DEALERS Compiled by Robin Hildyard FSA “CHINA-MEN. This business is altogether shopkeeping, and some of them carry on a very considerable trade, joining white flint glass, fine earthenware and stoneware, as well as teas, with their china ware. They usually take with an apprentice from 20 to 50£, give a journeyman 20 to 30£ a year and his board, and employ a stock of 500£ and often more” A General Description of all Trades digested in alphabetical order Printed by T.Walker at the Crown & Mitre, opposite Fetter Lane, Fleet Street 1747. --------------------------------------------------------------- “The Earthen-Ware Shop is a Dependant on the Pot-House. They buy their Goods from several Houses in England, from Holland, and at the Sales of the East-India Company. They generally deal in Tea, Coffee and Chocolate” R.Campbell, The London Tradesman, London 1747 ----------------------------------------------- This list, which can never be complete, includes retailers with their shops and warehouses, factory shops, auctioneers, suppliers of tools and materials to the pottery trade, independent enamellers, gilders and printers together with their suppliers, japanners, glass cutters, glass engravers, glass enamellers, china menders, toymen, jewellers, confectioners, wine merchants and other trades likely to be involved in selling, embellishing or hiring china, earthenware or glass. ----------------------------------------------------------- ANONYMOUS: 1735, at the Glass Sellers Arms, next door to the Globe Tavern in Fleet Street, to be sold very cheap, “very cheap China Ware” and glass etc. (Daily Journal 30 Aug. 1735, Buckley notes Ceramics Dept. library 9B10). This is Benjamin Payne (qv), and see also under Mr.Ward at this address in 1736. ANONYMOUS 1747: “Facing the Door of the Old London Spaw, in the Spau Fields during the Welch Fair. All Sorts of Welch Ware, Derby and Staffordshire fine Stone Ware, amongst which are great Variety of curious Tea-Pots of all sizes, that far excel either Silver or China, both for Drawing or Pouring, and not inferior in make or beauty, Likewise all sorts of all Drinking- Glasses, as cheap as before the Act of Parliament……..” (Daily Advertiser 24 August 1747, W.Elliot scrapbooks Vol.VI) ANONYMOUS 1747, “At a China-shop next Door to the York Coffee-House, near Great Turnstile, Lincoln Inn Fields, CHINA, Delft, and Stone Dishes and Plates, Cups and Saucers, at prime cost” (Valpy 1983) 1 ANONYMOUS: 1748, “To be sold very cheap…. The goods of shop in Berry Street, St.James’s, consisting of China Dishes and Plates, Bowls and Basons, Sauceboats, Sugar-Dishes, Tea and Chocolate Cups and saucers, Coffee-Cups with handles, etc. Stone Dishes and Plates, Tureens Basons, Mugs etc. Limehouse Ware Tea-Pots Sauceboats, and Potting-Pots of various Sizes; likewise Flint-Glasses, a Parcel of fine Dutch Tiles, and a very large Quantity of tale (ie tall) Glass Tumblers, Gill and Half-Pint Wine and Water Glasses, at two Shillings per dozen” (LM 145) ANONYMOUS: 30th August 1753 “To be sold under prime cost. The stock of a person leaving off business next door to the Blue Ball & Stag, in King Street, Bloomsbury, consisting of all sorts of Glass, Earthenware, Haberdashery & Grocery. Staffordshire White Ware at 1/6 per dozen ditto Black Ware at 2/- per doz. Red China at 5/- per doz. Tortoiseshell at 6/- per doz. Blue (almost certainly “Littler’s Blue”) at 12/- per doz. (Daily Advertiser, LM 88) ANONYMOUS: 1756, Chinaman’s stock in trade at Bristol to be sold, including “White Delft, Broseley, Staffordshire & Nottingham Stone Ware” (LM 228). This may be the only reference to Broseley saltglaze? Or it might be Jackfield-type ware? ANONYMOUS: 1757, sale by auction of stock in trade of the Stone-Warehouse by Bedford- Court in Red-Lion Square, consisting of China, fine Delft Ware, and fine Mosaick Stone-Ware, Household Goods etc. (Valpy 1985). Perhaps teapots with all-over marbled or mosaic enamelling, or more likely the spikey moulded borders of plates, rather Chinese in style: cf 1755 bill from Thomas Whieldon to Duke of Bedford “1 Doz small mosaick plates…£0-3-0” – quite cheap and presumably plain apart from their borders. Simeon Shaw’s reference to “Mosaic” amongst the moulded patterns for services tends to confirm this (quoted Mountford p.31). Compare two plates from Enoch Wood Coll. in V&A said to have been modelled by Aaron Wood. See also a mosaic border excavated at the Whieldon site at Fenton Vivian (Halfpenny 1997 p.243, pl.8). ANONYMOUS: 1759, Edinburgh, “At the print shop a little above the Royal Exchange Edinburgh....Delft and Stone Ware” (LM 80) ANONYMOUS: 1760, at The Golden Anchor, on the “Terras” in St.James’s Street, advertising Chelsea porcelain (Toppin 1935) See under John Fleetwood, and Jenkin Jones. ANONYMOUS 1764: at the Wheat-Sheaf in Stall-Street, Bath, sale of a “Large, Curious and Capital Collection of China…..” including Chelsea porcelain. Sale apparently to pay creditors (Richards 1999 p.63) ANONYMOUS 1764: ...there is a Person just arrived from Abroad, with a large and curious Parcel of Foreign Ornamental and Useful China. Consisting of many Thousand Pieces, which will be sold....during the Time of the Fair, at a Shop three doors from the Bell in Temple Street, leading to Temple Cross. There is a great Variety of Enamel’d and Pencil Mugs, Quarts, Pints and Half-pints... (Felix Farley’s Bristol Journal 21 Jan.1764, LM 414) 2 ANONYMOUS: 1764, “Now selling extreamly Cheap, at the Glass and China Shop, in Wood- street, near the Church, in Spital-Fields, a Sortment of painted Glass Jars, Beakers and Bottles, for Chimney-Pieces and Flowers; some China Jars and Beakers, and some Figures, very cheap; some Lambs, Dogs and Squirrels at 1s. each……China Dishes……….white Stone Plates at 2s. 6d. per dozen; white Stone Dishes, long and round, cheap; some exceeding large blue and white Liverpool Dishes, white Gally-Tiles for Chimneys, Apothecaries Vials and Gally-Pots, white and blue; glass….China mended in the neatest manner” (Valpy 1985) This possibly the shop, 23 Wood Street, Spitalfields, occupied by Robert Tideswell in 1780. The “painted Glass Jars, Beakers and Bottles for Chimney-Pieces” may well be the small opaque white enamel-decorated glass garnitures made around this period: examples in the V&A. ANONYMOUS 1766: auction in Bristol of cargoes seized from “several Indiamen”, comprising “several Thousand Pieces of curious Useful and Ornamental FOREIGN CHINA….Bowls, Basons, Plates, Dishes, Mugs, Cups ands Saucers, Setts etc.” (Richards 1999 p.64) ANONYMOUS: 1766, London, “A large Assortment of Stone-Dishes, Tureens, Stone-Plates etc. just come from Staffordshire, now selling at a Warehouse opposite Surgeons-Hall in the Old Baily……Stone Plates at 2s 6d per Dozen” (Valpy 1987) See also 1776 advertisement below. ANONYMOUS 1767: (apparently the same address as following entry, here described as “at Mrs Morgan’s”, and also dated in January at the time of St.Paul’s Fair) “...rare old Japan; a magnificent Set of three fine large Jars and two Bekers, japan’d on the china, the like never seen before....India Dressing-Boxes..carpets, fans etc.etc. Foreign China Breakfast Cups and saucers at 6/- per set, Tea size ditto at 4/- per set; long Blue and White Dishes at 3/6 each.........(Felix Farley’s Bristol Journal, LM 414) ANONYMOUS 1767: Fresh Opened since our last Advertisements....in a large Room, next the Copper Warehouse in Small Street...curious Figures for Centre-pieces viz. Justice, Britannia etc.etc. Large Japan Jars and Beakers... fine Mazareen blue and Gold…and list of Nankeen wares with prices (Felix Farley’s Bristol Journal, LM 414). Bristol porcelain figures? ANONYMOUS: 1773,”To be sold by Auction, In Great George-street, Westminster, three doors from King-street, Tomorrow, A Large Collection of China Flower-Pots and Branches enamelled, of the best Porcelain China…..” (Valpy 1985) ANONYMOUS: “Staffordshire Warehouse, in Cock-Lane, Snow-Hill, a great variety of Cream Colour and white Stone Ware; the stock consists of Dishes in Setts from ten Inches to 21, with tureens, Plates, Butter-Boats, etc. Also an Assortment of Glass on the same Terms” (Valpy. Date of advert not recorded by RH) ANONYMOUS: 1776, “Warehouse opposite Surgeon’s-Hall in the Old Bailey”,“A large Assortment of Stone-Dishes, Tureens, Stone-Plates etc. just come from Staffordshire, now selling at (the address).......... To be taken away by the Buyer, Stone Plates at 2/6 per Dozen” (Valpy). See also Anonymous 1766 advertisement giving same address. ANONYMOUS: 1776 “To be sold by Auction, at King’s Coffee-House in the High Street, Hull on Tuesday the 5th of Novemebr, 1776, at Three O’Clock in the Afternoon. About 70 TONS OF POTTER’S CLAY, taken out of the Pitts of Mr.Wm.Hancock, at Tingmouth, in Devonshire. The Clay may be viewed any Time before the Sale at the Staith of Wm.Andrew in Hull – for further 3 Particulars inquire at the Office of Mr.Codd, in Hull aforesaid”. (York Courant, Oct.22nd 1776, reproduced NCS Newsletter No.39, 1984) ANONYMOUS: 1778, a “Bristol shop” advertised that they were supplied every month with a new assortment from the East India Company’s (and other) warehouses in London (Weatherill 1986) ANONYMOUS: 1778, stock of persons leaving off trade to be auctioned by Thomas Norton at corner of King Street, Mint Square, Southwark, including “ABOUT 200 Lots of blue and imaged Staffordshire and Deptford Wares of different Sorts”. (Valpy 1985). This address would appear to be the auctioneer’s home or premises, not the dealer’s shop. ANONYMOUS: 1781, “Enamellers on China or Earthenware, Wanted….No.22 Greek Street, Soho” (Valpy). The Wedgwood showroom, styled Portland House, was at No.12 Greek Street.