Henry Alcock & Co (Ltd)

Manufacturer of earthenware at Cobridge, Stoke-on-Trent, England

The Alcock family had been associated with the Elder Pottery in Cobridge since 1835.
In 1861 Henry Alcock succeeded John Alcock (snr.) and the business operated as Henry Alcock & Co.
Partners included Henry Alcock, his brother John Alcock the younger and Joseph Alcock. In June 1874 Joseph retired from the business - Henry & John continued. (The London Gazette)
In 1909 Henry Alcock & Co. got into financial difficulty and a receiver was appointed. On Aug. 9, 1909, shortly after the appointment of the receiver, a circular letter was issued by Mr. A. Dutton, one of the directors, to the home trade creditors of the company, stating that the business of the company might be discontinued at Cobridge, but that he and two other directors of the old company were commencing at another and more upto date factory at Fenton and would be able to supply the lines formerly manufactured by Henry Alcock & Co., Ltd., Pottery Gazette, October 1909.
In October 1909 a new company - Henry Alcock Pottery Ltd. was registered with a registered capital of £3,000. The subscribers were A. Dutton and F. W. Turner.
The Elder Pottery factory in Cobridge was sold to Soho Pottery who moved in in August 1910.
By November 1909 the Henry Alcock Pottery was operating from the King Street Works, Fenton.
In June 1911 it was announced that "The Henry Alcock Pottery, Ltd., King-st. Works, Fenton, has recently been merged into J. A. Robinson & Sons, Ltd., Wolfe-st., Stoke-on-Trent. Robinson & Sons, Ltd., are now enlarging their premises, and will shortly remove the Alcock branch to Wolfe-st." Pottery Gazette. June 1911.
The Henry Alcock Pottery continued until 1935.

Henry Alcock & Co Ltd, Elder Works, Cobridge

Alcock's Semi-China, Spiral Shape
Henry Alcock & Co Ltd, Manufacturers, Cobridge

Pottery Gazette - January 1906

The Henry Alcock Pottery, Ltd., King Street Works, Fenton

Alcock's Semi-China, Spiral Shape
Made by The Henry Alcock Pottery, Ltd.,
Successors to Henry Alcock & Co Ltd. Cobridge
King Street Works, Fenton

We are making their patterns as before

Pottery Gazette - November 1909

The Henry Alcock Pottery, Ltd.,
King Street Works, Fenton
We are making Alcock's Semi-China in Spiral
and all other Patterns and Shapes
as before

this advert is from the brief period (Oct 1909-1911) when the Henry Alcock Pottery
was operating from the King Street Works, Fenton

white ironstone serving dish and tureen

- more on ironstone -

H A & Co
(impressed)

Imperial
Ironstone China
Henry Alcock & Co

the mark includes the Royal Arms

the impressed '2' is probably a size mark

pattern in the style of the popular Chinese / Indian tree pattern

Semi Porcelain
The Henry Alcock Pottery Ltd
Fenton
Stoke-on-Trent
England

the hand painted number is probably a pattern reference
the impressed 11 10 is the month-year of manufacture, in this case November 1910
the impressed '17' is likely to be a size or mould number.

The Henry Alcock Pottery Ltd operated at Fenton from October 1909 to 1911

Herbert Aynsley & Co also used the initials H. A. & Co. and sometimes these
are confused with Henry Alcock & Co.

Hawthorn is the pattern name
the registration number 67716 shows
that the pattern was first registered
on the 10th February 1887

this mark likely to be post 1890, when the McKinley Tariff Act required
imports to the US to be marked with the country of origin, and pre-1900
when 'Ltd' was generally added to the company marks

General earthenware was produced including white graniteware produced under the names "Ironstone China" and Parisian porcelain" exclusively for the American markets.

Imperial Parisian Porcelain
Henry Alcock & Co

this fragment was found on the beach at Cape Lookout, Outer Banks, North Carolina, USA

photo courtesy: Katherine Oliver

in the shield there is a depiction of the 'American Eagle' - some English potters used the Eagle on ware exported to America - it made the ware more acceptable to purchasers.

Imperial Parisian Porcelain
Henry Alcock & Co

Oxford is the name of the shape

the name 'Parisian' was used to make the ware seem more more sophisticated and to make it more appealing to the American market when anti-British feelings were on the rise