Crosse and Blackwell, Fish Sauce Warehouse

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food and drink

Street View: 85
Address: 21 Soho Square

Thanks to the archaeological excavations that have taken place in areas where the gigantic undertaking of the Crossrail tunnel made it possible, that is, mainly where the bore holes for the stations were made, we now know at lot more about Crosse and Blackwell than we knew before. The archaeological dig at the Crossrail Tottenham Court area brought an unexpected hoard of pots, glasses and jars to light. They appear to have been used to infill a disused kiln or cistern and provide a rare glimpse into the range of packing material used for the great variety of wares produced by Crosse and Blackwell, and no, they did not just produce fish sauce, although that is how it all started. The photographs of the Crosse and Blackwell ‘hoard’, if I may use that term (bottom of this post), were taken at the exhibition on Crossrail at the Docklands Museum of London, and I am indebted to the MOLA book on the Crossrail excavation for some of the information below, especially that relating to the dig. But before we go into the various pots and glasses and the goods they contained, first something about the two gentleman, Edmund Crosse and Thomas Blackwell, who started the company in 1830 by taking over the firm of West and Wyatt at 11 King Street. Crosse and Blackwell had both been apprenticed in 1819 to William Wyatt, Salter, working as an ‘oilman’, and when he retired in 1830 (Richard West had died in 1824), the two friends took over the business and moved to 21 Soho Square in 1839, so not long before Tallis produced his booklet.

an early Crosse and Blackwell jar (Source: the-saleroom.com)

watercolour by Thomas Hosmer Shepherd, 1854, showing 20 and 21 Soho Square (© Trustees of the British Museum)

advertising plaque 1850 showing the corner of Soho Square and Sutton Street (Source: The Potteries Museum and Art Gallery, Stoke on Trent )

Edmund Crosse was the son of William Crosse of York Place, Chelsea, deceased, and five pounds of his apprentice fee of £210 was put up by Christ’s Hospital and the rest by “the friends of the said apprentice”. Thomas Blackwell ‘only’ had to pay £150 but no indication is given on his indenture who paid it, presumably his father Charles Blackwell of Harrow Weald Common. The 1841 census saw Thomas living in Harrow on the Hill with his wife Ann and two young children. Edmund was living above the business at 21 Soho Square. The 1851 census for Edmund, still at 21 Soho Square, tells us that it is a firm of 2 men, employing 50 men, 56 women and 14 boys. Ten years later, the census for Thomas, still at Harrow, gives us a sense of the expansion, as he is given as employing 102 men, 10 boys and 84 women. By 1861, Edmund had moved to Cambridge Terrace, Paddington, where he was to die a year later.⁽¹⁾ Thomas was not going anywhere and could be found at Harrow till his death in 1879.⁽²⁾ Various Crosses and Blackwells continued to run the family business until it became a limited company in 1892.

memorials on the graves of Edmund Crosse (on the left) and Thomas Blackwell (on the right) at All Saints Churchyard, Harrow Weald (Source: findagrave.com)

The advertisement Crosse and Blackwell had in several of Tallis’s booklets still puts the emphasis on their fish sauce, but over the years, they expanded the range of food preserves produced into all kinds of pickles, sauces, jams, potted meats, candied fruits, chutneys, soups and bottled fruit. For some products Crosse and Blackwell acted as distributors, such as for Lea & Perrin’s Worchester Sauce, but others were made by licence for other companies, such as Keiler’s marmalade, until Crosse and Blackwell bought that firm in 1919 (see here). Their business premises in Soho expanded accordingly. 20 Soho Square, which had been the premises of D’Almaine, pianoforte makers, was added to number 21 in 1858, and by then, they had also established stables in Dean Street, which were later removed to 111 Charing Cross Road. A building at the back of 20-22 Soho Square, in Sutton Place, was acquired which was to be connected to yet another building in Falconberg Place by an iron footbridge. In a second phase of expansion, 18 Soho Square was added to the complex and also buildings on the corner of Sutton Street (111-155 Charing Cross Road), which were redeveloped between 1877 and 1885. On the vacant plot that can be seen on Goad’s insurance map below, another warehouse, known as 157 Charing Cross Road, completely covering the block, was built in 1893. However, London became busier and busier and the smells from the various manufacturing processes cannot have been too pleasant, and by 1921, Crosse and Blackwell had moved their production line away from London to Branston in Staffordshire. And yes, that is why we now have Branston pickle. Most London buildings were sold off, except for some office space in Soho Square. This is a potted history of the expansion of the Crosse and Blackwell business, leaving out numerous details, such as buildings in other London locations. Much more detailed information can be read in chapter 2 of the Mola book.

Goad’s 1889 insurance map with the Cross and Blackwell properties outlined in red

The excavations at the Crossrail site found a surprising amount (13,000! items) of pottery and glass that could all be linked to Crosse and Blackwell (see here). The pots and jars had apparently been used as waste material to backfill a cistern, which had once provided clean water. The James Keiler marmelade jars found mention the prizes that company received in 1862, 1869 and 1872, so the infill can be dated to after 1872. The cistern had probably been closed off prior to the work at 151-155 Charing Cross Road in 1877. The Museum of London Docklands has exhibited some of the finds, and below you will find some photographs that I took of the display.

If you want more information on the excavation or on the history of Crosse and Blackwell, I suggest you get hold of a copy of the Mola book by N. Jeffries, L. Blackmore and D. Sorapure, Crosse and Blackwell 1830-1921: A British Food Manufacturer in London’s West End, 2016.

(1) England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 186279. Estate valued at under £140,000.
(2) England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1879. Estate valued at under £160,000.

Neighbours:

<– 20 Soho Square

20 (21a) Soho Square –>

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Gundry and Sons, shoemakers

Tags

footwear

Street View: 85
Address: 1 Soho Square

On the 4th of September 1839 the reverend Joseph Romilly wrote in his diary that he got up early and went shopping in a cab. He bought a tea-tray, arrowroot, books, pearl needlecases for his sisters Lucy and Margaret and purses and penknives for the maids. He also went to Gundry’s to fetch some shoes for Margaret.⁽¹⁾ Gundry’s, the shoemakers, were mentioned more often in literature, such as when Mr. Worthington shows off his little daughter to his visitors and tells her to lift her frock a little “to show your beautiful blue shoes, from Gundry’s”.⁽²⁾

Maker’s label in Queen Victoria’s wedding shoes (©Northampton Museum and Art Gallery)

Gundry and sons had their well-known shoemakers’ shop at 1 Soho Square from the 1830s to the 1880s. As can be seen in the elevation above this post and in the maker’s label above, they were shoemakers to Queen Victoria and the late King William IV’s widow, Adelaide, besides a few more miscellaneous Royals. The British Imperial Calendar for the year 1844 mentions Robert Gundry of Soho Square as one of the boot and shoemakers to Queen Adelaide, but that must have been a mistake, as Richard is the name mentioned in a partnership notice.⁽³⁾ On 11 November 1843, Richard, William and Jonathan Gundry dissolve their partnership; Richard and William are to continue the business at 1 Soho Square and Jonathan is to have the shop in the High Street, Hampstead. Richard dies in 1848 and from his will, we learn that William is his son who inherits everything belonging to the business in Soho Square. William had already been living at 1 Soho Square since at least 1833. When the two youngest of his children were registered at Dr. William’s Library, the family’s address was given as 17 Weston Place, but the other children were all born in Soho Square.⁽⁴⁾

Evening slipper (©Metropolitan Museum of Art)

The pictures I have found for the shoes the Gundrys produced almost all seem to be ladies’ slippers rather than solid workman’s boots, but that may be because nobody in his right mind thought of keeping the down at heel boots, while the flimsy Royal slippers were considered worthy enough to keep for posterity. You can see some of Queen Victoria’s foot wear in the illustrations of this blog, but there are more, for instance at the Powerhouse Museum (here) and in the Museum of London (here).

The 1841 census records tell us very little other than the names of the family members and their occupation, but in 1851, the record is more informative and tells us that Sarah Holt, who had already been living with the family in 1841, was the shopwoman and William’s sister-in-law. William died 11 December 1860 and probate was granted to sons William junior and Alfred Andrew.⁽⁵⁾

Silk brocade mule, possibly produced for the 1851 Great Exhibition (©Powerhouse Museum, Sydney, Australia)

While William senior had employed 44 men and 12 women in 1851, William junior was to employ 58 men, 2 boys and 12 women ten years later. Things were going well for the Gundrys. William’s brother Joseph can also be seen living at 1 Soho Square, “in business with brother” and quite by accident, on the day the census was taken, their sister Ann and her husband, Hugh Barclay, a printer, and their two young children are visiting and hence recorded on the same sheet. In 1871, William is no longer living in Soho Square, but in Hilldrop Road, Islington. Joseph and his wife are living at Adelaide Road, but the business was still conducted at Soho Square as is stated the year after the census when they announce the end of their partnership; William is to retire and Joseph to continue the business, still under the name of Gundry and Sons.⁽⁶⁾ William died in 1876 and probate was granted to his brother Horace, architect.⁽⁷⁾

Queen Victoria’s wedding shoes (©Northampton Museum and Art Gallery)

The family ties remained close and sister Alice can be seen visiting the other sister Ann Barclay in 1871, living with her brother Horace in 1881, with her aunt Sarah Holt in 1891 and with her widowed brother Joseph in 1911. In the 1891 census, Joseph is still described as bootmaker, but by 1901, he had retired. He died in 1912 and Alice in 1923.⁽⁸⁾ But what about the business at Soho Square? We saw William and Joseph still there in the 1861 census, and although they were no longer living there in 1871, the business was still theirs. In that year, the premises were occupied by Thomas Molyneux, 65 years old, and his wife. He is decribed as a shoemaker in the census and presumably the manager for the Gundrys. In 1881, the widowed Jane Molyneux is still there as a housekeeper, but in 1891, 1 Soho Square is occupied by one Louisa Emily Connolly, an associate of the Royal Academy of Music & tutor, and her two sisters, which does not sound as if the building was still functioning as a shoe and bootmakers’ business. It is very likely that the ground floor of the premises were used for separate commercial purposes, as we know that in the early 20th century, both Thomas Baker and Wilfrid Voynich had their bookshop at 1 Soho Square. Voynich became an admirable medieval scholar and managed to secure large numbers of books and manuscripts from Continental libraries, among which the so-called Voynich manuscript that has so far resisted decoding. More on Voynich here. The building in the picture below at 1 Soho Square replaced the one the Gundrys occupied in 1904-5 and was designed by E. Keynes Purchase.

(1) Romilly’s Cambridge Diary, 1832-42: Selected Passages from the Diary of the Rev. Joseph Romilly, Fellow of Trinity College and Registrary of the University of Cambridge, ed. J.P.T. Bury (1967), p. 176. Joseph Romilly was the nephew of Sir Samuel Romilly.
(2) Miss Aylmer; or, The Maid’s Husband, vol. 1 (1840), p. 305.
(3) The London Gazette, 12-03-1844.
(4) William, born 13-12-1829; Thomas, born 9-12-1830; Frederick, born 17-11-1833; Ann, born 3-12-1835. These four were all registered on 23-12-1836 “according to the custom in use among Protestant Dissenters, at the Registery of births kept at Dr. William’s Library, red-Cross Street, Cripplegate”. Alfred Andrew, born 4-6-1837 was registered later that year, but for the three youngest, Joseph, born 1839, Horace, born 1841, and Alice Jane, born 1847, I have not found a registry entry. Their mother was Ann Holt, the daughter of Andrew Holt of Warwick.
(5) England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1861. The estate was first valued at £12,000, but later re-valued at £14,000.
(6) The London Gazette, 17-12-1872.
(7) England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1876. The estate was first valued at £1,500, but later re-valued at £3,000. Horace designed, for instance, the offices of The Standard newspaper in St. Bride Street (see here).
(8) England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1912. Probate was granted to his son Ernest William, a chartered accountant. Value of the estate is a little over £5000. England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1923. Probate was granted to the same Ernest William and her estate was valued at £1444. Ernest William married Flora Kate Parsons and their son Inglis (1905-2000) became a famous musician (see here for his memories, esp. chapter 1).

John Browne, pianoforte manufacturer and dealer

Street View: 85
Address: 27 Soho Square

Piano making had been a cottage industry, the makers working from home, but like so many other crafts in the nineteenth century, it gradually developed into an industry with dedicated factories, such as Broadwood’s in Horseferry Road, Westminster. Besides the makers, another group of tradesmen developed, that of piano dealers. One such is the firm of John Browne. He no doubt started out small, but in 1836 he could announce that at his Pianoforte Repository at 27 Soho Square he had “a valuable stock of superior cottage, cabinet, square, and grand piano-fortes” and anyone wishing to obtain a genuine Broadwood, would “find at this Repository the most extensive assortment in Town”.⁽¹⁾ In another advertisement he said that the “Repository was established expressly for the sale of Broadwood’s Pianofortes”.⁽²⁾

Interior of Broadwood’s piano factory from G. Dodd, Days at the factory, 1843

John Browne, who was born in Yarmouth, can be found in London at least from 1836 onwards. His shop was located on the south side of Soho Square on the corner with Greek Street. We find him living above the shop in the 1841 census at the age of 38 with his wife Mary (age 35), his sons Henry (age 20), Richard (age 19), Charles (age 17) and his daughters Ellen (age 16) and Jane (age 15). Ten years later, in the 1851 census, most of the children have moved out, except Ellen (now called Helen). The ages given are slightly off course, either in the 1841 or the 1851 census, as John is now 56, Mary is 48 and Helen is 24. In the 1861 census they are 63, 62 and 35 years of age. In 1861 they also have two granddaughters living with them, Fanny and Helen Murray, 11 and 3 years old. They were the daughters of Jane who had married John Allan Murray, another pianoforte maker, on 20 January 1849. On the marriage certificate, they are both given as living in Soho Square and John’s father is also listed as a pianoforte maker, just as John Browne is.⁽³⁾

A cabinet pianoforte from G. Dodd, Days at the factory, 1843

John Browne died 6 July 1862 at the Soho Square address and probate was granted to his widow Mary Ann Philips Browne, one of the executrixes. The estate was valued as under £1500.⁽⁴⁾ A handwritten note in the margin says “Double Probate passed at the Principal Registry January 1864”. And indeed, we find another entry there. This time probate is granted to his daughter Helen Edlington Browne, “spinster, the daughter one other of the executrixes”. The effects were still under £1500.⁽⁵⁾ The Registrar’s General’s Directions say that when one of the executors is absent at the time of the granting of the probate, he or she can apply to be granted probate later, which is then called a double probate. Why double probate was granted in this case is not clear. Had Helen been abroad?

There had been a house at 27 Soho Square at least since 1684, but that had been rebuilt in c. 1794 by architect and builder Richard Pace for Robert Hervey Gage or Gedge, a linen draper. In the early 1800s, Thomas de Quincey, of opium fame, lived there for a time, but he did not like it much, “it wore an unhappy countenance of gloom and unsocial fretfulness, due in reality to the long neglect of painting, cleaning, and in some instance of repairing”. Fortunately, when he returned in 1821, the situation was less gloomy, and he described the house as “roomy and respectable” and no longer neglected.⁽⁶⁾ Who occupied 27 Soho Square after the death of John Browne is not clear; the family may have continued living there for a while, but the 1871 census shows the house occupied by George Wiliams, a draper and his wife Elizabeth. In the 1881 census 27 Soho Square is occupied by Thomas French, “manager of coffee tavern” and in the 1891 census the tavern is in the hands of Alfred Kerdel. In 1901, the coffee house has disappeared and eight Italian men live there, all employed in the catering business. Just to make sure the situation is clear, the official who filled in the census wrote ‘(Italian Club)’ underneath the address. Sometime in the 1890s, the lease had been acquired by the Societa Italiana Cuochi-Camerieri (Italian Hotel and Restaurant Employees’ Benefit Society, founded in 1886). They took over the ”furniture and fixtures of the coffee tavern”.⁽⁷⁾ The current building at 27-28 Soho Square, Nascreno House, was designed by the architects Douglas and J. D. Wood and erected in 1937-8.⁽⁸⁾ At the moment it is occupied by various businesses. For a picture of the current building see here.

(1) Advertisement in J. Alfred Novello, The Musical World, issue 54, 1837.
(2) Advertisement in J. Alfred Novello, The Musical World, issue 25, 1836.
(3) London Metropolitan Archives, Saint Anne, Soho: Dean Street, Westminster, Transcript of Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1849 Jan-1849 Dec, DL/t Item, 087/094. Jane’s name is given as Jane Eglington.
(4) England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1862, p. 47.
(5) England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1864, p. 54.
(6) The Collected Writings of Thomas de Quincey , ed. D. Masson, vol. 3, 1900, pp. 350 and 358.
(7) J.H. Cardwell et al., Two centuries of Soho, its institutions, firms, and amusements, , 1898, p. 104.
(8) Survey of London, ed. F.H.W. Sheppard, vol. 33, p. 106-107.

Neighbours:

<– 26 Soho Square

28 Soho Square –>