H. G. Richardson

Richardson Company History - A Chronology

Various members of the Richardson family of Stourbridge were involved in the glass industry for over 100 years. There was no company called Richardson and Co but the glassware business of the Richardsons underwent many changes of name during its life between 1829 and 1950.

1828 Benjamin Richardson joined the Wordsley Flint Glass Works, run by George Wainwright and Charles Wainwright.

1829 He started the firm of Webb and Richardson, with his brother William Haden Richardson, and Thomas Webb, another local glass manufacturer.

1836 Thomas Webb left the company to found a company which later became Thomas Webb and Sons. The third Richardson brother, Jonathan Richardson, then joined the firm.

1841 William Haden Richardson bought the White House Glass works from Thomas Webb.

1842 The company became known as W. H., B. and J. Richardson.

1852 This name was discontinued by 1852.

1853 The company re-opened, carrying only the name of Benjamin Richardson.

1854 A partnership was formed between Benjamin Richardson and Jonathan Richardson, and their nephews Philip Pargeter and William James Hodgetts, and the firm became Hodgetts, Richardson and Pargeter.

1871 Philip Pargeter left and Henry Gething Richardson, son of Benjamin, joined the firm which then became Hodgetts, Richardson and Sons.

1876 William Haden Richardson died aged 91 years.

1881 The company was taken over by Henry Gething Richardson; William James Hodgetts retired from the company which became Henry Gething Richardson.

c.1882 Benjamin Richardson retired and died in 1887 at the age of 85.

c.1897, Henry Gething Richardson went into partnership with his sons, Benjamin and William Haden Arthur Richardson, and the firm then became Henry G. Richardson and Sons.

1930 The firm was taken over by Thomas Webb and Sons. According to an Agreement, dated 25th July, the company of Henry G. Richardson and Sons was sold to Webb's Crystal Glass Co on that date. A new private limited company called Henry G. Richardson and Sons Ltd was set up at that time, as a subsidiary of Webbs Crystal.

The new company moved to the Dennis Glass Works, where Webbs continued to produce some of the Richardson patterns and market them under the Richardson name until the early 1960s.

Source:
Gracies Guide to British Industrial History
https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Richardson_Co

H. G. Richardson Company History
Source - The Antiquaruan

These designs are from several 1886-87 H. G. Richardson's Pattern books.   They have been reproduced with kind permission of Dudley Archive services.  These fairy lamp designs are to use for research purposes only and may not be reproduced in any periodical or formal publication.

These designs were collected by Helen and Graham Pullen.  Countless hours and thousands of images are available on their website at https://fairylamps.co.uk/product-category/pattern-books/.  A visit to their webpage will yield much more information that was gleaned from the annotations associated with the designs.

We are forever grateful for their efforts to acquire this information and for making it available to collectors world wide.

Next page of designs

Question or observation?

Articles:

HG Richardson History