Registered Designs
These pages contain details on all designs registered by Manchester glass firms. We are attempting to find images of glassware to match the designs - if you can supply any images to add to the site, please contact us via the email link on our Contact page.
Even with the help of the original sketches and photographs of glassware, the registration numbers can still throw up causes of confusion. Have a look at our page Registration Observations where a few difficulties are listed. This includes details of a court case where Ker & Webb prosecuted Percival & Vickers over a copyright infringement.
Molineaux & Webb
Approx 120 designs between 1846 - 1928
Overview
After a one-off registration in 1846, Molineaux & Webb started to register designs in significant numbers from the mid 1860s, as did rival Manchester firms Percival & Vickers and the Derbyshire brothers. Most registrations from this date were for tableware with a few simple but effective patterns used, such as the Greek Key design, beaded edges, and frosted bands.
In 1875 the company registered two of their most ornate pieces, a black sphinx paperweight and a dolphin stand. A year earlier, Percival & Vickers had issued a dolphin vase and a year later, the Derbyshires issued their own sphinx paperweight.
The mid 1880s saw a number of posy troughs issued, including castle pieces, a duck, a fish, and a heart shape. Other designs from this decade and the 1890s often imitated cut glass. Moving into the 20th century, registration of designs became fewer, and they trended towards small objects, such as dishes, bowls, ashtrays and flower frogs.
Also see
Molineaux Webb Unregistered Pressed Glass
and
items that have survived from a glass cutter who once worked for the firm
Molineaux Webb 20th Century Cut Glass
Percival & Vickers
Approx 100 designs between 1847 - 1902
Overview
Compared to the registrations of other Manchester firms, Percival & Vickers registered a surfeit of tumbler designs but little that was highly ornamental. In many ways their output mirrors all the important stages of Manchester glass registrations. After their early decanter designs of the 1840s, there is a concentration on tableware once items were regularly registered in the 1860s. The 1870s see a rash of tumbler and goblet registrations, many of which were rather plain, but their dolphin vase of 1874 was a company highlight, contemporary with the best output from Molineaux & Webb and the Derbyshires at the same time. Towards the end of the century the company was still producing tableware designs at a fair rate, but was branching out into spirit jars and domestic lighting.
A rare surviving label on an 1890's piece of pressed glass - photo sent in by Fred Cooper
Burtles & Tate
Approx 60 designs between 1870 - 1914
Overview
The registrations of Burtles & Tate are quite different to the other Manchester glass houses. There is very little domestic tableware and no tumblers. Instead we have a large number of flower vases, holders and stands, the most famous of which are their swan and elephant designs of the mid 1880s. Several of their designs are very small and somewhat eccentric at times.
The Derbyshire Brothers
40 designs between 1864 - 1877
Includes 2 from the Regent Road Flint Glass Works in 1877
Overview
The Derbyshire brothers, James, John and later nephew Thomas, were active in the Manchester glass industry in both the Hulme and Salford areas under a number of business names. Early registrations in the Hulme area were mainly for tumblers, goblets and breakfast sets. Virtually all the designs of interest are connected to John Derbyshire, particularly after he moved to Salford to start his own business in 1873.
Ker & Webb
9 designs between 1868 - 1874
4 designs between 1875 - 1893 from companies that split from the partnership
Overview
The partnership between Andrew Ker and Thomas Webb lasted for about seven years. The designs they registered together were mainly for tumblers and goblets. Thomas Webb registered one more design after the partnership broke up in 1875, as did Andrew Ker. The sons of Thomas Webb registered two further designs in the 1890s under the name of Webb Brothers. Further details on the what this branch of the Webb family got up to after the partnership ended can be found at The Descendants of William Webb.
Other Manchester Registrations
Overview
Along with the many registrations from the major glass factories of Manchester and Salford, there were a number of companies and individuals who registered a small number of designs. Many of these occurred around the 1870s which seems to be a highpoint for glass designs from the area.
The designs break down into four broad groups
1 - Designs from short-lived glass factories
2 - Designs from glass factories that lasted a while but rarely registered their designs
3 - One-off decorative designs from individuals
4 - Individuals unconnected with the glass industry who registered a design for glass items of use in their industry
Designs from groups 1&2 look like items that could have been produced by any glass manufacturer of the day. Other designs can only be made sense of with the help of the census. To give an example, we have a photograph below of an object registered by a Henry Durandu of Liverpool in 1868. He had no known connection with the glass industry, and it is not immediately obvious what the object is. However the census tells us he was a cigar dealer...
Henry Durandu cigar rest and ash tray - registered 29 July 1868
(photo by Rob Young)
