The Rushworths of Liverpool: a Family Music Business
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The Rushworths of Liverpool: A Family Music Business. Commerce, Culture and the City Thesis submitted in accordance with the requirements of the University of Liverpool for the degree of Doctor in Philosophy by Nicholas David Wong March 2016 1 Contents Abstract 3 Acknowledgments 4 Introduction 6 Literature Review 21 Chapter One: The Rushworth Family Business Overview, 1800-1896 44 Chapter Two: Liverpool’s Commercial, Cultural and Musical 78 Development, 1800-1900 Chapter Three: Development, Growth and Expansion, 1896-1911 104 Chapter Four: Transition, adaptation and adjustment – the development of 128 the Rushworth business, departments and services Chapter Five: William Rushworth – entrepreneurship, philanthropy and 155 cultural contribution Chapter Six: The Development of the Business under James Rushworth: 208 The Fourth Generation Chapter Seven: The Swinging Sixties, Merseybeat, the Beatles and the 249 Commercialisation of the Liverpool Sound Chapter Eight: Decline, Demise and Closure – The Slow End of the 265 Rushworth Enterprise Conclusion 314 Appendix I 320 Appendix II 321 Appendix III 324 Bibliography 327 2 The Rushworths of Liverpool: A Family Music Business Commerce, Culture and the City Nicholas Wong Abstract The Rushworth family have been largely overlooked in the seminal texts covering Liverpool’s socio-economic and cultural history. This thesis will redress this gap in the historiography of the city and account for the contributions made by the family to Liverpool’s cultural economy and civic society for a period of over 150 years. The Rushworth family music business was founded by a cabinet maker from Yorkshire, William Rushworth, and operated in Liverpool between c.1840-2002, a period spanning five generations. The company developed two separate interests: the original pipe organ building business, and a musical instrument retail enterprise which grew out of the organ building side during the second generation under the guidance of Edwin Rushworth. Throughout the generations the company passed from father to son and the third and fourth generations saw the organ works and retail arms united under a single owner, whilst the fifth saw them divided between two brothers and into two largely separate companies. The thesis will examine the growth, development and diversification of the company across the five generations, and analyse the performance of the business in relation to local economic conditions. In doing so it builds on existing research which considers the workings of commerce and culture, family business succession, and the impact of technological advancement on music consumption, production and practice. This framework provides the context in which we can consider the performance, growth and profitability of the business, and how these provided the foundation for, and facilitated, the cultural contribution of the family across Merseyside and the UK. This thesis provides a unique perspective on the functioning, structure and operations of a musical instrument manufacture and retail enterprise, and addresses four general questions: what factors contributed to the success and longevity of the Rushworth Company? How was the Rushworth family able to maximise the profitability of the firm in relation to the growth and decline of the consumer and cultural economy? How did the family drive music consumption and create the commercial and cultural environment in which the company flourished? How did the city, the business and family work in tandem to service and facilitate the local musical community? In addressing these questions the thesis provides a unique insight into the commercial strategies of a family firm specialising in cultural products, and the regional factors which contributed to the company’s shifting fortunes, thereby contributing to existing scholarship on the relationship between commerce and culture in Liverpool. The thesis will establish how the regional economy impacted upon the profitability of the business and influenced in both positive and negative ways the family’s ability to drive music consumption and encourage musical participation, and thus develop the local cultural economy and the commercial success of their business. By examining these developments, the thesis will construct a timeline of development showing how the region’s economic prosperity and subsequent downturn mirrored the growth and ultimate demise of the business, thus illustrating the reciprocal and symbiotic relationship between commerce and culture in Liverpool. 3 Acknowledgements In writing this thesis I have depended on the generous support, guidance and expertise of many people and organisations. I am grateful to several record offices and archivists across the UK that provided assistance in the accumulation, interpretation and examination of a multitude of primary resources. These include: Roger Hull at Liverpool Record Office; Colin Smith at the Special Collections and Archive, University of Liverpool; Robert Simonson at Surrey History Centre; and Julie Mahoney at Huddersfield Library of Local Studies. I am also appreciative of the input of the staff and archivists at numerous local and national organisations, some of whom have shown great patience with my persistent requests for information and resources. These include: Trish Hayes at the BBC Written Archives Centre; Eve Watson from the Royal Society of Arts; Debbie Burt at the Office of National Statistics; Ken Martin at Liverpool Charities and Voluntary Services; Pauline Rushton at National Museums Liverpool; Robin Makin from E. Rex Makin Solicitors; and Alan Jones from the Rodewald Concert Society. Particular thanks go to all those who have contributed interviews and personal recollections of the Rushworth family and the business, many of whom spent many hours of personal time, and in some cases, their own expense in coming to visit me on numerous occasions at the University. Others invited me to their homes or took the time to meet at neutral venues such as cafes or restaurants. It was not possible to include excerpts from all interviews in the final thesis but all contributions were equally valuable in terms of providing details, information and a general feel for how the company was managed, the individuals and personalities, the experience as an employee or customer and the general atmosphere within the business and the firms approach to cultural contribution. I am also grateful to those who contributed resources, artefacts, documents, materials and expertise in support of the research. These include: Jane Swindells; Jean Jones; Maureen and Brian Slater; Charlie Southern; Bill Duncan; Ken Springer; Diana Mothershaw; Pamela Parkinson; Arthur Spencer-Boland; John Rogers; Jason Dolman; Peter Anyon; Alan Rotherham; Geoff Cowie; Kenneth Jones; Ken Stabb; John Perry; Professor Michael Talbot; Philip Taylor; Frank Doran; Maurice Eglinton; Sandra Parr; Doreen 4 Grey; Kieran Maguire; Paul Tindall; Bill Taylor; Dian Rowley; Gerry Harrison; Steve Philip; John Hatfield; Michael Beiert and Andrew McHale. The research owes much to the kindness of the Rushworth Family who have been extremely supportive in all aspects of the research. I am grateful to Betty Rushworth-Smith, Guy Rushworth, Tricia and Alan Wilson, Brian Crawford, Andrew Rushworth, Catherine Sandow, Alastair and Janice Rushworth, David and Gill Rushworth, Richard Rushworth, and Jonathan and Rosie Rushworth, for all your valuable contributions. I enjoyed and am grateful for my regular lunches with David Rushworth which provided me with information and encouragement. I am particularly grateful to Jonathan Rushworth whose initial research into the history of the Rushworth family business led to the establishment of the PhD study and my appointment. Jonathan's initiative in setting the research topic and funding the PhD through the University of Liverpool made the project possible. I am grateful for his constant interest, support, encouragement and guidance throughout the PhD process. My supervisors, Dr Giles Hooper, Professor Sara Cohen and Professor Andrew Popp, have been a constant source of motivation, inspiration and guidance and I thank them for spending many hours in meetings, reading drafts and offering their expertise throughout the research process, especially during the write-up. I am grateful to the University of Liverpool (and Jonathan Rushworth) for selecting me to conduct the PhD research and to the Music Department for their support, office space and facilities and, in particular, the support of the Departmental Head, Professor Michael Spitzer. Finally, I would like to thank my family for their support and reassurance throughout the difficult process of researching and writing this thesis. A special thanks goes to my parents, Nicholas and Dawn and my sister, Heather, who have kept me focussed and been a constant source of encouragement. My children, Nicholas and Sophia, have provided a welcome and wonderful distraction from the pressures of writing. My biggest thanks go my wife, Hayley, for being a calming influence and providing unwavering support and encouragement throughout the researching and writing of this thesis – I couldn’t have done it without you! 5 Introduction Overview William Rushworth, a cabinet-maker from Huddersfield, began a journey during the early nineteenth century that would take him to Liverpool via Manchester. By the time of his arrival in Liverpool William had re-skilled and developed his craft into that of the trade of pipe organ building. By the mid-1840s William