Originally Posted by
Quentin_Sharples
The Mersey Steel and Iron Company was founded in 1810 by Ralph Clay.
It later moved inland and eventually occupied a vast site.
The main reason it closed was that residents in the Wirral complained of the noise coming from the hammer.
Off hand, I'm not sure when it closed, but 1890s sounds about right.
In 1908 Griffiths mentions the "deserted and ruined remains".
I find it difficult to accept that the works closed because of people on the relatively sparsely populated Wirral opposite. It must be approaching 1 mile at that point. If they were told to stop the hammer, it would not mean a full closure of operations. The Sheffield steel mills were highly competitive by then. Also the site is small by steel mill standards with no space to expand. The council and MDHB were concentrating on lucrative commercial trade expansion - docks and warehouses - rather than large scale manufacturing, so expansion of such a plant would not be encouraged. Many points were against the Forge.
Herculaneum Pottery
This was one of the most famous of toxteth's industries and it produced high-quality earthenware and porcelain from about 1793 to 1841. "This pottery, the largest ever established in Liverpool, was founded in 1796 on the site of some old copper works on the south shore of the River Mersey at Toxteth Park". The story is however a little more long winded!
In 1793 Charles Roe's Copper works was closed and the land was offered for sale. This was in 1794, as the advertisement (below, left) shows, although the lease on the land commenced in 1792. This may account for the varying dates given for the beginning of the pottery.
Foundation : The land was bought by Richard Abbey (1720-1801) and a small pottery was established here soon afterwards. Abbey, was born in Liverpool, at Aintree and was apprenticed to one John Sadler as an engraver in the firm of Sadler and Green. Whilst working under Sadler he produced many notable designs for mugs, jugs and tiles. After leaving Sadler, Abbey moved to Glasgow, as an engraver at the potworks. Later he was similarly employed in France. He then returned to Liverpool where at the age of 70, he went into business for himself in partnership with a Scotsman named Graham.
New owners : Messrs. Abbey and Graham, made a success of their factory at Toxteth Park and sold it to a consortium named Worthington, Humble and Holland. Abbey retired to Aintree, where he died in 1801.
Humble and Holland called their pottery 'Herculaneum' in the way that Josiah Wedgwood had chosen to call his new colony 'Etruria'. 'Herculaneum' and a variety of crowns were stamped on their products thoughout the history of the pottery, although not, apparently, on all of the early wares.
Humble and Holland engaged as foreman and manager, a skilled thrower, Ralph Mansfield of Burslem and with him about forty men, women and children were hired from Staffordshire and brought to Liverpool. The buildings acquired from Richard Abbey were enlarged, the arrangements remodelled, new ovens and workshops erected and houses for the workmen were erected. The little colony was peopled in the middle of November 1796 and the expanded works were opened on the 8th December 1796 which is the date usually attributed to the start of the Herculaneum Pottery proper.
The Potters: Forty or so of these potters and their families, led by skilled thrower, Archibald Mansfield from Burslem, arrived en masse on 11th November 1796 and were escorted by crowds and bands of musicians. The potters occupied houses which were specially built for them. It is suggested that Park Terrace in Grafton Street between Beresford Road and Thornton's yard, were some of these. The small houses which formerly stood between Wellington Road and Harlow Street in what was Chapel Place, off Grafton Street, were known locally as `The Potteries' (see entry in Gore for 1858) and may also have been some of the houses for which the potters drew lots on their journey up the canal and river to their new homes. At that time of course, houses and buildings stood on land which has since been cleared to make way for the Railway and the Docks.
Pearlware 1829The first productions were blue-printed wares. Dinner, toilet, tea, and coffee services, punch-bowls, mugs and jugs were made. This blue-printing may have been a practical adaption of what fate bestowed in the form of copper residues from Roe's works which are said to have tinged the early wares blue. Soon after cream-coloured ware, which was then fashionable was made and later, terracotta vases and other articles were produced. The cream-coloured or Queen's ware, is considered of fine quality and as well crafted as any available.
In 1800 and again in 1806, the manufactory was considerably increased, as was the number of partners in the firms. Much of the pottery was exported to the USA and Canada.
It was not only cheap quality goods that were made here, as examples in the Liverpool Museum show. Fine porcelain was made and indeed continued to be produced, from now until the time of the closing of the works. The plate, (above, left), is Pearlware from 1820.
In 1833, the Herculaneum Pottery Company was officially dissolved and the property sold for £25,000 to Ambrose Lace.
The remaining stock was then sold, as a clipping the Liverpool Mercury Feb 22nd 1833 shows. Ambrose Lace in turn leased the premises to Thomas Case and James Mort, who carried on the business for three more years.
During this period a Liver bird was added to the factory markings. It was during their tenureship that a notable dinner service was made for the Corporation of Liverpool. It was blue-printed, and had on each piece the arms of Liverpool engraved.
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In about 1836, Case, Mort and Co. was also dissolved to be succeeded by Mort & Simpson, who traded until the pottery finally closed in 1841 caused by competition from the Staffordshire potteries. This was the end of Liverpool's last pottery.
Reference material :-
Smith, Alan: Illustrated Guide to Liverpool Herculaneum Pottery (Barrie & Jenkins, London, 1970)
Jewitt's Ceramic Art of Great Britain 1800-1900
Gore's Directory 1858
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