Author Topic: Project Info: Earthenware Dealers and hawkers of pots  (Read 25881 times)

Offline Boongie Pam

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Project Info: Earthenware Dealers and hawkers of pots
« on: Sunday 08 January 06 20:04 GMT (UK) »
I've started this new thread from the inspiration of another...

http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php/topic,31004.0.html

My own fascination in "potters" and earthenware dealers comes from my Anderson, Robinson, & Lowther ancestors from Cumberland and Northumberland.

There seems to be different kinds of pot or earthenware hawkers/dealers. 

Those that had shop oulets and those that travelled a route plying a trade village to village.

In my family I have a <A HREF="http://fallon.rootschat.net/163.html">Henry Lowther</A> who seemed to be a man of means, owning properties in Wigton and Ulverston.  He is listed in Pigots so I presume he had an outlet in Wigton.    Another chap <A HREF="http://fallon.rootschat.net/161.html">Thomas Robinson</A> who owned a warehouse outside Carlisle at Brunstock - possibly the trade side of the dealing?

Other members of the family always seem to be on the move.  Children born in many different parishes.  Living in tents and caravans on the census.

One thing I've found is that whenever I find a "potter" or "Earthenware dealer" in Cumberland I can normally trace a relationship to my Lowthers.

This made me think was there a dynastic control over the trade?  Anyway that's the basis for why I'm interested.

Way back when it is my belief that my ancestors came from gypsy ancestry.  I have been in touch with one person with the same name who until a few decades ago still ploughed a trade in caravans in the north of England.  He believes the Lowthers are connected to Lee, Herron and Lovell families of southern England and Wales.

So I am going to attempt to gather as much info on the hawkers and dealers of pots, earthenware and glass.

This is where I need your help!

Do you have any Hawkers or dealers in your tree?

If you do and you want to include data please post here. 

The Earthenware Dealers seem easy to find as they appear in Directories but the Hawkers and travelling hawkers/dealers are harder to pin down.

Have you found them from census, BMD certs, MI, directories etc?

What other occupations of this vein have you found on census etc? 
I've seen Potter (Cumberland), Hawker of Pots, Earthenware Dealer, Dealer of China, Hawker of small wares, Glass Merchant, China Merchant, Merchant of stoneware, Hawker of Crockery, Pedlar of China.

I want to map all the names - see how big a dynasty there was - if there was one!

December 18th 1841 CP : At Longtown on the 7th inst, Mr Thomas Anderson, potter, at the age of 79 years. The deceased was well known in the adjoining counties in his profession.   Transcript from http://mysite.wanadoo-members.co.uk/longtown19/ Excellent Site!

Nice photo...
http://www.thepotteries.org/descriptive_account/hanley/37a.htm

UK Census info. Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk
~~~~~~~~~~~

Dumfrieshire: Fallen, Fallon, Carruthers, Scott, Farish, Aitchison, Green, Ryecroft, Thomson, Stewart
Midlothian: Linn/d, Aitken, Martin
North Wales: Robins(on), Hughes, Parry, Jones
Cumberland: Lowther, Young, Steward, Miller
Somerset: Palmer, Cork, Greedy, Clothier

Online intermittently!

Offline davidpinkney

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Re: Project Info: Earthenware Dealers and hawkers of pots
« Reply #1 on: Sunday 08 January 06 20:51 GMT (UK) »
I have one in my sister in laws side of the tree. She comes from a long line of gypsey/travelling families.

Samuel Worrall as indicated on his daughters birth certificate 21/7/1884 as dealer of earthenware living in Marsh Lane, Shrawadine, Shropshire.

Samuel was born 20/4/1860 in Birmingham.

In later information i have him as a basket maker.

Any other info you want noted?

David.
Census information is Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk<br /><br /><br /><br />Swansea (Glamorgan) - Reynish/Johnson<br />Yorkshire/Durham - Pinkney/Richardson/Robinson/Gill<br />Wiltshire - Hibberd<br />London/Surrey - Clark<br />Lincolnshire/Nottinghamshire - Spencer, Broughton, Sprigg, Martin<br />Cornwall - Sowden<br />Herefordshire/Shropshire/Wales - Worrall<br />Essex - Saville<br />Dorset - Atkins, Govier<br />Devon - Wakely, Parsons

Offline sem73

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Re: Project Info: Earthenware Dealers and hawkers of pots
« Reply #2 on: Sunday 08 January 06 20:56 GMT (UK) »
Hi All

Interesting topic!!......I too have found rellies in the same job....few details at the mo...sorry not as detailed as alot of you have already found out 

What I have so far.........

Of my g g g grandfather's wife...in 1851..

Pheobe Morelee 47 Earthenware dealer as was her daughter Ann aged 16 living in Mold, Flintshire, North Wales.

Pheobe and a couple of daughters appear in later census as earthenware dealers or hawkers in and around the same town.

Nearly all the men appear as coal miners until 1870s when most moved to nearby Buckley and were in the brick industry........all the way along until my own father working in brick kilns in Buckley during the 1960's.........clay seemed to be the way to go in my family!!!  LOL

This thread has certainly made me think about their jobs and to find out more about the earthenware dealers / hawkers that were in my family

Sarah

 :D
Census information is Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk

Davies/Griffiths/Smith/Woodward/Goodwin/Morrlle/Moralee - Flintshire

Moralee (and variants) - Durham

Offline Boongie Pam

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Re: Project Info: Earthenware Dealers and hawkers of pots
« Reply #3 on: Sunday 08 January 06 20:58 GMT (UK) »
Thanks so much for your reply.

Some of my dealers became Besom makers and dealers.

I have no real ide what I'm going to do with teh info at teh moment  :-\

But at least a database of names coupled with locations and maybe a map so if I see anyway of expending it I may try to get more info out of you  ;D

For now that's great ta.

Sorry Sarah - posts clashed  ;D

Thanks fro your info as well  ;)  It does seem a trade the women continued with.  Teh ladies in my family seem to plough the money into property.

Morelee is a very interesting name.  Do you know it's origins?

Pam
 ;D
UK Census info. Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk
~~~~~~~~~~~

Dumfrieshire: Fallen, Fallon, Carruthers, Scott, Farish, Aitchison, Green, Ryecroft, Thomson, Stewart
Midlothian: Linn/d, Aitken, Martin
North Wales: Robins(on), Hughes, Parry, Jones
Cumberland: Lowther, Young, Steward, Miller
Somerset: Palmer, Cork, Greedy, Clothier

Online intermittently!


Offline donnachick

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Re: Project Info: Earthenware Dealers and hawkers of pots
« Reply #4 on: Tuesday 09 January 07 19:35 GMT (UK) »
hello just saw your post dont know if this would be of any interest to you my traveller family were thorpes one branch of the the thorpes eventually settled down in glandford brigg in lincolnshire and they were described as earthenware /pottery dealers they had a warehouse type place on the industrial side of glandford brigg
i could provide more info should you feel this is of interest to you

donna  ;D
thorpe middleditch bunton draper moore batterby batterbee andrews barton smith

Offline chafox

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Re: Project Info: Earthenware Dealers and hawkers of pots
« Reply #5 on: Sunday 04 February 07 09:03 GMT (UK) »
Dear Pam

I come from a dynasty of hawkers of pots in Warwickshire.
Like you I believe that their roots were gypsy, or at least traveller.

Their names were Kirby, Whitehouse and Bentley.
They were intimately connected to the Sharpe family of Ashby de la Zouch.
I suspect to the family that ran Sharpe's Pottery there. ( I haven't proved this)

It was through a marriage into the Sharpe family in 1830 that my ancestor Joseph Kirby entered the trade. His son married a Bentley woman and their son married a Whitehouse daughter.

This daughter, the matriarch of the later family, Sarah Whitehouse, was the daughter of an Elizabeth Whitehouse illegitimately by a John Bentley.

Elizabeth  had five or six other illegitimate children before marrying an Isaac Bentley in 1864 in Birmingham.

Wherever they pop up, in the censuses, (widely disparate places) the same surnames crop up again and again, intermarrying, which is what I'm told  gypsy families did.

This must be exactly what you are intewrested in, mustn't it? I think gypsies must have been the ideal people to hawk pottery around the country.

They would have been well used to long distance travelling, and known all of the best routes inside out.   

Whitehouse  -Pelsall: Norton canes
Kirby - Hillmorton, Warks; Ashby Leics
Lloyd - London, Surrey, Birmingham
White - Frowlesworth; Narborough, Leics
Deeming - Walsgrave, Corley Warks; Hoxton,London
Bray - Sapcote, Leics
Bentley,Whitehouse - the potteries
Paxton Adkins - Claydon and Cropredy, Oxon
Cooper - Coventry, Hoxton London
Opperman - Limehouse, Hannover
Duffey - Bristol, BVrighton, Marylebone
Davis - Landkey, Ilfracombe, Devon

Offline tomwdcraftr

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Re: Project Info: Earthenware Dealers and hawkers of pots
« Reply #6 on: Friday 31 December 10 04:13 GMT (UK) »
I'm a bit late to reply to this, but it sparked my interest. I've just recently come to the realization that my ancestors were potters, hawkers, pedlers, travellers, and such. There are some I don't have info on yet, and that would be my Anderson's. My GGG Grandmother was Isabel/Isabella Anderson born about 1771 in Northumberland. I believe her Father may have been Alexander Anderson, but haven't found her actual birth record yet. Isabel married Robert Todd (perhaps in Morpeth?). I've seen Robert as a potter and I believe pottery merchant or pedler in Northumberland. I've found who I think are 7 children attributed to them, and they did move around a lot within Northumberland. Their Son was Matthew Todd (b 1802) who married Helen/Ellen Drummond (b 1800),(my GG Grandparents), and they had 5 children in Scotland. On the 1841 census Matthew shows as a stoneware merchant. I believe Helen's Brother, Alexander Drummond (b 1803) is above them on the census and is a stoneware merchant also. On the 1851 census Matthew's occupation appears to say: travelling Marsh, or something like that, so seems to be a "traveller"? Alexander Drummond and I believe another Brother James (b 1812) are on the 1851 census as basket makers. I think Helen, Alexander, and James parents were an Alexander Drummond and Helen Diet, Dyet, Dyer, or Dewar (both possibly born early 1760s)? I've seen this Alexander as a basket maker, licensed hawker, Chapman pedler, in Scotland. They also moved around a lot. Matthew and Helen (Drummond) Todd immigrated to Ontario about 1855. In Ontario Matthew Todd was a horse trader and farrier.

Would be interested in possible ancestors/relatives of my Todds, Andersons and Drummonds. 

Thanks!!  Tom McMillan (Washougal, WA)

Offline burritopasta

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Re: Project Info: Earthenware Dealers and hawkers of pots
« Reply #7 on: Friday 04 March 11 18:17 GMT (UK) »
Hi. My g g g g grandfather was a hawker of earthenware. But the jobs seemed to change from time to time. Some people did research on that ancestor of mine and here is what they found during the 1800 census.

1871
New Yard melbourne Derbys
William James Head M 56 Hawker of Earthenware Huh??Derbys
Jane wife 52 Derby Derbyshire
Mary daughter 18 Lace Glove Stitcher Melbourne derbys
Joseph son 15 Farm Boy Melbourne
Jane daughter 10 melbourne
RG10 3552 78 10

1861
New Yard melbourne
William James head M 47 Coal Higgler
Jane wife 41
Sarah James daughter 12 Silk Winder
Hannahjames  daughter 12 12 Silk Winder
Mary Willm James daughter 8 scholar
Joseph Willm James son 5 scholar
Jane James daughter under 4 (or 1?) month
all b Melbourne
RG9 2489 60 13

1851
???anch Croft
Derby Rd Melbourne
William James Head M 38 labourer & potter Hartshorn Derbys
Jane James wife 32 Glove stitcher Melbourne derbys
William Willn step son 13 errand boy melbourne
Elizabeth james sdaughter 11 Nurse girl Derby Hills
Thomas W james son 9 derby Hills
Sarah James daughter 4 melbourne
Hnnah James dauhgter 2 melbourne
HO107 2140 319 3

That's the only one so far. They are the grand parents of my great grandfather to his mother's side.

Offline JaneyJ

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Re: Project Info: Earthenware Dealers and hawkers of pots
« Reply #8 on: Saturday 05 March 11 16:28 GMT (UK) »
Hi Pam,

Are you still looking for info, most of my lot where Earthenware Dealers etc, Young's, Cunningham, Varney (and variants), Wilson, Kelly, Hartley etc.
Loads of them, all on the move, northern England and Scotland.
Would you be interested, if yes, then I will gather the info together and write it out for you, could take some time  ::).

Yours Jane.
Edinburgh: Parkinson, Young, Richardson, Melrose, Arnott
Lanarkshire: Richardson, Muir, Buchanan, McMurtrie
Dumfieshire: Richardson, Muir.
Travelling Folk: Young, Cunningham, Wilson, Hartley, Knowells, Clark, Sewall, Swales.
Bristol: Jones, Cleak, Greening.
Exeter: Jones, Gregory, Greenslade, Pannel.