See the Potteries List section for the Bedminster Pottery.
It is not known when the Pottery was established. Room took an apprentice in 1786 so it was presumably operating by that date. A Day Book for the Pottery survives covering the period from 29 September 1788 to 17 October 1789. It does not give the owner’s name, but one of the employees was Samuel Sheppard, Room’s apprentice.
| c1784-90 | Richard Room ran the Bedminster Pottery. |
Room probably died in 1790 when the Pottery was taken over by Peter Dean.
| 1757 | Probably the Richard, son of William and Sarah Room, baptised (JBPR). |
| 1784 | 8 or 10 Apr. He became a free potter because of his marriage to Mary, daughter of Joseph Bedbury, inn-holder, deceased (F, G). |
| 1784 | Potter, St Mary Redcliffe parish (P). |
| 1786 | 27 May. Potter, Mayor’s Paddock (Ao). |
| 1786 | 17 Oct. He took George Chafe, a poor child of Axbridge, Somerset as an apprentice, with a consideration of £5.5s.0d (SRO D/P/ax 13/6/1 – information from Marek Lewcun). |
| 1788-89 | The ‘Day Book’ for the Bedminster Pottery survives for this period. It has been fully transcribed and published in Jackson & Price 1982, 213-226. It was re-used as the Baptismal Register for St John’s Church, Bedminster for the period 1750-1812. |
| 1790 | 15 May. Probably the Richard Room, aged 32 years, buried (JBPR). |
| 1805 | 14 Aug. He was dead when Samuel Sheppard became free (F). |
| 1836 | 21 Jan. ‘Died: Dec 29, Mrs Mary Room of Bedminster, in the 76th year of her age, deeply regretted by all who knew her’ (BG). |
| Apprentices: With wife Mary: Samuel Sheppard, 27 May 1786 (A, Ao)-14 Aug 1805 (F). George Chafe, 17 Oct 1786 (SRO D/P/ax 13/6/1) |