BORN:

1918 in Ormskirk, Lancashire

MARRIED:

31st July 1943 to Francois August Venesoen, at Anglesey, Wales

DIED:

14th May 2008, Holyhead, North Wales.

Pamela Mary Webb was the last surviving child of Duncan Webb Junior until her death in 2008. Her early years were spent in Ormskirk and Southport, where her father lived when running Molineaux & Webb. When the company liquidated the Webb family were thrust into debt, and her father declared a bankrupt for some years. Despite the family receiving in the region of £30,000 from the death of her grandfather, Duncan Webb, in 1936, the family were in court a few years later with further money troubles.

Around the start of World War 2, the Webbs moved to North Wales and settled in the Caernarvon area. In 1943 the war took Pamela's younger brother, Christopher Colin Webb, who died in Malta. Pamela meanwhile married a Belgian soldier, Francois August Venesoen. Less than a year later, Francois died at sea, in action on D-Day. There were no children from the marriage and Pamela never remarried.

Pamela and her relations stayed in the Caernarvon area, some working as sheep farmers.

After the death of her father in 1947, Pamela became the keeper of the Webb memorabilia from their time in the glass industry. She held on to the family items until 1977, when an auction was held at Sothebys. Most if not all of the items were bought by the Manchester Art Gallery, including the Molineaux & Webb pattern book, and various glass items dating from the 1850s and 1860s. Most of these objects are available to view at the Manchester Archives or on the Manchester Art Gallery website.

In 2008 Pamela Webb died and her estate was broken up. The Manchester Art Gallery was given first refusal on items relating to the glass industry still in her possession. These items are now available to view at the Gallery website and some may appear in the display case of their permanent exhibition on Ancoats glass.

The items included:

- The bronze medal won by the company in the 1851 Great Exhibition.

- A brass snuff box dating from 1802, inscribed to Thomas Webb, glassmaker of Warrington.

- A silver cigar case, part of the 1859 retirement presentation to Thomas Webb.

- Several inscribed glasses dating to circa 1900.

The glass items from Pamela's bequest to the Art Gallery have been collectively labelled as "The Venesoen Collection."

Additionally, an auction was held of family bric-a-brac and furniture, all proceeds going to the RAF Benevolent Fund. This auction included several items which were owned by the family for the best part of 200 years. The star piece was a William IV table which sold for over £700.

Pamela Mary Webb

Francois Venesoen

Francois and Pamela