List of Apprentices ( pottery)1780-1805 Lambeth

[geebrooks9]

Hello everyone. I am would like to know where I would find a list of apprentices to the pottery trade, especially in Lambeth. My G x 3 grandfather John Cole lived there in during the 1780/90's, he then moved to Bristol where he was a master potter.I think he would have served his apprenticeship in Lambeth as his first three children were born there 1799, 1801, 1803. He married in 1798 in St Martins in the Fields, Westminster to Francis Inks. The next record I can find is one showing him taking an apprentice of his own: John Cole ( Potter) and Frances take William son of Richard Elbury, Bristol Yeoman, as apprentice. Record taken from Old Bristol Potteries by W J Pountney. Page320.
Any help would be much appreciated. Thank you.

[Queensware]

There is a UK, Register of Duties Paid for Apprentices' Indentures, 1710-1811 which is on ancestry.com (or.co.uk) I checked the standard search for John Cole but did not find anyone of that name who was apprenticed to a potter.  Although the search function is limited by spelling differences etc.  I think it unlikely that your ancestor will show up as a formal apprentice - I specialize in the Staffordshire pottery industry and my search for apprentice's shows exceedingly few - not only did the apprentice have reduced wages during the leaning process and have to pay a fee for the privilege, the master had to pay tax on the fee (hence the register) so mostly pottery apprenticeships were informal. Those that invested in a formal apprenticeship mostly came from outside the area and were intending to learn enough to own their own business - which it sounds like your John Cole did - but just at the time that delftware (made at Lambeth and Bristol) was low status going out of style.

Hope this helps.

[geebrooks9]

Hello Queenware, thank you for the information, very interesting.
Is there anyway of finding the name of the pottery  where John Cole  took his apprentices?
I have found another couple of records, one in 1815:
Potters in Bristol apprenticeship list
Bristol To his father and Frances. John son of John Cole BI Stone Potter. From Old Bristol Potteries. 
Thank you so much, Sara.

[Queensware]

I specialise in Staffordshire pottery and know very little about the London industry

Interesting that he was a stoneware potter.  Lambeth had a number of potteries concentrating on delftware and then salt-glazed stoneware.  By 1800 the latter may have been making utilitarian vessels for kitchen use - they made bottles for boot blacking, (I think Charles Dickens worked in a boot blacking factory)  bottles for ink and for for beverages, jars for storing food and also some more fancy liquor bottles etc. for a brief introduction see the Museum of London website at
http://www.museumoflondon.org.uk/ceramics/pages/subcategory.asp?subcat_id=717&subcat_name=London

There is also the Vauxhall  Civic Society which also cover Lambeth pottery - see http://www.vauxhallcivicsociety.org.uk/history/lambeth-pottery/

I do not believe there are any factory records left - even of the better known potteries.

Bristol also a large center of pottery making - there is a good website at  http://www.kalendar.demon.co.uk/
but I didn't see a search function.  Reg & Philomena Jackson compiled a book of original sources material about Bristol potters but it ends at 1800 - last I  heard they were associated with a group called the Society for Clay Pipe Research which was based in Bristol - see  http://scpr.co/index.html

Sorry there is no direct help here but hope the references lead somewhere useful

[geebrooks9]

Hello Queenware. thank you so much for the information. I have a record attached which shows he was involved with clay pipe making so will contact Society for Clay Pipe Research.
I know this is my John Cole as he added the Homans and Hillhouse names to two of his children.
Thanks very much, Sara.