Keele Street Pottery Co

of Keele Street, Tunstall, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire. Telephone: Hanley 8092. Cables: "Keele Street Pottery, Tunstall, England"

?1913 or 1915 to 1958

1915 Keele Street Pottery was established by C.H. Bowers, Elijah Brookes, J. Robinson, and H. W. Pitt. (See below)

1916 They commenced mass production of once fired egg cups.

1929 Listed Exhibitor. Manufacturers of High-class Speciality Goods in Earthenware. Also Morning Sets, Jugs, Nursery Ware, Bulb Bowls, Mugs and many other utility lines. Specializing in Novelty Lines suitable for Filling purposes. (Stand No. G/23)

WWII. The pottery was closed under the Concentration of Industries Act and used by government to store shell cases.

1946 The business re-opened with 5 bottle ovens, producing once-fired white cups.

1947 The product range was extended to include ornamental ware, cottage ware and other fancy goods.

1947-1949 Acquisition of other companies:

• Paramount Pottery, Hanley (established 1946) – white cups and cottage ware
• Winterton Pottery, Longton (established 1927) – dinner and tea wares
• Thomas Cone, Alma Works, Longton (established 1892) – dinner and tea wares
• Collingwood Bone China, (established 1887)
• Conway Pottery, Fenton (established 1930) – white cups
• Piccadilly Pottery, Tunstall (established 1946) - wholesaler
• Lawton Pottery, Tunstall

1949 A wide range of goods were being produced, with the emphasis on export. White utility wares were in production at some factories in the group, whilst others concentrated on decorated ware for export. 49% of shares sold to South Western Industrial and Water Corporation.

1950 The parent company's name was changed to Staffordshire Potteries Limited.

1951 It became a quoted public company and began to lease buildings at Meir Airport.

Notes

• C. H. BOWERS: Began work with Booths of Tunstall where he later became Managing Director. Became Alderman of the city of Stoke-on-Trent 1910. His son, C. G. Bowers, followed the same career path with Booths, moving to Keele Street Pottery in 1946. C. G. Bowers died in 1961.

• ELIJAH BROOKES: Born in Brierley Hill, South Staffordshire in 1845 and began his working life as an engineer on the railway at Stockton and Darlington, later becoming an engineer and contractor in North Wales. In 1882, he went to Staffordshire as a manufacturer of Birmingham small wares (metal wares) and by 1892 became associated with the pottery trade, specialising in high-class jet ware. Then for several years he was at Longton as a general earthenware manufacturer. In 1915 Brookes and partners began the Keele Street Pottery.

• H.W. PITT: Technical Manager, developed once-fired ware.

See Also

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Sources of Information

• [1] The Potteries