PLYMOUTH |
The Encyclopaedia of Plymouth History |
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Most Plymothians today would be surprised to learn that Plymouth played a small part in the development of the match-making enterprise of Messrs Bryant and May. The business had its origins in a partnership between Mr William Bryant, a tallow and lubricating oil manufacturer and sugar refiner, and Mr Edward James, merchant. Around 1833 they set up a Lucifer match manufacturing business in Woolster Street, close to the Exchange and immediately across the back from the Custom House on the Barbican. Unfortunately their partnership was brought to an abrupt end around 6pm on the evening of Thursday August 23rd 1839, when the premises burst into flames. First on the scene was the fire engine from the Custom House, which was, of course, purely there to try to prevent the fire from spreading to the Custom House. The engine from the Gin Distillery was next nearest, followed by those from the West of England Assurance Office, the Garrison in the Royal Citadel, the Royal Marines at Stonehouse, Messrs Hearle and Mare, and even the one from the Royal Dockyard. The men from the 85th Regiment assisted the Police in controlling the crowd that quickly gathered. At around 7.40pm the roof fell in and the front of the building fell out and there was great fear that the fire was about to gain control of the Custom's warehouses of bonded spirits, which would have exploded. The building also housed gunpowder used in the manufacturing process. However, the great exertions of the various fire engines prevented that from happening and by 9pm the fire was largely extinguished. The building had been reduced to a heap of ashes. Two theories were put forward at the time as to the cause: the "Plymouth, Devonport and Stonehouse Herald" said that some of the matches had ignited by being trodden on, while the "Devonport Independent" stated that some matches had been ignited by the high temperature in the room they were being stored in. Mr Edward James parted company with Mr Bryant after the fire but the latter soon found a new partner in the form of a Mr Francis May, who had been a retail customer of his. Their formal partnership started in 1844 and it is interesting that their partnership agreement apparently required that Bryant stayed in Plymouth. Mr Francis May had been born at Alton in Hampshire on July 17th 1803 while Mr William Bryant came from Tiverton, Devon, where he was born on December 24th 1802. At the time of the 1841 census William and his wife Ann, born in Falmouth, were living at Grove, St Andrew, Plymouth. They had two children, Edith, aged 7, and Wilberforce, aged 4, and three female servants. Their family had moved to 5 Lipson Terrace and had grown by 1851. Miss Edith Bryant had presumably got married but still at home were Wilberforce, who was still a scholar at 14-years-old; Arthur C Bryant, 9; Frederick C Bryant, 8; Theodore H Bryant, 8; and Elizabeth A Bryant, 5. One of the products which they sold was a safety match invented in 1855 by Johan Edvard Lundstrom of Jonkoping, Sweden, and manufactured by the Jonkopings Tandstricksfabrik. The British rights were acquired by Mr Francis May on August 15th 1855. The success of the safety match took William up to London in 1861, where he took a lease on a factory by the name of the Fairfield Works, in Fairfield Road, Bow. The following year the whole family moved to London permanently and in 1863 Wilberforce was admitted as a partner. In fact, all of William Bryant's sons took an active part in the partnership and they forced Mr Francis May to leave the business in 1868. Consequently at the time of the 1871 census the Bryants were living at Oak Hill, Oakenshaw, Kingston-upon-Thames, and William was quoted as being a manufacturer of chemical lights employing about 1,500 people. William was by now 67 years of age so it is no surprise to find that he died three years later, on July 24th 1874, at Eastbourne, on the Sussex coast. Mr Wilberforce Bryant then took charge and registered Messrs Bryant and May as a Limited Liability Company on June 12th 1884. Mr Francis May died at his home at West View, London Road, Reigate, Surrey, on December 1st 1885, at the grand age of 82 years. Described as a tall and imposing man, a Quaker, he was responsible for providing Reigate with a British school. Mr Wilberforce Bryant died on February 3rd 1906 at Stoke Park, Stoke Poges. He was 69 years of age and his death brought and end to the family's involvement in Messrs Bryant and May Ltd. The Company went on to open three new factories before the Second World War until in 1974 it was taken over by Messrs Wilkinson Sword Ltd, manufacturers of razor blades.
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