Loughborough Variety

This was the headline that appeared in a newspaper in 1931, but it doesn't refer to the Victorian and Edwardian popularity of music hall events, but rather to the variety of manufacturing activity in Loughborough at the time. 

In my latest book, I mention a banquet that was held on 4th October 1938, in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Incorporation of the Borough of Loughborough. Lieutenant-Colonel R.E.Martin, who was the chairman of Leicestershire County Council, raised a toast to the town, and mentioned its various industries - hosiery, perfumes, chemicals, bells, and lifting tackle - and the reputation of Loughborough's College, which, he said, extended far outside the county boundaries.     

The Mayor, Alderman Arthur Lacey, replied to Lieut.-Col. Martin's comments, adding:

"... the inhabitants of the town were the citizens of no mean city and, after all was said and done, took a rightful second place in the county [after the county town of Leicester]. A London man had once told him that one could not go into any town or city in the country which did not contain a product of Loughborough."

This certainly seemed to be the case in 1931, when the 'Loughborough Variety' headline appeared in the Nottingham Journal of 1st January 1931. The subtitle appeared:

"Big contracts for buses, bells, bricks (1), generators, cranes."

and further highlighted:

"The extension of Messrs. Herbert Morris's North Works and development of brick-making are two outstanding features of the year"

The substance of the article that follows that headline is essentially a review of manufacturing in 1930, in which the author of the article goes on to say that goods manufactured in Loughborough are of high quality, are of a wide variety, and many are world-known. He also suggests that although Loughborough did suffer during the depression of 1930, in comparison to other industrial towns, whose manufacturing output centred on one or two industries, or one or two companies, Loughborough, whose manufacturing industry was somewhat more diverse, suffered only very slightly. 

In the review, we learn that engineering, hosiery manufacture and bellfounding are Loughborough's three principal industries, and while the first two were affected a little by the general depression, demand for bells had not diminished! 

The Brush completed contracts both in the UK and abroad, the latter most notably in Jamaica, South Africa, Malay States, and Malta, as well as providing bus bodies and tramcars across the UK.

The Brush in 2014

Herbert Morris, as well as extending their factory, produced a new, versatile crane, and provided cranes for British power stations, and the Russian government, as well as some other overseas customers. A leading British car manufacturer placed large orders for Morris' conveyor systems. 

Herbert Morris on Empress Road

During 1930, Taylors the bellfounders recast and rehung the bells of Penzance parish church; recast the heavy bells in Worcester and Lincoln cathedrals and in York Minster; erected a carillon in St Helen's church in Lancashire; installed a service bell in Addiscombe; carried out restoration work on many belltowers across the UK, as well as having many other projects on the go!

Taylors bellfoundry

A leading hosiery manufacturer in the town had made a conscious decision to maintain their manufacturing, rather than to increase it, which appears to be down to some indecision - presumably by the government - around silk duties. It seems that during the year, cheap, artificial silk hosiery had replaced the cashmere versions. One firm, Morley, reported they had made over one million pairs of hose and half hose during 1930!

I&R Morley in the distance on the right

Zenobia, who were the manufacturers of toiletries, reported that heavy oriental scents had been overtaken in popularity by English floral perfumes. Zenobia products had been exported not only to the Colonies, the Dominions, and to Europe, but also to France!

So, despite the depression and the economic climate of the 1930s, Loughborough appears to have maintained a relatively stable position, and this, in part, explains the development of the town centre, and why there are so many 1930s buildings.

(1) The other industry that this article focussed on was brick-making. I've covered Tuckers quite extensively in recent posts so have chosen not to repeat myself in this post. For information about the brick-making firm see:

Tuckers Part 1; Tuckers Part 2; Tuckers Part 3 and Tuckers Part 4 

Posted by lynneaboutloughborough 25 April 2021

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Dyer, Lynne (2021). Loughborough variety. Available from: https://lynneaboutloughborough.blogspot.com/2021/03/loughborough-variety.html  [Accessed 25 April 2021]

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