excellence of body. It is, however, too expensive a process to be followed to any extent, and is never manufactured there now.

In 1820 Mr. John Rose received the gold medal of the Society of Arts for his improvements in the manufacture of china. The prize, which was offered for the best porcelain glaze produced without lead, was competed for by Copelands, Davenports, and all the principal manufacturers, as well as by Mr. Rose, but was honourably gained by him. It bears the inscription--“To Mr. John Rose, MDCCCXX., for his improved glaze for porcelain.”

The history of the works has been one of complete success from their first establishment to the present day; and this success has been attained by untiring and unflagging energy on the part of the proprietary, and by a determination to make their manufactory second to none in existence in extent and in beauty and purity of work. The porcelain trade owes much to the ability and energy of Mr. John Rose; and this skill, ability, and energy is equally the characteristic of the present proprietor, Mr. Pugh.

Both at the Great Exhibition in 1851 and that of 1862, as well as at the French Exhibition in 1855, Messrs. Rose & Co. carried off medals for their productions; and these recognitions of excellence have been continued at the later International Exhibitions. At the first a magnificent dessert service in the difficult but truly beautiful _Rose du Barry_ colour, which the firm had succeeded in restoring in all its beauty to the ceramic art, was exhibited, and excited considerable interest. This service, considered by competent judges to equal the original Sèvres in evenness of colour, was purchased by Lord Ashburton. At the second, Messrs. Rose exhibited a large number of exquisite examples of their make; and services were purchased by the Emperor of the French, by M. Fould, and by the principal _savans_ of Paris. At the third, the selection of vases and other decorative pieces was of the finest possible character.

At the present hour the productions of the Coalport works take a foremost rank among the best porcelain of the kingdom; many of the specialities of this firm being marvels of beauty; the colours pure and full, and of extreme richness. Sardinian green--a colour for the extreme depth and richness of which these works are celebrated--is introduced with remarkable effect both in services and otherwise. One of the finest pieces of this colour is a tripod wine goblet, with flowers in tablets, and raised and jewelled gold borders. A lighter shade of this fine green is introduced, with tablets of flowers and Westbourne birds, with great effect on two-handled goblets, &c. _Rose du Barry_ has always been a speciality of the Coalport works, and a colour on the excellence of which its proprietors, especially the late clever and enlightened Mr. W. F. Rose, have always prided themselves. This is used as a ground in every conceivable variety of decoration, and when enriched with raised dead and burnished gold, and with the exquisite painting by which it is usually accompanied, has a remarkably rich and chaste effect. A new jardinière, with pierced key top and Sèvres fruit and flowers, is one of the prettiest examples of this colour, combined with raised gold and flowers, which has been produced. One of the finest and most massive pieces in this colour is a claret jug, with raised gold vine-leaves and grapes and other decorations, and splendidly painted on one side with the head of a bacchante and on the other a bunch of grapes. A pink, or light _Rose du Barry_, is also much used as a ground for pilgrims’ bottles, vases, services, &c., where, for some kinds of decoration, it harmonizes better than the full colour would. A blue with a slightly purplish cast, which gives it an additional richness and fulness, has been introduced, and forms a splendid ground for Japanese decoration in vases, pilgrims’ bottles, &c., in which style of now very fashionable decoration the Coalport artists excel. In these Japanese patterns some of the designs are unusually elaborate and intricate, and the workmanship is characterized by extreme precision and regularity, while the gilding and colour, especially the deep reds and blues, are rich and full in the extreme. Some of the vases in this style vie with those of the native art of the Japanese, and are not excelled by any other house. The principal artists employed at the present time at the works are Mr. Charles Palmere, Mr. Cooke, Mr. John Randall, Mr. Birbeck, Mr. A. Bowdler, Mr. J. Hartshorne, and Mr. Jabez Aston; and among those formerly engaged here was Mr. R. F. Abraham, a student of Antwerp and Paris and a successful follower of the school of Etty. Modellers of a very high class in their respective branches are also employed, and the excellence of their work is apparent in all the higher class productions of this establishment.

Figs. 629 to 640.]

The marks used by the Caughley works have already been fully described.[84] After the removal of these works to Coalport, the same letters, both C and S, for many years were used. At Coalport, however, marks have been adopted, perhaps, more sparingly than at any other works; and the great bulk of the goods have been manufactured, from the first down to the present time, without any mark at all. On some examples of the early part of the present century, the written name of “Coalport,” thus--_Coalport_[handwriting]--appears; but these are of very rare occurrence. Another mark, adopted somewhat later, though only used very sparingly, was simply the letters for Coalbrookdale, or the same two letters conjoined thus--; sometimes also Coalbrookdale appears in full, and at others the contraction “C Dale,” in similar writing letters.

Another mark, adopted in 1820, was of large size, and will, perhaps, be as well understood by description as engraving. It is a circle of nearly two inches diameter, in which is a wreath of laurel encircling the words, “Coalport Improved Felt Spar Porcelain,” in four lines across. Surrounding the wreath are the words, “Patronised by the Society of Arts. The Gold Medal awarded May 30, 1820;” while beneath, and outside the circle, is the name “I. Rose and Co.” This mark was adopted consequent on Mr. John Rose obtaining the Society of Arts’ gold medal for “his improved glaze for porcelain” to which I have before alluded, and the articles on which it appears are of extremely good material and very perfect glaze.

Other marks adopted by this firm, although but seldom used (the great bulk of the goods, as I have said before, being sent out without any mark at all), are the following:-- The first of these is a monogram of the letters C B D, for Coalbrookdale, so joined together as to produce a very characteristic and distinctive mark. The second, the same monogram, surrounded by a garter bearing the name of “Daniell, London”--a firm for many years, like Mortlocks and other leading houses, connected with Coalport or Coalbrookdale, who have had that mark used for some especial orders. The third and last is the most recent mark, and is almost the only one now used by the Coalport works: it embraces the initials of the various manufactories which have from time to time been incorporated with, or merged into, the Coalport establishment. Thus the scroll--which at first sight may, to the uninitiated, look like a short “and” (&)--will, on examination, be seen to be a combination of the writing letters, C and S, for _Coalport_ and _Salopian_, enclosing within its bows the three letters, C, S, and N, denoting respectively _Caughley_, _Swansea_, and _Nantgarw_.

Having now passed through the history of these famed works, and shown their connection with others, both in manufacture and in printing, it only remains to say a few words on the varieties of goods for which the Salopian works have been famed, both in times past and at present. First and foremost, then, of course, come the blue painted and printed wares copied from Chinese patterns, for which both it and the early Worcester works were remarkable. The first painted, as well as printed, wares were close imitations of the foreign; but groups of flowers of original design, &c., were also introduced, and designs _based_, perhaps, on foreign models were adopted. Groups of figures, in the characteristic costume of the period, were also executed with great taste and ability. Of the Chinese patterns, the two most famous--the well-known “willow pattern” (known generally among the trade as the “Broseley pattern”) and the “blue dragon” (also known as the “Broseley blue dragon”)--owe their first introduction to the Caughley works; and this fact alone is sufficient to entitle them to more than ordinary notice. The willow pattern has undoubtedly been the most popular, and had the most extensive sale of any pattern ever introduced. It has, of course, been made by most houses, but the credit of its first introduction belongs to Caughley; and early examples, bearing the Caughley mark--the cups without handles, and ribbed and finished precisely like the foreign--are rare. The dragon, known still as “the Broseley blue dragon” or “Broseley blue Canton,” was also a most successful imitation of the Chinese, and almost rivalled the “willow” in popularity. A special form of jug, considered in those days to be very far advanced in art, known technically as the “cabbage-leaf jug,” was also first made at the Caughley works.

Later on, the “worm sprig” pattern, the “tournay sprig,” and other equally successful patterns were here introduced from the Dresden, as were also the celebrated Dresden raised flowers and the “Berlin chain edge” pattern. About 1821 a peculiar marone-coloured ground, which is much sought after, was introduced at Coalport, by Walker, of Nantgarw, of whom I have before spoken; and at this time many marked improvements were made in the different processes of manufacture.

The copies, both in embossing, in body, in colour, and oiliness of the glaze, and in style of painting of birds and flowers, of the Dresden at this period were perfect, and, as the Dresden mark was (perhaps injudiciously) introduced as well, were capable of deceiving even the most knowing connoisseur. It may be well to note that at this period an _impressed_ anchor was sometimes used. This must not be taken to be anything more than a workman’s mark. Very successful copies of the Sèvres and Chelsea have also been at one time or other produced, and on these the marks of those makers have been also copied. Collectors of “old Chelsea,” especially of the famous green examples, must be careful, therefore, not to take everything for granted as belonging to that place on which the gold anchor is found.

The _egg-shell china_ produced at Coalport is much finer than any other which has come under my notice, from the fact that the body is _pure porcelain_, being composed of one stone and one clay alone, unmixed with bone or any other material whatever.

BROSELEY.

_Broseley Pipe Works._--Broseley is perhaps more universally known as a seat of the manufacture of tobacco-pipes than in any other way; for in this particular it has “held its own” against other localities for about three centuries, and seems still likely to do so for three centuries more, should the habit of smoking continue so long. As a few words must in the course of this work be said upon this branch of ceramic art, it may be well here to introduce it; and I cannot do better than give, in an abridged and altered form, what, some years ago, I drew up for the pages of the _Reliquary_.[85]