| Located At | Stoke on Trent City Archives |
| Level | Collection |
| Doc Ref No | SD 1438; SD 1440; SD 1462; SD 1495; SD 1516; SD 1536; |
| SD 1548; SD 1559; SD 1575; SD 1595; SD 1598; SD 1600; |
| SD 1664; SD 1935 |
| Title | Archive of the Spode Museum Trust |
| Administrative History | Periods of ownership:
Spode Period (cira. 1776-1833)
From 1767 Josiah Spode I ran 2 partnerships (Spode and Tomlinson in Stoke and Mountford and in Shelton). Few details are known. The main Factory site mostly associated with Spode in Stoke was purchased in 1776. It has been implied that Spode I worked at the mian Factory site in Stoke with another company, but this now seems unlikely. Traditionally circa 1770 has been used as the start date by the Company, particularly on marketing and sales material.
See: Appendix XI: New information on the early years of the Spode business (pages 175-177) of: 'Spode and Copeland Marks and Other Relevant Intelligence' by Robert Copeland, Studio Vista 2nd edition 1997, ISBN 0 289 80069 2. Stoke-on-Trent City Archives Local Studies Reference Number: 738.0278). This appendix is based on Peter Roden's research published in the Northern Ceramic Society Journal Vol. 14 1997: Josiah Spode (1733-1797): his formative influences and the various Potworks associated with him.
Copeland and Garrett Period (1833-1847)
W.T Copeland Period (1847-1867)
W.T Copeland & Sons Period (1867-1932)
W.T Copeland & Sons Limited Period (1932-1969)
Spode Limited Period (1970- 2009):
In 1970 the Company was re-branded 'Spode' to coincide with the supposed bi-centenary of the Company. The Company had already been sold in 1965 to Carborundum, followed by owners which are detailed below. |
| Date | c1750-2007 |
| Description | The greater part of this collection is the records owned by the Spode Museum Trust, consisting of material associated with the design, manufacture, marketing, and sales of ware, most significantly the series of pattern books but also including manuscripts, photographs, books, maps and plans (c1750 to 2007), together with administrative and collection records generated by Company. The creation of the Spode Museum Trust in 1970, in order to safeguard the historic records and objects of the Company has generated a significant body of research and correspondence. The Historical Consultant to the Company under Carborundum and subsequent ownerships was Robert Copeland, who had been a director under the family ownership and continued to make his knowledge and expertise available to the Company and the Trust until his death in 2010. The Curator of the Spode Museum from 2000 - 2008, Pam Woolliscroft arranged and described the collection with his help and she has in turn provided invaluable assistance to Stoke-on-Trent City Archives in the preparation of this current catalogue.
Some records within the collection are uncatalogued and include:
SD 1438 - papers of Arthur Edward Hewitt, director of Spode, consisting mainly of business related papers, but also including some personal papers
SD 1495 - photographs, transfer prints, books and folders of images in Egypt and India, and photographs of Spode products
SD 1516 - photographs, articles and promotional material relating to Spode, and Jackson and Gosling
SD 1548 - papers of Spencer Copeland including sales information; 200 years of Spode Celebrations in 1970; technical documents including Spencer Copeland's experiments; information on the installation of the first computer at the factory; pottery wages/structures; production figures
The book 'Spode and Copeland Marks and other relevant intelligence', written by Robert Copeland in 1993 and revised in 1997 provides a comprehensive source of reference and a framework on which this catalogue is based.
['Spode and Copeland Marks and Other Relevant Intelligence' by Robert Copeland, Studio Vista 2nd edition 1997, ISBN 0 289 80069 2. Stoke-on-Trent City Archives Local Studies Reference Number: 738.0278)] |
| Access Conditions | Please be aware that the cataloguing of this very large collection is not yet complete. If you desire access to records in the uncatalogued sections of this collection, please contact Stoke on Trent City Archives by email or letter outlining the information you are seeking.
Address: Stoke on Trent City Archives, City Central Library, Bethesda Street, Hanley, Stoke on Trent, ST1 3RS
Email address: stoke.archives@stoke.gov.uk
In addition access to some of the more recent personal papers is restricted under Section 40 of the Freedom of Information Act, 2000. |
| Copyright | Any questions concerning the publication of images of documents in the collection should be directed to the Archive Services Manager, Stoke on Trent City Archives, City Central Library, Bethesda Street, Hanley, Stoke on Trent, ST1 3RS |
| Notes | Peter Roden: Sadly passed away on 30th October 2022. Peter was a very important Spode Family researcher. His research appears in this archive. |
| Related Material | Related papers: SD 1548: Papers of Spencer Copeland from W. T. Copeland and Sons Ltd (c. 1945-1970) Connection to the Spode Factory, doesn't belong to Trust (this collection is currently uncatalogued). Richard Spencer Charles Copeland was a former director of the Company. |