H. W. Trickett Ltd.

H. W. Trickett Ltd. was a slipper manufacturer based in Rossendale, Lancashire.

As the prosperity of the textile industry in Lancashire began to decline in the mid-19th century, the town of Rossendale, which already had an established felt industry, turned towards the manufacture of footwear. Many of the old cotton mills were converted into premises for the manufacture of slippers and other footwear.

By 1900 there were 13 shoe and slipper factories in Rossendale. Production of slippers totaled 70,000 pairs per week and the slipper trade was described by the local press as “the industry that saved Rossendale”. H. W. Trickett Ltd. was established by Sir Henry Whittaker Trickett who converted the Gaghills cotton mill into one of the largest slipper factories in the area. Trickett became known as “the Slipper King” and by the time of his death in 1913 the company had 1,300 employees, growing to a workforce of 6,000 in the 1920s.

by Mark Matlach

Batger & Co. Ltd.

Batger & Co. Ltd. was a confectionery manufacturer in London from 1748 until 1970. Although the early history of the company is sketchy, an Elizabeth Batger made and sold sweetmeats from a shop in Stepney, east London, in 1748.

From the 1860s Batger's had a factory in Stepney and another in Clapham. The main factory in Stepney manufactured jams, bakery sundries, sweets, and toffee. The best-known products were Chinese figs, Silmos lollies, Jersey Caramels, and John Peel marmalade. The Clapham factory produced Harlequin Christmas Crackers and all forms of cake decorations for the bakery industry.

Batger & Co. was acquired by another confectionery manufacturer called Needlers Ltd. in 1970. The business is now part of Ashbury Confectionery Ltd.

Advertisement 1942

 

by Mark Matlach

C K & J LTD. (Chamberlain, King & Jones Ltd.

The C K & J LTD. handstamped overprint belongs to Chamberlain, King & Jones Ltd. , a company of cabinet makers, upholsterers and furniture retailers established in 1851 at Union Street in Birmingham.

Hulley's Birmingham Directory of 1876 lists the business as “carvers and gilders”; the firm was responsible for some of the carving at the Birmingham Law Courts. Kelly's Directory of 1895 describes the firm as “cabinet makers, carpet factors, upholsterers and decorators”.

The company traded until at least 1956.

by Mark Matlach

I. H. S. & Co. (J. Henry Schröder & Co.)

In 1818 Johann Heinrich Schröder founded a banking company in London. The company prospered, focusing on the finance of trade between America and Europe, particularly in the tobacco, cotton, and sugar markets. In the 1850s the firm began issuing bonds for overseas borrowers in the London market. The company's first bond was issued in 1853 to finance the Matanzas and Sabanilla Railway in Cuba. In 1869 Schröder's strong connections with Latin America lead to the firm being appointed as the British agent for the sale of Peruvian guano – an important fertilizer at the time. A specialist department was established to handle the guano business and for the next decade made a significant contribution to the company's profits. In 1870 Schröder introduced the Japanese government's first foreign loan to the London market. This raised £1 million to finance the construction of the country's first railway, between Tokyo and Yokohama.

By the beginning of the 20th century Schröders was one of the leading banking companies in London, issuing bonds for clients around the world. Johann Heinrich Schröder died in 1910 and his nephew Baron Bruno Schröder took control of the business until 1940. In the 1950s the company name was anglicized and changed to Schroders Ltd. In the 1960s and 1970s Schroders established a presence in each of the major financial markets of the world. Subsidiary and associated companies were established to undertake investment banking and asset management activities in a number of countries around the world.

Today, Schroders is a multinational asset management company headquartered in the City of London. The company employs over 3,000 people worldwide across 34 offices in 27 different countries around Europe, America, Asia and the Middle East.

by Mark Matlach

For sale or trade

Jeff Turnbull has commercial overprints that are available for sale--or for trade for perfin revenues of Great Britain or former Commonwealth countries. Here are some examples of the material that is available:

There are also commercial overprints on receipts and some handstamps. Jeff can provide scans.

If you are a collector interested in adding to your collection or a non-collector who is intrigued by this barely explored piece of history, you can contact Jeff at:

by Michael Behm

P. B. Cow & Co.

In 1850 a draper named Peter Brusey Cow purchased a rubber manufacturing company in Deptford in south east London. The business was renamed P. B. Cow & Co. and continued to make rubber products. In 1851 the company was the first to introduce waterproof tweed commercially and the firm won an award at the Great Exhibition at the Crystal Palace. P. B. Cow & Co. prospered and expanded, moving to larger premises in Streatham in 1857. The company manufactured a wide range of rubber goods from hot water bottles and sink plugs to diving suits.

In 1936 P. B. Cow & Co. created the Li-Lo inflatable air-bed. By the 1940s the company was one of the largest manufacturers of air-sea rescue equipment, which led to the formation of the Goldfish Club. During the Second World War, the company heard from a number of aircraft crew who had been rescued in P. B. Cow dinghies after ditching in water. The club was set up and backed financially by P. B. Cow so that members could exchange experiences. There were over 9,000 members by the end of the war and although the company's direct link to the club ended in 1947, the Goldfish Club is still going strong today.

In 1946 the business became a limited company and in 1971 P. B. Cow & Co. Ltd. was acquired by the Allied Polymer Group.

by Mark Matlach

Shipping Gazette and Lloyd's List

Lloyd's List is one of the world's oldest continuously running journals, having provided weekly shipping news in London as early as 1734.

The publication was begun by Edward Lloyd who was the proprieter of Lloyd's Coffee House in the City of London. The coffee house was a popular place for sailors, merchants, insurance underwriters and shipowners, and Lloyd catered to them with reliable shipping news. In 1734 Lloyd began the publication of The List; a reliable but terse source of information for his customers about shipping movements, however it was not until the mid-19th century that Lloyd's List came into its own.

A competitor to Lloyd's List was the Shipping and Mercantile Gazette, which was certainly active in the 1830s. Whilst Lloyd's List dealt very much with day-to-day shipping conditions, the Shipping Gazette was a newspaper in the normal understanding. Major happenings within the shipping industry were commented on including events about vessels and crews. The two publications were merged in 1884 resulting in the Shipping Gazette and Lloyd's List.

In 1914 ownership of the publication was transferred to the Corporation of Lloyds and it became the Lloyd's List. In 1973 it was transferred to a division of the company, Lloyds of London Press Ltd., which became LLP Ltd. in 1995. In 1998 LLP merged with IBC Group plc to form Informa plc, which continues to edit and publish Lloyd's List at Mortimer Street in London.

Lloyd's List is currently published daily--a recent issue in 2013 was numbered 60,850. The circulation is now international, both paper and web-based. As well as shipping news, Lloyd's List today covers marine insurance, offshore energy, logistics, global trade and law.

by Mark Matlach