Limekiln Lane (also known as Cow Lane), St Augustine’s parish.
Summary of operating dates and proprietors
c1706-1723 | Henry Hobbs. |
1725-1734 | William Pottery and John Weaver. |
1735-1738 | Charles Christopher. |
1739-c1741 | Josiah Bundy. |
Josiah Bundy died in 1741 and the pottery appears to have closed.
The pottery was built on the site of a walled garden adjoining Brandon Hill by Henry Hobbs who was described as a carpenter in 1693. It is not known when he established the pottery but it was some time between about 1700, when the site of the pottery was referred to as a garden, and 1706, when Hobbs was first recorded as a potmaker. The pottery was described as ‘new erected’ in 1707 and in the same year Hobbs was recorded as exporting earthenwares. Between 1706 and 1708 he took apprentices with a ‘co-partner’, but the identity of the co-partner is not known. Hobbs was recorded as a potmaker or a gallypotmaker. He probably died in 1722 or 1723 when he stopped paying land tax on the pottery, which was noted as ‘void’ (i.e. unoccupied) in the first half of 1723. He was certainly dead by October 1725.
The pottery was then taken over by William Pottery and John Weaver, probably by 1724 when Weaver took his first apprentice. Pottery and Weaver were recorded as jointly paying rates on the pottery in 1728/29 and they were both taking apprentices as gallypotmakers between 1724 and 1734. John Weaver died in 1734 and William Pottery established the Limekiln Lane Pottery 2.
The Limekiln Lane Pottery 1 was taken over by Charles Christopher who was certainly working there in 1735. However, the land tax returns for September 1737 to September 1738 recorded the pottery as ‘void’ and Charles Christopher must have given up the business.
It was occupied by Josiah Bundy by 1739 when he took over the apprenticeships of James Grant and John Bowen from Charles Christopher. Bundy had died by November 1741 when his apprentices were transferred to James Gaynard and his wife had left the trade. The pottery closed after his death.
Wares produced
Tin-glazed earthenwares.
Finds of waste pottery and kiln material
Jackson, R. & P. and Beckey, I. 1991. Tin-glazed earthenware kiln waste from the Limekiln Lane Potteries, Bristol. Journal of the Society for Post-Medieval Archaeology 25, 89-114.
The report describes the recovery in 1984 of tin-glazed earthenware kiln waste from the vicinity of the Limekiln Lane potteries, compares this with contemporary material excavated from London and Bristol, and argues that the kiln waste was produced between about 1715 and 1725 by Henry Hobbs and Company. One hundred sherds of waste pottery are illustrated which includes plates, bowls, dishes, albarello-type and cauldron-type containers, chamber pots, mugs, storage vessels, other domestic vessels, ‘number pots’ and tiles. The kiln furniture is also illustrated and includes saggars, kiln tiles and pegs.
(HER no. 534; BRSMG accession no. 35/1984).
See also under Limekiln Lane Pottery 2.