Brick House Works (Bell Works), Burslem | Josiah Wedgwood's Expanding Pottery (1762

The Brick House Works marked the transformation of Josiah Wedgwood's pottery from a small independent business into one of Britain's most innovative and successful manufactories.

Occupied by Wedgwood between 1762 and 1772, the works became the centre of a period of remarkable expansion, during which Wedgwood established his reputation for quality, introduced new methods of factory organisation and developed markets throughout Britain and overseas.

It was here that Queen Charlotte's patronage earned him the title "Potter to Her Majesty", creamware achieved international success, and plans were laid for the revolutionary Etruria Works. Known locally as the Bell Works after Wedgwood installed a bell to summon his workforce, the pottery symbolised the beginning of a more disciplined and industrial approach to ceramic manufacture.

The Brick House Works at a glance
Works name:	Brick House Works, Bell Works, Bell Bank, Bell Bonk
Wedgwood's association	Josiah Wedgwood manufactured here from 1762 to 1772. The move to the newly built Etruria Works started in 1769 but was not completed until 1772
Location:	Lower Street (later Queen Street), Burslem. The Brick House Works stood on the site now occupied by the Wedgwood Institute.
Maps:	view location on Google Maps
Significance:	The pottery where Josiah Wedgwood transformed his small business into an internationally renowned manufacturer, laying the foundations of the modern Wedgwood company.
Relevant Links:	Wedgwood Institute - listing details Wedgwood Institute - photos and details

The Brick House name

The pottery was originally known as the Brick House Works, taking its name from the Brick House pottery that had long been occupied by the Adams family.

During Josiah Wedgwood's tenancy (1762–1769), he installed a bell in a cupola to summon his workforce. The innovation attracted considerable local attention and the works soon became known as the Bell Works. Thereafter the names Brick House Works and Bell Works were used interchangeably.
Before Wedgwood, most potteries were relatively small workshops where masters and workmen worked side by side. A bell to regulate the working day was unnecessary, and, according to Llewellynn Jewitt, a horn was the usual means of summoning workers where any signal was used at all.
Wedgwood's installation of a bell symbolised the emergence of a larger, more disciplined factory, with workers expected to begin and end work together. It was one of the many ways in which he introduced more systematic methods of manufacture.

"At this new manufactory he put up a cupola with a bell, which was, as is now the case everywhere, rung to call the workpeople together. This was the first bell put up and used for the purpose in the district, and from this circumstance the Burslem potters... got into the habit of calling it the 'Bell Bank,' or 'Bonk,' as it was and is more commonly pronounced."

- Llewellynn Jewitt, The Wedgwoods, p. 132.

Why the Brick House Works Matter

The Brick House Works was where Josiah Wedgwood transformed a small pottery business into a leading manufacturing enterprise. During the seven years he occupied the works, production expanded rapidly, new ceramic bodies and glazes were developed, and creamware became one of Britain's most successful export wares.

The works also marked an important stage in the industrialisation of the Potteries. Wedgwood introduced more systematic methods of production and workforce management, helping to establish standards of quality and efficiency that influenced the industry for generations. It was from the success of the Brick House Works that he gained the confidence and financial resources to build the revolutionary Etruria Works in 1769.
Although overshadowed by the later Etruria Works, the Brick House Works was arguably the place where the Wedgwood enterprise truly came of age. Here Josiah Wedgwood combined technical innovation with commercial ambition, expanding production, winning royal patronage, developing national and overseas markets, and introducing more disciplined methods of manufacture.
The achievements of these seven years laid the foundations for the creation of Etruria and established many of the principles that would define the modern pottery industry.

Year	Event	Significance
1762	Josiah Wedgwood rented the Brick House Works from the Adams family.	Provided the larger premises needed to expand production beyond the Ivy House Works.

1763	Production transferred from the Ivy House Works to the Brick House Works.	Marked the beginning of a period of rapid growth and experimentation.

c.1763	A bell was installed in a cupola to summon the workforce.	The works became known locally as the Bell Works, symbolising a more organised approach to factory management.

1763-65	Production of cream-coloured earthenware expanded.	Creamware became Wedgwood's most commercially successful product and established his reputation for quality.

Jan 1764	Josiah Married Sarah Wedgwood at Astbury Church, Cheshire.	Sarah was a distant cousin, the daughter of Richard Wedgwood of Spen Green, and the marriage proved to be one of the most important events in Josiah's personal life. They eventually had eight children, including: - Susannah Wedgwood (mother of Charles Darwin), - Josiah Wedgwood II, who succeeded his father, - Thomas Wedgwood, the scientific pioneer of photography.

1765	Queen Charlotte ordered a creamware tea service.	Wedgwood received permission to style himself "Potter to Her Majesty", and the ware became known as Queen's Ware.

1766	Building of the Trent and Mersey Canal approved by and Act of Parliament on 14 May 1766	Construction officially began on 26 July 1766, when Josiah Wedgwood ceremonially cut the first sod of soil at Middleport.

1766	Wedgwood purchased the Ridge House Estate at Shelton.	The site was chosen for the construction of the new Etruria Works and village.

1766	Partnership with Thomas Bentley formally began.	Combined Wedgwood's manufacturing expertise with Bentley's commercial knowledge and artistic taste.

1766-68	Planning and construction of the Etruria Works.	Designed as a purpose-built factory to accommodate the expanding business.

1768	Increasing exports throughout Britain, Europe and America.	Demonstrated the growing international reputation of the Wedgwood business.

1769-72	Production was moved to the new Etruria Works.	The remarkable success achieved during seven years at the Brick House Works laid the foundations of the modern Wedgwood company and made possible the creation of the purpose-built Etruria Works in 1769.
	Although the Etruria Works began production in 1769, the transfer from the Brick House Works was gradual. Wedgwood continued to use both potteries for several years while buildings were completed, kilns commissioned and production transferred in stages. Following notice to quit the Brick House premises in November 1769, the move gathered pace, but the relocation was not fully completed until 1772.

Two developments during the Brick House years were instrumental in transforming Josiah Wedgwood's business from a successful local pottery into an internationally recognised manufacturer. The first was the commission for a creamware tea service by Queen Charlotte in 1765. The royal patronage that followed allowed Wedgwood to market his products as Queen's Ware and to style himself as Potter to Her Majesty. The association with the royal household brought prestige, attracted wealthy customers and established Wedgwood's reputation at home and abroad. The second was his partnership with Thomas Bentley. Through Bentley and his Liverpool merchant connections, Wedgwood gained access to export markets in America and the West Indies, secured valuable commercial contacts, kept abreast of changing fashions and expanded his overseas trade. These relationships were fundamental to the rapid growth of the Wedgwood business.

Queen Charlotte and Royal Patronage

The royal commission from Queen Charlotte marked a turning point in the history of both Wedgwood and the British pottery industry. In 1765 the Queen ordered an elaborate cream-coloured earthenware tea service from Josiah Wedgwood for St James's Palace. The commission demonstrated that Staffordshire pottery could rival the fashionable imported porcelains then favoured by the aristocracy.

The service, described in the original order as having "a gold ground & raised flowers upon it in green", required a high standard of workmanship and decoration. Wedgwood devoted considerable effort to perfecting the body, glaze and gilding before the completed service was delivered.
The Queen was delighted with the finished ware and granted Wedgwood permission to style himself "Potter to Her Majesty". He also received permission to market his cream-coloured earthenware as Queen's Ware, a name that quickly became recognised throughout Britain, Europe and the American colonies.
Royal patronage provided far more than prestige. It gave Wedgwood's products the endorsement of the royal household, opening doors to aristocratic patrons and wealthy customers who wished to own the same fashionable ware used at court.
Wedgwood promoted the connection extensively in his advertising, catalogues and correspondence, making Queen's Ware one of the most successful ceramic products of the eighteenth century.

The Lady in Waiting story

According to later accounts, the commission came about through Deborah Chetwynd (or Chatwin), a Lady of the Bedchamber (or lady-in-waiting) to Queen Charlotte, who was familiar with Wedgwood's creamware and recommended him to the Queen. Although frequently repeated by biographers, the precise circumstances of the introduction are not fully documented.

Queen's Ware - greatest success for decades

Queen's Ware remained one of Wedgwood's greatest commercial successes for decades.

The commission wasn't just important because it impressed fashionable society—it gave a name and a royal endorsement to a product that became the backbone of the business.
In many respects, the Queen Charlotte commission did for eighteenth-century Wedgwood what the Royal Warrant does for companies today, but with an even greater impact because it coincided with the rapid growth of consumer demand for quality tableware.

Map of the potworks in Burslem - 1800

Locations associated with Josiah Wedgwood (173-1795) are highlighted in red.

Later occupants of the Brick House Works
Date	Occupant/Owner

1762-72	Josiah Wedgwood leased the works from John Bourne. From 1769 Wedgwood started to move to Etruria.

by 1809	Occupied by William Bourne, earthenware manufacturer.

Early 1800s	Operated as Bourne & Cormie.

1836	Works divided; Beech & Jones occupied part, another part cleared for the Independent Chapel, remaining buildings let for other uses.

1839	William Beech continued the pottery after the partnership dissolved.

1846	Beech leased almost all of the remaining works.

1853-55	Brief partnership as Beech & Brock.

1847	Estate ownership passed to Isaac Hitchin of Alsager.

1855-64	William Beech carried on the pottery until his death.
Compiled from Llewellynn Jewitt, The Wedgwoods, pp. 133-4.