Thomas Till & Son(s)






 

Location and period of operation:

Thomas Till & Son(s)

Burslem

1850

1928

 

Earthenware manufacturer at the Sytch Pottery, Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England. 
  • From around 1833 Thomas Till was a partner in the business of Barker, Sutton & Till. In 1842 James Sutton retired and the business continued as Barker & Till. 

  • In May 1850 William Barker left the partnership which was continued by Thomas Till on his own account. 

  • Thomas Till was joined by by his eldest son Edwin and the business became Thomas Till & Son. 

  • At the Paris Exhibition of 1855, Thomas Till & Son received a certificate of merit.

  • In 1861 the style changed to Thomas Till & Sons after Till's second son William Thomas Till joined the business.   

  • In the 1881 census Thomas Till, then aged 76, was described as an "Earthenware Manufacturer Employing 200 Work People". 

  • Thomas Till likely died in 1882.

  • In November 1890 Edwin Till left the partnership and the business was continued by his brother William Thomas Till.

  • At sometime William Thomas Till joined in partnership with Charles Henry Salt (of the Salt Bros business at the Brownhills Pottery).  

  • In December 1902 this partnership was dissolved and the business carried on by C. H. Salt on his own - the name "Thomas Till and Sons" was retained. 

  • At some Charles Henry Salt joined in partnership with Arthur Cecil Salt - this partnership was dissolved in March 1914 and Charles Henry continued on his own - again the name "Thomas Till and Sons" was retained. 

  • The business closed in 1928. 

 


 


Mazarine Blue Band
Thos. Till & Sons
Established 1825

The Pottery Gazette, October 1906

 


 

"Thomas Till & Sons, Sytch Pottery, Burslem, earthenware manufacturers, are represented in London by Mr. E. J. Bennett, who has samples of all the principal productions of the firm always on show at his rooms, Gamage Buildings, 118, Holborn, E.C.

Till & Sons’ chief lines are toilet ware, dinner services, and tea and breakfast ware. In all these there is great diversity in shapes and decorations, and quite recently some new samples have been received from the works.

There are, however, certain samples that are not likely to be withdrawn for some time, whatever new ones may arrive. For instance, their Mazarine blue band is one of their most popular lines. They are now showing it on dinner and tea ware in conjunction with neat border patterns in all colours. Green bands on dinner and tea ware are a nice change from the blue, and seem likely to become just as popular. 

New decorations are numerous, and all tastes are catered for. The "Minton" and "Saxon" dinner shapes are given a new lease of life by the judicious variations in decoration. The "Saxon", with its nicely shaped oval vegetable dish, is one of the best of the firm’s dinner shapes. It is now shown with the "Graphic" pattern. This is a neat printed decoration supplied in several colours. 

The toilet services have had some novelties added to an already large assortment of samples. The "Etruscan" is quite a classical shape, as the name would indicate. It has a full-sized ewer and capacious basin. It is shown in several decorations; one of the best is a happy combination of festoon and rose-buds. 

Till & Sons supply badge and monogram ware for hotels, restaurants, and shipping companies."

The Pottery Gazette, October 1907


 

 


Note: many potters liked to put a date on their pottery as far back as possible and a date may be the date the works started or a date of an earlier partneship. 

On some Thomas Till ware a date of "1825" is displayed - however the earliest recorded operation date involving Till is Barker, Sutton & Till which dates from 1834.

An advertisement for Thos. Till & Sons in "The Pottery Gazette and Glass Trades Review Diary 1922" p. 24.  also states "Estd. 1825" on the advert.  The Sytch Pottery would appear to have been worked by John Hall & Sons at that time (from 1802 - 1832) so the 1825 reference is a mystery. 


Formerly: Barker & Till

"From 1850, it [Sytch Pottery] remained in the hands of Thomas Till, who joined in partnership with his sons and the firm became Thomas Till & Sons. 

The ware produced was good middle- class earthenware. Besides earthenware of the usual average quality - in which services and innumerable useful articles were made by them - Messrs. Till produced coloured bodies of various kinds (cane, sage, drab and lilac); stoneware of a hard and durable kind for jugs, etc.; jet glazed ware; terra-cotta; enamelled ware; and various coloured lustres. These were principally intended for the home trade. 

At the Paris Exhibition of 1855, the firm received a certificate of merit. The mark used was the name of the firm in various forms. Messrs. Thomas Till & Sons (Ltd.) continued to 1928."

From "Jewitt's Ceramic Art of Great Britian"

 


Selected by the Committee for the Staffordshire Potteries 
to exhibit at the Paris Universal Exhibition of 1855

At the Paris Exhibition of 1855, the firm received a certificate of merit


 

Thomas Till c.1877
Thomas Till c.1877
from a presentation made by his employees

- click for more -

 


click on the following for more information:

   




marks listed for Thomas Till in the 1917 Pottery Gazette

the prior marks of Salt bros & Brownhills Pottery appear to have been
continued and the name Thomas Till added. 

 

  • At sometime (after 1890) William Thomas Till joined in partnership with Charles Henry Salt (of the Salt Bros business at the Brownhills Pottery).  

  • In December 1902 this partnership was dissolved and the business carried on by C. H. Salt on his own - the name "Thomas Till and Sons" was retained. 

 


ENA pattern with the 'standard' Till mark 
c.1880+ 

THOS TILL & SONS
BURSLEM
ENGLAND 

ENA pattern with the Salt Bros style mark but with Thos Till 
c.1903+ 

ENGLAND 
THOS TILL & SONS
BURSLEM
VITRINE WARE

 

 



Initials and marks used on ware for identification:

Note: many potters liked to put a date on their pottery as far back as possible and a date may be the date the works started or a date of an earlier partneship. 

On some Thomas Till ware a date of "1825" is displayed - however the earliest recorded operation date involving Till is Barker, Sutton & Till which dates from 1834.

An advertisement for Thos. Till & Sons in "The Pottery Gazette and Glass Trades Review Diary 1922" p. 24.  also states "Estd. 1825" on the advert.  

The Sytch Pottery would appear to have been worked by John Hall & Sons at that time (from 1802 - 1832) so the 1825 reference is a mystery. 

 


Thos Till & Sons
Burslem

 c.1861-1890


TILL

TILL & SON

T.TILL & SONS

"TILLSON WARE"

 

NOTE:

Marks with "& SON" are prior to c.1861 when the style changed to "& SONS"

Marks with a banner and flower branches marked "T.TILL & SONS" are c.1861

Marks with the registration diamond and "TILL & SONS" are c.1867

Marks with a globe and "TILL & SONS" are c.1880

Marks with a globe and "TILL & SONS" and "BURSLEM ENGLAND" are c.1891+


 

 

1881 census:

at the time of the 1881 census Thomas Till and one of his sons William were evidently living in the same house:-

Dwelling: Rocklands House
Census Place: Wolstanton, Staffordshire, England

Name

Marr | Age | Sex

  Birthplace Occupation
Thomas TILL  W 76 M  Head Burslem Earthenware Manufacturer Employing 200 Work People

Dwelling: Rocklands House
Census Place: Wolstanton, Staffordshire, England

Name

Marr | Age | Sex

  Birthplace Occupation
William F. TILL  M 47 M Head Burslem Earthenware Manufacturer
Mary TILL M 48 F Wife Oswestry, Shropshire Wife
Sarah MEAKIN  U 21 F Serv Uttoxeter Domestic Servant
Elizabeth BROUGH  U 28 F Serv Swinnerton Domestic Servant


 

 

A commemoration of Thomas Till by his workforce - 1877
A commemoration of Thomas Till by his workforce - 1877
in the scroll at the very top of the page is a picture of Josiah Wedgwood

To Thomas Till, Esq.

We the Employe's of the Firm of

Messrs. TILL & SONS

 

beg to present you the Senior Member of the Firm with a LIFE SIZE PORTRAIT. Painted in Oil of

yourself accompanied by a Framed Address expressing our high respect and esteem for you as our

Employer and as one who has successfully passed through half a Century of Commercial success as an

Earthenware Manufacturer and who is the Oldest Manufacturer in the Staffordshire Potteries now living

 

We feel that it would be very remiss on our part to allow the present opportunity to pass without showing in

some way our appreciation of your uniform conduct during pro patria of that long period and at the same

time bearing our cordial testimony to your manly and straightforward business method and honesty of purpose which has beget in us a feeling alike of respect and confidence

 

We wish especially to recognise your willingness on all occasions to promote our comfort by your genial

disposition and our welfare by your Christian example; endeavouring always to elevate us severally and

mentally and engender a good feeling between employer and employed.

 

We therefore ask your acceptance of these small Tokens of our Regard for your good qualities,

and we pray that God may preserve the lives of yourself and family in health and prosperity for many

years and that you may ultimately receive that great reward laid up for the good and faithful.

 

Signed by a few of the oldest hands on behalf the Workpeople

Joseph Hesketh Joseph Robinson
Thomas Peake Joseph Lovekin
Hiram Gater Thomas Lees

 

Sytch Pottery

Burslem

March 2nd 1877

 

 


 Questions/comments/contributions? email: Steve Birks