PLYMOUTH |
The Encyclopaedia of Plymouth History |
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Mr William Brown had a statuary carving business at Phoenix Street, Stonehouse, where in 1851 he was employing six men and three apprentices. In 1861 his 17-years-old son, George, was working with him but William was a 59-years-old widower and was no doubt thinking more of retiring. Presumably this was the business that in 1868 came in to the hands of Messrs John and Edmund Goad. They claimed their business had been founded in 1817. John Goad had been baptised at Charles Church, Plymouth on March 6th 1825, the son of Mr John and Mrs Mary Goad, labourer, of Gasking or Gascoigne Street. Edmund Goad was also baptised at Charles Church, on July 22nd 1827. At the time of the birth of their sister, Mary, in 1830 the family had moved to Stert Place. What education the two brothers received is not known but it was sufficient to raise John from being the son of a labourer to a marble merchant employing 47 men, six apprentices and five women and Edmund to a stone merchant by 1881. Indeed, Mr John Goad was also one of the founders of the Oreston Steam-boat Company in 1869 and chairman of the directors for many years. They not only ran the Phoenix Steam Marble Works ion the corner of Phoenix Street and Millbay Road but also owned the quarries at Pomphlett, from which the marble came. Unfortunately Mr Edmund Goad died suddenly at Oreston on Saturday June 16th 1877. He was just 49-years-old. This left Mr John Goad in sole control of the business. His eldest son, another John, became foreman at the marble works and the second son, William, became a marble mason. By the introduction of modern machinery he had much extended his business as a marble merchant. He had supplied the beautiful columns for the Colonial Office in London and his promotion of Devon marble for decorative building purposes had done much to improve his business. His works and quarries were visited in the 1880s by the members of the architects' congress held in Plymouth and those involved with the building trades' exhibition. During his lifetime, Mr Goad had been a staunch Conservative and for 15 years was a member of the Stonehouse Local Board, to which he was regularly re-elected every three years. He was a Member of Port of Plymouth Chamber of Commerce and the Plymouth Mercantile Association. Mrs Mary Goad died at East Stonehouse on January 7th 1885. She was 60 years of age. Mr John Goad died suddenly at his residence, Buckingham Place, Plymouth, on the morning of Monday January 25th 1886, after a short illness. He was survived by four sons and two daughters. The business passed into the control of his sons, Mr John Goad and Mr William Henry Goad.
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