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England (Counties as in 1851-1901) => England => Warwickshire => Topic started by: Keith Sherwood on Thursday 20 January 05 17:31 GMT (UK)
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Hi, Everyone,
A couple of my ancestors have their fathers' occupations on their wedding certificates noted down as "Brass Founder". Can someone please tell me where I could read about what went on in a 19th century Brass Foundry in the Birmingham area. Would these premises have been much smaller than an Iron Foundry, for instance?
Very best wishes,
Keith
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Hello,
Would suggest perhaps checking out: http://www.historicaldirectories.org/
Have had a quick look and they have 19c Birmingham Commercial and Trade directories which list brass foundries and you can search online.
Good Luck
Jonathan
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Jonathan,
I hadn't thought of that, to see how many of them occurred in a particular area, so I'll give it a try. Every time I look at that site they seem to have added even more directories...
Thanks again,
Keith
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Hi, Everyone,
A couple of my ancestors have their fathers' occupations on their wedding certificates noted down as "Brass Founder". Can someone please tell me where I could read about what went on in a 19th century Brass Foundry in the Birmingham area. Would these premises have been much smaller than an Iron Foundry, for instance?
Very best wishes,
Keith
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Hi
A connection of mine was from the brass founder firm of Wootton and Powell in the mid 19thC. They made gass chandeliers and their fittings. Later it became Wootton and Morrall when a son took over. Any link??
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British Small Arms (BSA) in Birmingham was the famous foundry.
Matthew Boulton probably. Brass foundry. at Soho, Birmingham.
http://www.birminghamuk.com/go/index.php?board=7;action=display;threadid=239;start=msg273#msg273
http://bobmiles.bulldoghome.com/pages/bobmiles_bulldoghome_com/moremboulton.htm (http://bobmiles.bulldoghome.com/pages/bobmiles_bulldoghome_com/moremboulton.htm)
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Hello Keith
Brass founding was a common trade in B'ham.The process of manufacturing brass as we know it today was invented in B'ham in the 1820's and quickly became the new material taking over from iron.Foundries came in all sizes the biggest being Matthew Boulton's Soho Works.There were smaller ones who found a niche in the market such as pen nib makers.Many people worked in the trade as a second job,I have one who was a licensed victualler & brass founder.
jim
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Hi
I have been reading my Great Great Grandfather's Indenture binding him as apprentice to William & Thomas Powell Brassfounders of Birmingham '.. in the 55th Year of the reign of King George III...!" i.e. 1815 for 7 years!
His Dad was listed as Charles Parker the elder and he was Charles Parker the younger. They were said to have been 'of Lint House, Hill Top near Bromsgrove, Worcestershire'. Lint House or 'The Lint House' was, it seems, a Pub as his father was elsewhere said to have been a Victualler!
Can't find The Lint House later, though 'Hilltop' is part of the one time parish (?) of Lickey and various later maps show Linhouse Lane, later named Linthurst Lane as it is in now, in Blackwell.
I hope this may help you in your search but equally does anyone possibly have any foundation for me to support the above 'information'?
I know Charles went on to be a Brass Founder and Military ornament Manufacturer of 42 Cherry Street, Birmingham. He also patentent a whistle and made brass buttons as Merry Parker & Merry! He died in 1852 at his home on Gravelly Hill, Erdington.
Colin
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Hi Keith,
There's are a couple of books (full view/limited view) available on google books, which tells you all about the early history of brass foundries in the Birmingham area:
The Early History of Brass and the Brass Manufactures of Birmingham ... By W. C. Aitken
This is less specific, but an interesting read:
Luxury and Pleasure in Eighteenth-Century Britain By Maxine Berg
They might help - hope so.
Paulene :)
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Thanks Pauline. Fascinating stuff. My folk are not mentioned but Mr Winfield, the man he trained with, is, as the inventor of the 'double brass gas pipe'. It seems to have been the elite branch of the brass trade, gas chandelier making. Highly skilled, premium wages and artistic flair.
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Glad it helped a little :)
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Hi
I have been reading my Great Great Grandfather's Indenture binding him as apprentice to William & Thomas Powell Brassfounders of Birmingham '.. in the 55th Year of the reign of King George III...!" i.e. 1815 for 7 years!
His Dad was listed as Charles Parker the elder and he was Charles Parker the younger. They were said to have been 'of Lint House, Hill Top near Bromsgrove, Worcestershire'. Lint House or 'The Lint House' was, it seems, a Pub as his father was elsewhere said to have been a Victualler!
Can't find The Lint House later, though 'Hilltop' is part of the one time parish (?) of Lickey and various later maps show Linhouse Lane, later named Linthurst Lane as it is in now, in Blackwell.
I hope this may help you in your search but equally does anyone possibly have any foundation for me to support the above 'information'?
I know Charles went on to be a Brass Founder and Military ornament Manufacturer of 42 Cherry Street, Birmingham. He also patentent a whistle and made brass buttons as Merry Parker & Merry! He died in 1852 at his home on Gravelly Hill, Erdington.
Colin
My ancestor was in partnership with a Mr Powell making gas chandeliers in the middle of the 19th C. A directory of 1864 has a half page ad. for them at the Parade Works, 8a Parade. 20 Years with Mr Winfield.
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My Great, Great grandfather JOSEPH TAYLOR BOTT was an Iron & Brass Bedstead maker in Birmingham in 1883 up to the 1900's. The works were "FALCON WORKS" Glover Street.
Any info on these works would be gladly received,
Thank you,
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Hi Soxie,
I couldn't find anything for you on google books; but I wondered if you had seen this:
http://www.oldcopper.org/Marks%20o_p.htm
Still looking for you - I'll be back if I find anything else.
Paulene :)
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Hi I am "chasing" an iron bedstead maker/manufacturer in the Kings Norton area. The lass Emily Kelley of KN was a bedstead japanner 1870's So am trying to find where she may have worked
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Hi Keith,
My convict Stephen Allwood from Birmingham was a Brass Founder in the 1820s. One of his brothers was a funeral director and others in the family were Coffin furniture makers and silver spoon polishers. They all lived in what is known as the "jewellery area" of Birmingham which I understand still exists today. Unfortunately a lot of the old buildings have been demolished to make way for the every increasing freeway system of roads in this congested area.
Andcarred
Brisbane Qld
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- duplixated message... regrets! ;-)
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Hi
... its actually called "The Jewelry Quarter". Its the area to the north west of of St Pauls Square, just north of the City Centre, see http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&q=Great+Charles+Street+Queensway,+Birmingham,+West+Midlands+B3,+United+Kingdom&sll=53.800651,-4.064941&sspn=15.320488,29.970703&ie=UTF8&cd=1&geocode=FSjTIAMdIfbi_w&split=0&ll=52.486197,-1.90749&spn=0.003848,0.007317&t=k&z=17&lci=org.wikipedia.en
My Gt Grandfather and his history in Brass foundry in the area are detailed below but his daughter Maray Hannah PARKER took a part in the business between his death and her marriage to Dr Charles Yarwood. Her son Charles Parker Yarwood ran the business in due course tho his sons went to other lands and only one, Frank Noel Yarwood, returned to UK - his daughters live today (2009) in USA (2) and in UK (1)
Colin
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Hello all:
I have a card regarding a great uncle, James Rush who was a Brass Founder, having learned the trade from his father, James Rush, in London - I haven't found their foundry yet but it may have been in Whitechapel. James (Jr.)
About 1905 James Rush was working in Sheffield at Benton Brothers, Marsh Street, Paul's Square, Sheffield.
Then, about 1910, he moved his family to 311 George Road, Erdington, Birmingham. His card reads "GOLD AND SILVER CASTER to the Trade. All Kinds of Fine and False Cored Figure Work A Specialty; 57, Northampton Street, Birmingham.
During WW2 he lost a leg in France which probably led to the loss of his foundry in Birmingham.
Does anyone know of a foundry or Brass Business in Birmingham by this name? Or know where I can go to look for this?
Thanks much.
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Hi
George Road, Erdington I don't know but George Road, Edgbaston was a residential area on the Calthorpe Estate, easy access to The city centre/jewelry quarter but unlikely to be home for the foundry!
On the other hand Northampton Street is in the Jewelry Quarter and would have been at the heart of foundry work for small and precious metals.
Did you check 1911 census for the family?
Look for a street Directory of Birmingham with Northampton street like http://www.thelocalweb.net/loc/22/loc22_202.htm which illustrates nicely the type of work your family were involved in.
Good Hunting!
Colin
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Thanks Colin:
Yes, the Rush family (James Rush my great uncle) lived on 311 George Road in Erdington and his 'foundry' was downtown Birmingham.
Is there a directory of the places that worked metals in the Jewelry Quarter/Center during the 1925 timeframe?
Evidently James made a lot of Brasses before he lost the business about 1925 - he died in 1942 - some went to his children (most lost or sold now) and some even were buried in the back yard of his daughter Florrie when she sent her alcoholic father to Hull to live with another son James.
No, I don't have that address where the brasses were buried - I would love to know!
Thanks for the link to the Directory in Birmingham - unfortunately those seem to be too recent for mine.
Margie
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I can tell you James Rush lived at this address until 1930,he is also on the absent voters list of 1918 as Pte.15517 RWRegt.
If you have Florence's marriage I can search the electoral rolls for B'ham & tell you where she was living.
Then you can go in the dead of night & dig up the garden. ;D
jim
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Can't find James' business in Bennett's Trade directory 1914.
Florence is living at 91 Gravelly Hill in 1935.
jim
Edit:living with Florence in 1935 is James Edwin,in 1950 he is living at 52 South Rd. Stockland Green in 1950 with Ada M Rush.
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Wonderful!!! Am I ever so glad I stumbled onto this site!
Thanks so much Jim :-* This is much more than I have been able to learn even from my cousin who lives in the area! ::)
Yes, according to family stories, James Edwin Rush and his sister Florrie were 'thrown out' of the house - their mother, Catherine, died in 1925 and their father 'took up' with someone they called 'Poshy' - sorry, this is coming at you from a Californian who knows nothing about your slang. Her last name may have been Young (married name?)
James and Florrie found a room to rent in a house in Gravelly Hill - they were both teenagers and James was still in school - nice lady who became their step mother - nice father to go along with her. This James Edwin Rush (now we are on the 3rd James in line) moved to Hull during the war - he worked for the Electric Co I believe. Then they moved back to Erdington or Birmingham. He married Ada.
Florrie married Arthur Watson about 1938 in Birmingham. He was a Plumber and worked at Bovington U.S. Air Force Base. They had twins and one died.
If I could get to Birmingham from California in the dead of night I WOULD go and dig up that garden. ;D
As you can see I was able to glean 'bits and pieces' but not enough to put the puzzle together.
Thanks ever so much.
Margie - (*)
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http://www.oldcopper.org/Marks%20w-z.htm
The link above is for a site which shows the brassfounders marks from area. I found my gt gt grandfathers there an elephant head his name was Thomas Sanders and he was a brassfounder from before 1850 by 1881 he had his own brassfounding business in Ladywood which many of his sons worked on the 1881 census it has him employing 16 men 37 boys and 10 girlsso the business must of been good it certainly seemed profitable as he had a very comfortable life with servants and left a small fortune in his will. The business was still going in 1946 but then ceased to trade.
it is something i keep meaning to look into but never seem to get round to it maybe this will encourage me.
Louise :D
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Brassfounding was a popular trade in B'ham as this is where modern brass was invented back in the 1820's.
jim
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Benton Bros. Brassfounders came to Sheffield c.1855 headed by Thomas Benton (1816-1865). They had their foundry at Rodley Lane, St Mary's Road, Sheffield. Their Birmingham addresses had been 1840 - Bath Row, 1841 - Great Colmore St, 1848 - Clement Street, 1851 - Camden Street. To my knowledge there has never been a Marsh Street, or Paul's Square in Sheffield. Some error there. Benton Bros. operated in Sheffield 1855 to 1 January 1982 when it ceased to trade. Roger Benton
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Thanks Roger -
All I can 'prove' about the addresses are the business cards that were sent to me - one for Sheffield, the other for Birmingham.
Margie
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Possibly you mixed ' the two up? Those two addresses you quoted are nowhere in Sheffield but they could be in Birmingham I guess. Benton Brothers Brassfounders were ALWAYS at the same address, Rodley Lane in Sheffield, and never moved from there at all! Roger Benton
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Helo Martinwootton. I really hope you are related to Edward Wootton, born 1845 Northfield , Worcestershire, because he was a great-great uncle of mine and I havelots of info on the family to share. But I am short on Edward's descendents. PLEASE get in touch!Regards, theli
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If you are interested in the brassworks of the Jewellery Quarter - see these links:
http://www.jewelleryquarter.net/about/sub-page/newman-coffin-furniture-works/
http://www.birminghamconservationtrust.org/current/newman-brothers/
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Hi Every one,
I have been looking at may ancestors and found one of the women worked as a hinge planer. Which folk have said is some one who smooths off the metal after it comes form the casting. Is this what the job was?
Thanks for your help.
All the best
Roebuck223