London Gazette
31 July 1855 

Notice of Petition for Bankruptcy - filed by
Lewis Henry Meakin and John Farrall 

"WHEREAS a Petition for adjudication of Bankruptcy, bearing date the 30th day of July, 1855, hath been filed by Lewis Henry Meakin and John Furrall, of Shelton, in the parish of Stoke-upon-Trent, in the county of Stafford, 

Earthenware Manufacturers, Dealers and Chapmen, and Copartners in Trade, 

and they being declared bankrupts are hereby required to surrender themselves to John Balguy, Esq., one of Her Majesty’s Commissioners of the Birmingham District Court of Bankruptcy, at Birmingham, on the 13th day of August next, and on the 3rd day of September following, at one of the clock in the afternoon, on each of the said days, and make a full discovery and disclosure of their estate and effects; when and where the creditors are to come prepared to prove their debts, and at the first sitting to choose assignees, and at the last sitting the said bankrupts are required to finish their examination. 

All persons indebted to the said bankrupts, or that have any of their effects, are not to pay or deliver the same but to Mr. James Christie, No. 7, Waterloo-street, Birmingham, the Official Assignee, whom the Commissioner has appointed, and give notice to Mr. Ralph Stevenson, Solicitor, Hanley, or to Messrs. E. and H. Wright, Solicitors, Birmingham." 

This notice published in the The London Gazette on 31 July 1855 records the bankruptcy of Lewis Henry Meakin and John Furrall, earthenware manufacturers and business partners based in Shelton, in the Stoke-upon-Trent Potteries. 

Their petition had been filed the previous day (30 July), reflecting the speed with which such proceedings were formally announced to alert creditors. The case was handled through the Birmingham District Court of Bankruptcy, where the partners were required to appear on 13 August and 3 September 1855 to disclose their financial affairs. 

As “manufacturers, dealers and chapmen, and copartners in trade,” they were jointly responsible for both production and sale of their wares, illustrating the integrated nature of mid-19th-century pottery businesses. 

The notice also directed that all debts owed to them be paid instead to an Official Assignee, ensuring fair distribution among creditors—a key feature of Victorian bankruptcy practice. Such notices were a routine but important part of the commercial life of the Potteries, where rapid industrial growth in the ceramics trade brought both opportunity and financial risk, and failures of small partnerships like this were not uncommon.

Ironstone China
Lewis H. Meakin

The fact that both J&G Meakin and Lewis H Meakin both used the same mark and that for a brief period the two companies operated at the same works Cannon Street works strengthens the assumption of their relationship as first cousins. 

The crest used in this printed mark is a hybrid coat of arms designed specifically for export appeal to the American market - explore this mark »