| Located At | Staffordshire Record Office |
| Stoke on Trent City Archives |
| Level | Collection |
| Doc Ref No | D3272, D3577, 7324, SD 1709 |
| Title | Rigby Rowley Cooper & Co., Solicitors, King Street, Newcastle (also known as Coopers solicitors) |
| Administrative History | Administrative History
Although it is known that the history of this firm is much older, the first printed reference to them is to Thomas Ward, attorney, of Brunswick Street in 1818. By 1834, the firm had moved to King Street as Thomas and John Ward. Samuel Herbert Cooper became a partner of the firm in 1862, thus giving them the title of Wards and Coopers. After the Wards died in 1873 the firm was called "Coopers", and briefly as Bulleid, Cooper & Co. in the 1890s. SH Cooper died in 1894. By 1924, the firm was known as Cooper & Co.
Rigby & Rowley originated as a separate firm in the next-door building, and merged with Coopers in 1975, to form Rigby Rowley Coopers & Co., though still known locally as Coopers, and reverted to that name in 1988.
The firm became part of Hacking Ashton c.2008, but that business went into liquidation in 2013 with no successor partnership, although current client papers were transferred to other businesses. The last older client papers were emptied from the King Street building in early 2014 (these papers have not yet been catalogued). |
| Date | c.18th - 20th century |
| Description | These solicitors had a number of important North Staffordshire clients, and for this reason, the collection will be particularly useful for a study of aspects of North Staffordshire history. Notably the Davenports and the Mintons, two great 19th century pottery families, were among the firm's clients, although very little has survived in this collection to reflect the business activities of these two firms beyond title deeds to the sites of their manufactories. The Davenport papers are particularly useful however for the personal history of the family and also in showing how the 19th century estates of William and John Davenport at Maer Hall and Westwood Hall were built up.
In addition, there were dealings with the Kinnersleys of Clough Hall and the Kirkhams and Hazlehursts of Chell, the latter family having a number of mining interests in the Chell area. Another important client was John Smith of Great Fenton, and a fine series of deeds for his Great Fenton estate survives from the 16th century. The papers in this part of the collection are probably the most representative of a 19th century client with estate and mining interests. John Tomlinson of Cliffe Ville was another notable client and the marriage of his daughter with Sir Lovelace Stamer has brought into the collection deeds to Stamer properties both in North Staffordshire and at Llwyndu in Abergavenny. A fine collection of 17th and 18th century deeds relating to the Wicksted estate in Nantwich has also survived in the papers of the Wicksted/Tollet family.
In addition, the collection contains a series of 19th century bankruptcy commissions relating to North Staffordshire tradesmen, as well as a series of late 18th century commissions for London tradesmen, the latter surviving as a result of a client's role as bankruptcy commissioner.
Among the miscellaneous deeds in the collection is an unexpected group of mediaeval deeds for Bradnop, and also for Hanley. This firm also acted as stewards to the Manor of Newcastle and this has ensured the survival within the collection of a large number of copy court rolls for properties particularly in Penkhull and Hanley.
[Note: the following accessions have not been catalogued.
7324 consists of 24 boxes of material plus volumes and outsize items, being mainly additional deeds and other papers of clients including Campbell/Minton (deeds for Woodseat and the Minton factory); Douglas/Gresley; Kinnersley of Clough Hall; Smith of Great Fenton; Hazlehurst of Chell; Dukes of Sutherland; wills, probate and personal estate papers; sale particulars [these may be weeded of duplicates]; volumes including Kinnersley rentals, Stoke Archdeaconry, two 19th century letter books, Coopers solicitors receipted schedules of deeds; Potteries Chamber of Commerce minutes; two boxes of patents (Ridgway/Walker 1868 and Bale 1877); two framed pictures of former partners: Thomas Ward and Ronald Milne Ford; one box of material collected during the writing of the firm's history including further deeds. Advance notice is required for uncatalogued items. Please contact Staffordshire Record Office for further details.
SD 1709 consists of Mintons Ltd legal papers
Papers concerning the reconstruction of the Minton factory in Stoke-upon-Trent (main papers dated 1947-1953)
Papers concerning the flotation of "Mintons" Limited (main papers dated 1950-1953)
Papers concerning a copyright issue (main papers dated 1963-1964)
The papers are largely those of William Rhodes Wooldridge of Cooper & Co, Solicitors, Newcastle-under-Lyme, who acted for Mintons from 1949 to about 1953 in the amendment of the Articles and in the demolition of the old factory to make way for the then new factory on the site where Sainsbury's supermarket stands (2015).] |
| Extent | 12 Sub-Fonds |