Companies, Factories and Workshops

i) Peter Black Holdings (PBH) was a Yorkshire based multi-commodity manufacturer and importer. It supplied many of its products to Marks and Spencer.
i) A bid of £3.8 million to acquire Newbold and Burton Holdings in early February 1987 failed. (The Independent, 14th February 1987)
i) A further bid of £4.3 million was accepted in late February 1987 (Daily Mail, 24th February 1987)
i) Gordon Black, PBH's joint chairman, said he wanted to develop and expand the Newbold business (Financial Times, 14th February 1987)
i) 50 redundancies, 25% of the workforce announced in May 1987. (Loughborough Echo, 1st May 1987)
i) A further 22 redundancies at Newbold and Burton and Lawson Ward. Refurbishment at three factories said to total £496,000. (Loughborough Echo, 15th April 1988)
i) A new larger factory shop opens (Loughborough Mail, 14th April 1988)
i) Decision to close the Newbolds operation as it was deemed not viable, with the loss of 440 jobs across the whole operation. (Aberdeen Evening Express, 14th June 1996)
i) Announcement that PBH is to pull out of footwear production in the UK (Loughborough Mail, 27th June 1996)
i) PBH buys a large stake in an Italian footwear company, Lenci Calzature (The Times, 26th October 1996)

HENRY BRAY & CO

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

c1908 - 1920

NOTES

i) Details from KELLY'S DIRECTORIES 1908, 1912, 1916
i) Taken over as a Private Company on the 24th March 1920 (Leicester Daily Post, 29th March 1920) - See details of H C Bray and Co Ltd

BRAY & COMPTON LTD

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

1922

NOTES

i) Details from KELLY'S DIRECTORY 1922

H C BRAY & CO LTD

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :

TRADE NAMES :

1920 - 1934
Ratcliffe Road
Mens, Womens, Boys and Girls Boots & Shoes

NOTES

i) Private company registered 24th March 1920 taking over H Bray & Co
i) Details from KELLY'S DIRECTORIES 1925, 1928, 1932
i) Roof Fire, 12th October 1928 (Leicester Evening Mail, 12th October 1928)
i) Company in Voluntary Liquidation late 1934

CLARENCE BRAY LTD

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

1934 - 1952
Ratcliffe Road
Ladies Footwear

NOTES

i) Details from KELLY'S DIRECTORIES 1936, 1941
i) Company relinquishing the business (Leicester Evening Mail, 23rd February 1952)

CARTER & CO

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

1918 - 1920
60 Swan Street

NOTES

i) Failure of Edgar Carter (Leicester Daily Post, 21st March 1921)

TOM CHAMBERLAIN

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

c1888 - c1892

NOTES

i) Details from WRIGHT'S DIRECTORIES 1888, 1890, 1892

ERNEST CHAPLIN

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

c1928 - c1935
Brook Street

NOTES

i) Details from KELLY'S DIRECTORIES 1928, 1932
i) Fire on premises (Leicester Evening Mail, 22nd November 1930)

E CHAPLIN & SONS

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

c1950 - 1976
Brook Street
Ladies Shoes
Jesting, Italiano

NOTES

i) Details from Chaplin family recollections and memories

E Chaplin & Sons, Brook Street, April 1966

JOSEPH CLARKE

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

c1868 - 1871
King Street

NOTES

i) Details from HARROD'S DIRECTORY 1870
i) Joseph Clarke declared Bankrupt (Leicester Chronicle & Leicester Mercury, 10th June 1871)

THRONE, CRICK & CO

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

<1884 - 1921
King Street

NOTES

i) A branch factory of the illustrious main company in Leicester
i) Details from KELLY'S DIRECTORIES 1888 to 1916
i) Many of Sileby's own entrepreneur boot and shoe manufacturers started their careers at Cricks.

EXCELSIOR BOOT & SHOE MANUFACTURING SOCIETY LTD

EXCELSIOR CO-OPERATIVE BOOT SOCIETY LTD

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :

PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

1906 - 1968
Swan Street (1906 - 1910)
Brook Street/Albion Road (1910 - 1925)
King Street (1925 - 1968)
Ladies Shoes
Excellon

NOTES

i) Created as a Co-operative in 1906 due to a total lack of trade union representation in Sileby's boot and shoe factories.
i) Employees joined the union.
i) Products sold to Co-operative societies nationally
i) Expansion leads to new premises built on Albion Road and later at King Street
i) Later traded as Excellon Shoes

Excelsior :

Albion Road

Excelsior : Brook Street/ Albion Road

Excelsior : King Street

Excelsior Boot and Shoe Manufacturing Society - undated (before 1915)

FREER & MASON LTD

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

c1936
King Street

NOTES

i) Details from KELLY'S DIRECTORY 1936

FREER, SMITH & WARD

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

<1921

NOTES

i) Partners : W. Freer, W H Smith and J W Ward.
i) Partnership dissolved (London Gazette, 15th March 1921)

W GARE & CO LTD

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

<1897 - c1900

"Boot Manufacturer"

NOTES

i) Details from KELLY'S DIRECTORY 1899
i) Prosecuted under the Factory Act (Leicester Chronicle 24th April 1897)

GLOVER BROTHERS

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

<1934 - 1937
Brook Street
"Boot and Shoe Manufacturer"

NOTES

i) Glovers empowered to employ women aged over 18 in the stock room (London Gazette, 7th December 1934)
i) Wooden Factory building destroyed in fire. Damage estimated about £2,000. 35 people laid off (Leicester Advertiser, 19th November 1936)
i) Glover Brothers assets for sale (Leicester Evening Mail, 13th March 1937)

C HALLAM & CO

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

c1922 - c1924

Womens Shoess

NOTES

i) Details from KELLY'S DIRECTORY 1922
i) Mentioned in US Department of Commerce - Special Agents Series No. 226
'Shoes, Leather and Hides in Great Britain' (1924), p.169 (Internet Archive)

ALFRED KNIGHT & CO

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

<1897 - c1906

NOTES

i) Partners - Henry Knight Bray and Henry Bray
i) Details from KELLY'S DIRECTORIES 1897 to 1904
i) Prosecuted under the Factory Act (Leicester Chronicle, 24th April 1897)

J W MOIR & CO LTD

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

1904 - 1987
Ratcliffe Road
Ladies Shoes
Moranco, Jabot, Sleeka, Plus Fit

NOTES

i) J W Moir was initially a leather merchant in Leicester
i) The business was set up as a limited company with 10,000 x £1 shares in June 1904
i) Extra share issue of a further 40,000 x £1 shares in 1951
i) Company taken over (purchased) and became a subsidiary of Newbold and Burton Holdings in 1959
i) A further share issue of 65,000 x £1 shares in November 1959 takes the total number to 135,000
i) Newbold and Burton Holdings taken over by Peter Black Holdings in April 1987
i) After takeover Moir's staff began to be transferred to other subsidiaries pending closure.

J W Moir - Former factory on Ratcliffe Road, now Oak Business Centre

G NEAL & SONS

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

c1924

Boys Shoes

NOTES

i) Mentioned in the US Department of Commerce - Special Agents Series No. 226 'Shoes, Leather and Hides in Great Britain' (1924), p.169 (Internet Archive)

NEWBOLD & BURTON LTD

NEWBOLD & BURTON HOLDINGS LTD

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

1915 - 1996
Brook Street
Ladies Fashion Shoes
Flexiwelt, Flexezy, Marcelle, Allies

NOTES

i) J A Newbold and G A Burton had left Excelsior Boot Manufacturing Co. after a dispute there and started their own partnership in 1915
i) The business became a Private company in 1926
i) Expansion of the premises in Sileby occured in 1935
i) Another company factory was at Loughborough and also later at Grantham (1951)
i) On the 18th January 1950 the firm bccame a Public company - Directors : Francis Burton (Chairman and MD), Harold Burton (Assistant MD), Victor Francis Burton (Assistant MD), Horace Victor Hewes (Sales Director), Colin Maurice Ward (Factory Manager).
i) There were 675 workers in 1950 and another extension was being built
i) N & B purchased Lawson Ward and Co. Ltd, Sileby in 1954
i) N & B purchased J W Moir and Co. Lrd, Sileby in 1959
i) N & B purchased T.A. Collins of Dudley, a shoe retailing business in 1964
i) N & B purchased George Durston and Sons Ltd, Leicester, shoe manufacturers in 1965
i) In 1968 group profits hampered by issues at the main N & B factory and poor trading results for the T.A. Collins retail shops
i) N & B disposed of T.A. Collins, their retail shoe business to Lennards in 1970
i) Record pre-tax profits of £303,000 on £6.51 million sales in 1976
i) An approach to take over the business was thwarted in 1983 after serious losses were reported in former years
i) A first takeover approach by Peter Black Holdings failed in early February 1987
i) N & B board recommend to shareholders to accept a revised offer from Peter Black Holdings, valuing the N & B business at £4.3 million. (The Independent, 24th Feb 1987)
i) Redundancies noted at N & B in May 1987 and April 1988
i) Leicester factory production moved to Sileby in May 1991
i) 14th June 1996 - Peter Black Holdings announce the closure of its UK Shoe manufacturing division meaning the loss of 280 jobs at N & B Holdings which had been wound down for some time.
i) N & B closed its doors finally at the end of September 1996

Newbold and Burton - Factory buildings during demolition, 2002

Newbold and Burton - Brook Street entrance during demolition, 2002

newbold & burton - clicking room 1920s_edited.jpg

Clicking Room, undated

newbold & burton heel building dept1932_

Heel Building Department, 1932

C H PRESTON & SONS

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

c1927 - 1985
Charles Street
Ladies Shoes
Ledolia

NOTES

i) According to Trade Directories - still using the name Swan and Preston up to about 1940
i) Death of the Charles Henry Preston, senior, the founder, on the 27th July 1947
i) Succeeded by his sons Charles Henry Preston, junior (made a director in 1928) and Rupert Preston.
i) Pre 1955 - Directors were Charles Henry Preston, junior, (died in 1955), his son Harry, and Charles Henry's younger brother Rupert
i) Closure of the firm with the loss of 30 jobs (Loughborough Echo, 5th July 1985)

Above and Below - C.H. Preston's derelict factory buildings on Charles Street, 2016.

J A SIMONS & CO

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :

TRADE NAMES :

1919 - 1985 (1988 after takeover)
The Banks
Started with infants shoes, then boys and girls shoes, then finally ladies footwear

NOTES

i) The first company was set up by John Albert (Jack) Simons, Edward Simons and George Jeacock Wormleighton
i) The first partnership was dissolved on the 12th July 1920, and a new partnership was established with John Albert (Jack) Simons and Edward Simons at the helm
i) Expansion of the site with the building of more factory capacity at the Banks Works (Leicester Evening Mail, 3rd September 1954)
i) Company sold in 1985 after the retirements of Jack Simon's sons: Jack and Hector
i) New company closed with the loss of over 50 jobs (Loughborough Echo, 25th November 1988)

Aerial view of the J.A. Simons 'Banks Works' - c1970.

SMITH & STANDLEY

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

? - 1925
Brook Street
"Boot and Shoe Manufacturer"

NOTES

i) Partnership of William Henry Smith of Sileby and James Thomas Standley of Rothley
i) "Large Boot factory" of Smith and Standley gutted by fire - Causing several thousands of pounds damage to machinery and stock (Nottingham Evening Post, 30th May 1925)
i) Debtor's petition filed 26th August 1925 (London Gazette)

SMITH & WARD

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

c1922 - c1925

Womens, boys and girls shoes

NOTES

i) Details from KELLY'S DIRECTORIES 1922 and 1925
i) Producing 540 pairs of machine sewn womens, boys and girls shoes per week in 1924 - Mentioned in the US Department of Commerce - Special Agents Series No. 226 'Shoes, Leather and Hides in Great Britain' (1924), p.169 (Internet Archive)

SWAN & PRESTON

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

1896 - 1927
Brook Street and Charles Street

NOTES

i) Started at Brook Street factory as the partnership of J E Swan and Charles Henry Preston
i) Moved to purpose built factory on Charles Street in 1911
i) Fire gutted the factory in June 1915
i) Producing 2,640 pairs of womens, boys and girls shoes a week in 1924
i) Partnership dissolved on 15th July 1927

Swan & Preston - Work People outside the Brook Street factory c1910

J E Swan, far left, and Charles Henry Preston, far right

Swan & Preston - Charles Street factory 1919

WALKER, KEMPSON & STEVENS LTD

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :

TRADE NAMES :

c1899 - 1927
Cossington Road
Womens boots and shoes, Sports footwear
See Below

NOTES

i) Details from Trade Directories - 1899 (Wright), 1904 to 1925 (Kellys)
i) A branch of the main Walker, Kempson and Stevens factory in Rutland Street, Leicester.
i) Cossington Road site purchased in January 1900
i) Redevelopment of the Cossington Road factory site - new factory buildings, also manager's and foreman's house in 1901
i) Description of factory 1915 - "North Light factory of 6 bays. Workroom, Engine House, Cart Shed, Boiler house and 100 ft Chimney stack"
i) In 1924, the largest footwear manufacturer in Sileby - 7,200 pairs of womens shoes and football boots produced weekly. (US Department of Commerce - Special Agents Series No. 226 'Shoes, Leather and Hides in Great Britain' (1924), p.169) (Internet Archive)

i) Sileby factory closes with 'no explanation' in the Winter of 1927 (Leicester Evening Mail, 19th November 1927)

Walker, Kempson and Stevens - Sileby factory, Description of Products and Trade Marks

(Shoe and Leather News Biographical Directory, 1919)

Walker, Kempson and Stevens

Architect's drawing 1901

(The Builder)

Walker, Kempson and Stevens

Sileby factory, 1919

(Shoe and Leather News Biographical Directory, 1919)

WARD BROTHERS

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

? - 1897

'Boot & Shoe Manufacture'

NOTES

i) A partnership of William Ward, Arthur Edward Pinsent, Charles Henry Preston and John Ernest Swan
i) Partnership dissolved on the 7th December 1897 (London Gazette, 31st December 1897)

LAWSON WARD & CO

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :

PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

1920 - 1990
Brook Street, Albion Road & Seagrave Road
Womens boots and shoes, slippers
'Lawsonia'

NOTES

i) Lawson Ward was initially a clicker at Crick's and later a foreman at J W Moir. He decided to make a go on his own and set up a partnership with L Smith of Leicester with share capital of £5,000 in 1920.
i) First factory was on Brook Street followed by a move to Albion Road and then finally to the Lawsonia works on Seagrave Road.
i) A fire in the clicking department at the Lawsonia works on the 11th May 1948 was extinguished by the sprinkler system there. (Leicester Evening Mail, 12th May 1948)
i) Lawson Ward & Company Limited were acquired by Newbold and Burton on the 1st August 1954
i) Companies House documents give the trading dates of the firm as 20th May 1920 to the 7th January 1987 when the name was changed to Lawson Ward Limited.
i) After the takeover by Peter Black Holdings in 1987, streamlining and modernisation meant a number of redundancies at Lawson Ward (Loughborough Echo, 15th April 1988)
i) The firm finally closed in 1990 (Loughborough Echo, 16th March 1990)

Lawson Ward & Co Ltd c1920

"Station Boot Works", Brook Street

(Now the Scout HQ)

Lawson Ward & Co Ltd

The former Lawsonia works, Seagrave Road, 2012

HENRY WESTON & CO

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

NOTES

i) A subsidiary of the main factory at Belgrave Gate, Leicester
i) Details from Trade Directories 1890-1896
i) Workshop checked for overcrowding (Leicester Chronicle, 26th September 1891)

c1890 - c1896

CHARLES J WILKINSON

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

c1888 - c1899

NOTES

i) A subsidiary of the main factory works in Leicester
i) Details from Trade Directories 1888-1899

L WILLETT & CO

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

1919 - 1956
Swan Street

NOTES

i) Louisa Willett, sister of Rowland Willett, originally from Stanton under Bardon then moved to Mountsorrel before settling in Swan Street, Sileby.
i) Was a joint partner with her brother Rowland in the original Rowland Willett & Co
i) Partnership was dissolved in 1919 and Louisa took over the sole ownership of the company.
i) In 1937 L Willett and Co Ltd was registered as a private company with nominal capital of £3,000 in £1 shares (Leicester Evening Mail, 1st October 1937)
i) November 1956 : The company to be wound up - in voluntary liquidation (London Gazette, 20th November 1956)

R WILLETT & CO

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

c1912 - 1919
Swan Street

NOTES

i) Rowland Willett had been making shoes at Sileby since 1912 (Leicester Evening Mail, 10th December 1934)
i) Partnership of siblings Rowland and Louisa Willett was dissolved on 12th July 1919 (London Gazette, 22nd August 1919)

ROWLAND WILLETT & CO LTD

DATES OF MANUFACTURE :
LOCATION :
PRODUCTS :
TRADE NAMES :

1920 - 1919
Seagrave Road
Boys & Girls shoes

NOTES

i) Rowland Willett manufacturing at Seagrave Road since 1920 (Leicester Evening Mail, 10th December 1934)
i) Three factory extensions added up to 1934-35
i) The third extension (1934-35) added 2 extra bays and gave work to 50 more people, in addition to the 120 workers already there.
i) 8th June 1939 - Catastrophic fire consumes the factory causing the loss of 6,000 pairs of childrens shoes, £15,000 in damage and 150 workers out of a job. (Leicester Mercury, 8th June 1939)
i) May 1940 - Rowland Willett and Co Ltd was registered as a private company with nominal capital of £10,000 in £1 shares (Nottingham Journal, 11th May 1940)
i) 20th August 1982 - The company announced its plans to close the business due to cheap imports and difficult trading conditions.

Rowland Willett & Co Ltd

The former works, Seagrave Road/Park Road, 2012

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Sileby History

Its people and places. A community through time.

BOOT & SHOE MANUFACTURING COMPANIES, FACTORIES AND WORKSHOPS

PETER BLACK HOLDINGS LTD

HENRY BRAY & CO

BRAY & COMPTON LTD

H C BRAY & CO LTD

CLARENCE BRAY LTD

CARTER & CO

TOM CHAMBERLAIN

ERNEST CHAPLIN

E CHAPLIN & SONS

JOSEPH CLARKE

THRONE, CRICK & CO

EXCELSIOR BOOT & SHOE MANUFACTURING SOCIETY LTD

EXCELSIOR CO-OPERATIVE BOOT SOCIETY LTD

FREER & MASON LTD

FREER, SMITH & WARD

W GARE & CO LTD

GLOVER BROTHERS

C HALLAM & CO

ALFRED KNIGHT & CO

J W MOIR & CO LTD

G NEAL & SONS

NEWBOLD & BURTON LTD

NEWBOLD & BURTON HOLDINGS LTD

C H PRESTON & SONS

J A SIMONS & CO

SMITH & STANDLEY

SMITH & WARD

SWAN & PRESTON

WALKER, KEMPSON & STEVENS LTD

WARD BROTHERS

LAWSON WARD & CO

HENRY WESTON & CO

CHARLES J WILKINSON

L WILLETT & CO

R WILLETT & CO

ROWLAND WILLETT & CO LTD