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SUMMARY
Excavations took place in 2007 on the site of the Thames Plate Glass Company works at Leamouth, which operated during the middle of the 19th century when glass manufacturing technology was highly sophisticated and the market for all types of glass was rapidly expanding. Most notably, there was an increasing demand for ever larger areas of high-quality plate glass, for which the company became a significant supplier. The excavations provided the first opportunity to examine the material remains of a plate glass-works in Britain (and possibly the world) and, in particular, investigate the various technological and production processes involved.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The archaeological investigation was commissioned by Ballymore Properties Ltd, and Phillip Kingsfield and Alhaji Ghassama in particular are acknowledged for their assistance throughout the project. Thanks are also extended to Willy Duggan of Ballymore and David Hodgkinson of John F. Hunt for their support on site. David Divers (Historic England and Archaeological Advisor to the London Borough of Tower Hamlets) monitored the fieldwork, and Adam Single and John Gould (Historic England) provided subsequent advice. The information drawn from the RCHME volume (Survey of London, XLIV), particularly the plan of the Thames Plate Glass Company works in 1866, has been especially useful in understanding the layout and operation of the site. The project was managed by Lawrence Pontin, Mark Williams and Phil Andrews, and the fieldwork directed by Cornelius Barton. The small assemblage of non-glass finds was examined by Lorraine Mepham, and the illustrations produced by Rob Goller () and David Dungworth. This article was edited by Philippa Bradley and Bob Clarke, and has been improved as a result of comments provided by the two referees for the Society for Post-Medieval Archaeology. The archive will be deposited in due course at the Museum of London under site codes LUN04 and LOP07.
SUMMARY IN FRENCH, SPANISH, GERMAN AND ITALIAN
RESUME
La Compagnie de la vaisselle en verre de la Tamise, Leamouth, Londres : recherches archéologiques et techniques
Des fouilles ont été réalisées en 2007 sur le site des ateliers de la Compagnie de vaisselle en verre de la Tamise à Leamouth, compagnie qui a opéré durant le milieu du XIXe siècle quand la technique de production du verre était hautement sophistiquée et que le marché du verre de tout type se répandait rapidement. Plus particulièrement, dans des zones de plus en plus étendues, la demande s’est accrue pour de la vaisselle en verre de haute qualité, dont la compagnie est devenue un fournisseur important. Les fouilles archéologiques ont permis pour la première fois d’examiner les vestiges matériels des ateliers de vaisselle en verre de Grande-Bretagne (et peut-être même du monde) et, en particulier, d’enquêter sur les divers procédés techniques et de production impliqués.
RESUMEN
The Thames Plate Glass Company, Leamouth, Londres: investigaciones arqueológicas y técnicas
En el 2007 se realizaron unas excavaciones arqueológicas en el solar donde se levantó la Thames Plate Glass Company en Leamouth. La fábrica estuvo en activo a mediados del siglo XIX, cuando se usaba una tecnología altamente sofisticada para fabricar vidrio y el mercado para todo tipo de vidrio se expandía rápidamente. La demanda para vidrio plano de alta calidad fue especialmente grande y esta compañía se convirtió en un proveedor importante. Las excavaciones nos han permitido examinar por primera vez los restos de una fábrica de placas de vidrio en Gran Bretaña (y posiblemente en el mundo) y, en particular, investigar los diversos procesos tecnológicos y de producción allí empleados.
ZUSAMMENFASSUNG
Die Thames Plate Glass Company, Leamouth, London: Archäologische und technische Untersuchungen
Im Jahr 2007 wurden Ausgrabungen auf dem Gelände der Thames Plate Glass Company in Leanmouth durchgeführt. Dieses Unternehmen stammt aus der Mitte des 19. Jhd. als die Glasherstellung einen Höhepunkt erlebte und die Nachfrage nach allen Sorten von Glas stark anstieg. Besonders interessant ist dabei der Anstieg in der Nachfrage nach immer größeren Stücken von Flachglas, für welches das Unternehmen ein wichtiger Hersteller wurde. Die vorgestellten Ausgrabungen bieten dabei die erste Möglichkeit die Hinterlassenschaften einer Flachglasfabrik in Großbritannien (und wahrscheinlich der Welt) zu untersuchen und ermöglichen außerdem die verschiedenen angewendeten Technologien und Produktionsprozesse genauer zu betrachten.
RIASSUNTO
La Thames Plate Glass Company di Leamouth (Londra): indagini archeologiche e tecnologiche
Nel 2007 sono stati condotti degli scavi presso il sito produttivo della Thames Plate Glass Company di Leamouth, che fu attiva a metà del XIX secolo, quando le tecniche impiegate per la manifattura vetraria erano molto avanzate e il mercato del vetro era in rapida espansione ad ogni livello. In particolare, vi fu una crescente domanda, su scala sempre più vasta, di stoviglie in vetro di alta qualità, di cui questa ditta divenne un fornitore di rilievo. Gli scavi hanno reso possibile esaminare per la prima volta nel Regno Unito – e verosimilmente nel mondo – i resti materiali di una manifattura di stoviglie in vetro, permettendo in particolare di studiare i diversi processi tecnologici e produttivi messi in atto.
David Dungworth, Heritage Science Solutions, Southsea, Portsmouth, United Kingdom [[email protected]]
Phil Andrews, Wessex Archaeology, Portway House, Old Sarum Park, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP4 6EB [[email protected]]
Notes
1 British Geological Survey Citation1994, Sheet 256, North London.
2 Porter Citation1994, 648 − 9.
3 Porter Citation1994, 652.
4 Porter Citation1994, 666 − 70.
5 Porter Citation1994, 663 − 6.
6 The Times, 11 July 1864, p. 4.
7 PRO [Public Record Office], HO107/1566, 455–76.
8 PRO, BT31/995/1528.
9 MDR [Middlesex Deeds Registry] 1866/2/650.
10 PRO, BT31/995/1528.
11 PRO, RG10/580, 3–16.
12 PRO, BT31/995/1528.
13 PRO, BT31/1934/8021.
14 MDR 1877/7/161.
15 Wessex Archaeology Citation2005.
16 Wessex Archaeology Citation2006, Citation2007.
17 Porter Citation1994, 665.
18 Porter Citation1994, plate 115c.
19 Parliamentary Papers 1835, Thirteenth Report of the Commissioners of Inquiry into the Excise Establishment, and into the Management and Collection of the Excise Revenue throughout the United Kingdom, Glass. London: His Majesty’s Stationery Office.
20 Porter Citation1994, plate 115c.
21 Crown glass, broad glass and cylinder glass, see Dungworth Citation2011.
22 Porter Citation1832, 196.
23 e.g. Brayley Citation1846; Knapp Citation1849; Muspratt 1863; Parkes Citation1823; Porter Citation1832; Powell et al. Citation1883.
24 Barker Citation1977, 12–22.
25 Louw Citation1991, 59.
26 Cook Citation1958.
27 Parkes Citation1823, 209–10.
28 Boswell Citation1918.
29 Dungworth Citation2011.
30 Dungworth Citation2012.
31 Dungworth et al. Citation2009.
32 Dungworth Citation2012.
33 Ashtor & Cevidalli Citation1983.
34 Dungworth & Brain Citation2009.
35 At least some could have been for other industries – see Clow & Clow Citation1952.
36 Clow & Clow 1958, 80.
37 Clow & Clow Citation1952, 95–7.
38 Parkes Citation1823, 208.
39 Brayley Citation1846, 156; Clow & Clow 1958, 275; Parkes Citation1823, 208–9.
40 Clow & Clow Citation1952, 93, 110–2; Muspratt Citation1860, 872.
41 Pellatt Citation1849, 33.
42 Parkes Citation1823, 209; Muspratt Citation1860, 223.
43 Muspratt Citation1860, 225.
44 Angus-Butterworth Citation1958, 372; Brayley Citation1846, 156.
45 Parkes Citation1823, 221.
46 Parkes Citation1823, 222–3; Muspratt Citation1860, 225.
47 Parkes Citation1823, 222.
48 Douglas and Frank Citation1972, 148.
49 Parkes Citation1823, 224.
50 1860, 226 and Wills Citation1860, 171. An account of a visit to the Thames Plate Glass Company was published by William Henry Wills in 1860. Visit https://www.wessexarch.co.uk/our-work/leamouth for a complete extract of his account. Wills was a successful journalist who contributed to and edited popular journals of the period such as Punch, the Monthly Magazine, Chamber’s Journal, the Daily News, and Household Words. The latter, which was a joint venture with Charles Dickens from 1850 to 1859, was the source of the articles which were published by Wills in 1860 as Old Leaves from Household Words.
51 Muspratt Citation1860, 225.
52 Parkes Citation1823, 222.
53 Timbs Citation1843, 71.
54 James Citation1999, 325.
55 Brayley Citation1846, 157.
56 Brayley Citation1846, 157.
57 Soda prepared by the Leblanc process frequently contained some sulphur; Muspratt Citation1860, 929.
58 Choules Citation1852, 47.
59 Choules Citation1852, 47.
60 Steinmeyer Citation2003, 21–43.
61 Dircks Citation1863, 41.
62 Pepper Citation1890.
63 Steinmeyer Citation2003, 31.
64 Dircks Citation1863, 24–5.
65 Dircks Citation1863, 43–4.
66 Dircks Citation1863, 22.
67 Dircks Citation1863, 22–3.
68 Wills Citation1860; The Engineer, 14 August 1874, 130.
69 Barker Citation1977, 145, 156.
70 Barker Citation1977, 147; Cook Citation1958, 283.
71 Muspratt Citation1860, 225.
72 Parkes Citation1823, 222.
73 cf. Dungworth and Cromwell Citation2006.
74 Dungworth Citation2011.
75 Dungworth Citation2008.
76 Cf. Dungworth Citation2008.
77 Dungworth Citation2008.
78 Brayley Citation1846.
79 Porter Citation1994, fig. 256.
80 Dungworth Citation2011.
81 Brayley Citation1846.
82 Dungworth Citation2011.
83 Barker 1977.