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LONDON GLASS CUTTERS & ENGRAVERS c.1793

by Peter Lole (Article from Glass Circle News no. 78. 1999, p. 6)

Wheel engraving in 1680

This essay deals with the earliest of this group of Directories: THE UNIVERSAL BRITISH DIRECTORY of Trade, Commerce and Manufacture 1793-1798 (London, at the British Directory Office, Ave Maria-lane, and sold by Chamnate and Whitrus, Jewry-street, Aldgate). The position in LONDON is covered by Volumes I & II of the set, the first volumes to be issued. The introduction is signed in 1793, by Peter Barfoot and John Wilkes. Despite calling itself ‘British’, the directory covers only England and Wales. [The 1993 facsimile re-print is by The Book Factory, London N7 7AH, in ten volumes; ISBN 1 898593 00 01 When using these directories one has to enter a series of oft’ rehearsed caveats. The dates sometimes span a period, and in a national survey some entries will inevitably predate others. In some instances, as indeed with some modem Directories, fees were solicited for inclusion. Thus, no fee, no entry; but if pushed too far, no Directory, either! But the major problem is what precisely is the meaning of a description? Does an entry represent a one man band or a large workshop? What does a particular descriptive term mean, and is this term used consistently? Precise consistency seems unlikely, for the format varies somewhat geographically, suggesting that even in this respect different contributors were not consistently edited. In the context of the Directory under review, should we infer some difference is intended between the following terms used for the selling side of the Glass Trade:

• Glass shop
• Glass warehouse
• Glass dealer
• Glass merchant
• Glass seller
• Glassman

This last term, ‘Glassman’, is particularly uncertain. However, in the 1794 list given below 'Glassman' most frequently refers to a merchant whos prime occupation is selling glass tableware, particularly when associated with 'China-man'.

The most suprising feature was that clearly London in the early 1790s was still by far the most important domestic Glass centre in the country. It had more than twice as many cutters as the rest of England put together, and half the Glass Engravers listed in the whole of England. It had almost a third (19 out of a total of 66) of the Glasshouses and Glass Manufacturers listed, but forty years later the proportion of Excise Duty paid in London had dropped to only 2% of the total English sum of £680,000. (See: C.R.Hajdamach: British Glass 1800-1914 Pp 413-41) But this note is really directed only to Cutting and Engraving.

The correct treatment of those listed as GLASSMAN, often in association with pottery, is something of a puzzle. There are twelve of them in London, of whom at least four are well known names who probably decorated Glass on their own premises:-
William Bacchus George Yard, Upper Thames St. (Glass & China-man) Jonathon Collett 10, Cockspur-street, (Glass-man) Thomas Johnson 195, Holborn, (Potter and glassman) William Kendal l15, St. James’s street (Glass-man)

In the following list any already recorded by Robert Charleston as Engravers are marked * The designation in the Directory is given as the heading below.

GLASS ENGRAVERS, c.1793:

	Name	Address	Description
1	*George Armistead	New Street Sq.	Glass engraver and cutter
2	*James Byrne	c. 79 Little Britain	Glass engraver
3	*Thomas Frankland	59 Redcross St., Cripping. (Criplegate Ward)	Glass cutter and engraver

GLASS CUTTERS, c.1793:

	Name	Address	Description
1	Joseph Aldwinkle	72, Mark-lane
2	Charles Allison	Garlick-hill
3	Hector Barnes	30, Pudding-lane
4	Thomas Bennett	48, Galter Lane
5	Christopher Bird	47, Markwell St, Wood St.
6	John Birkley	17, Ratcliffe Highway
7	Samuel Brooks	110, Strand
8	Edward Brown	12, Billiter Sq.
9	William Burgess	4, Little Friday St.
10	Andrew Cobb	26, Goswell St.
11	Peter Cobb	Angel St., Martins le Grand
12	*Samuel Collings	Earl St., Seven Dials	Lapidiary and Gl. Cutr.
13	Jaco Cope	111, Upper Thames St.
14	Croucher and Martin	23, Queen St. Cheapside
15	John Davis	Hart St. Cruched Friars
16	Adam Denis	Clements Lane, Lombard St.
17	William Dutton	Drapers co. Princes St.
18	Thomas Fenton	13, Birchin Lane
19	Anthoy Genever	340, Oxford St.	Cut glass Manufactory
20	Henry Goddin	9, Sherborne Lane
21	Thomas Goodchild	252, Tooley St.
22	Joseph Goodchild	2, Tooley St.
23	William Gould	78, Gracechurch St.	Glass Cutter and Grinder
24	John Henry Grossman	Well St. Rosemary Lane.
25	Haedy & Son	287, Strand.	Cut-glass manufactory
26	Hancock & Shepherd	Cockspur St.	Cut-glass warehouse
27	Christopher Hannell	85, Dorset St, Salisbury Sq.
28	John Harris	Chamber St, Goodman St.
29	Harrison and Beardmore	125, Hounsditch.
30	*Hodson and Blakeway	71, Strand.	Cut-glass manufactory
31	Joseph Hunt	34 Noble St.
32	Peter Kolp	Yeates-co Butcher Row.
33	Charles Leader	17, Lothbury.
34	George Lee	48, St-Martins-le-grand.
35	Goerge Lovell	53 Red Lime St. Bloomsbury.
36	Edward Lowe	53, Crooked Lane.
37	John Mark	Finch Lane, Cornhill.
38	Neale & Bailey	8, St. Paul's Churchyard.	Staffordshire warehouseman & Cut-glass manufacturers
39	Henry Rider	231 High Holborn.	Cut-glass manufacturer
40	Henry Rider	23 Holborn.	Cut-glass manufacturer
41	James Simpson	20 Portman St.
42	John West	40, Old Bond Street.
43	Wilkinson	16 Goldsmiths' Row, Shoe Lane.
44	Young Lake & Son	54 Watling St.
45	George Young	St. Catherines.

Finally we come to the GLASS GRINDERS:-

This trade, which was strongly represented in London, was most unusual in the Provinces. There is only one provincial Glass Grinder recorded:
James Turner, Newcastle-on-Tyne (Glass-grinder and spectacle-maker)
but there are two other craftsmen whose trade seems to be related: John Kendred, Darlington, (Inventor of a machine for grinding optic-lenses which works by water).
Joseph Pearson, Birmingham, (Spectade-maker, glass-stainer, quicker, gilder and lapidary).

Whilst one's initial impression is that a Glass Grinder is involved in bevelling glass, such as mirror plates, it is clear from the above listings that it is more probably a lens making activity. There are many great Looking Glass Makers in the Directories, but one takes these to be essentially a branch of Cabinet Making. In my list London boasts of no less than seven Glass Grinders, plus William Gould listed above as a cutter.

W.G. Cave, Glass Cutters.

GLASS GRINDERS, c.1793:

	Name	Address	Description
1	Christopher Child	Playhouse Yd. Water Lane
2	Thomas English	Great Earl St, Seven Dials.
3	John Gray	29 Steward St. Spitalfields.
4	Nicholas Hancox	Castle St. Long Acre.
5	John Harden	Silver St. Clerkenwell.
6	Thomas Knight	Old Compton St. Soho
7	William Schofield	White Lion, Seven Dials.	Glass Grinder &.

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Another more general list of people involved in the glass industry was published the following year.

This list is given in alphabetical order of name rather than classified into subjects.

Only eleven of the above listed glass cutters appear in the list below (marked *)with another two with the same names but with a different address(in itallics).

There are 19 glass cutters in total in the list but some of these are clearly glaziers. It may be that, as suggested by Peter Lole, both publishing companies charged for their entries and many of those who had contributed to the earlier publication decided not to bother with Kelly.

The reference to a Staffordshire Warehouse probably meant that it stocked glass from the Dudley/Stourbridge area. This could indicate that a cheaper range of glass was on offer compared with the more fancy and expensive London-made glass.

SOURCE: Kent's Directory for the Year 1794. Cities of London and Westminster, & Borough of Southwark (115 entries)