of
deposited in
N James and S Roberts, May 1991
Historical Manuscripts Commission
In 1826. Edward and Stephen Sheldon established a foundry at Coseley for the manufacture of cast iron pots and pans, although an account book of 1820-24 for Smith, Sheldon & Co in the possession of Cannon Industries Ltd indicates that there was an earlier business partnership, The original site, on an estate known as The Dowry, was ideally placed for such production, as it abutted a branch of the Birmingham Canal and adjacent collieries provided fuel for the foundry. In 1838, the opening of the Coseley Tunnel further improved the site's transport links by reducing the length of the original canal route to Birmingham. This encouraged expansion of the Sheldons' enterprise at The Dowry and on to adjacent land. By 1926, the Cannon Foundry site covered 26 acres.
After Edward Sheldon's death in 1853, the business was carried on by his sons-in-law, william Barnett and John Hawthorne. The company continued in family ownership through their sons, Edward Sheldon Barnett and William Henry Hawthorne. and through Richard Clayton. a solicitor. who married William and Catherine Barnett's daughter Panny Eliza in 1874,
In 1884. the business. which had been trading as E Sheldon & Co, was incorporated as a limited company and its name changed to the Cannon Hollow-ware Co Ltd. The shares were held only by the earlier partners, who were all family members. A further change occurred in 1900, when the firm became known as The Cannon Iron Foundries Ltd, to reflect the wider range of its business.
From the 1880s, the pace of Cannon's development gathered momentum. A series of patents taken out in the 1880s and 1890s testifies to the company's development of its original trade in cooking utensils. The period from 1890 to 1914, however, saw a great expansion in the range of its products. Gas cookers and stoves increasingly formed a major part of its output, followed by gas fires and meters. The company also manufactured household and builders’ ironmongery, grindstones and sanitary ware including baths, basins and lavatories using the porceliron technique which simulated the finish of glazed pottery ware. After the First World War, Cannon also becase an important manufacturer of plant for chemical works. Further information on the history of the firm during this period can be found in the Black Country Society's occasional publication The Cannon Iron Foundry Coseley 1826-1926.
Cannon Industries Ltd is now a subsidiary of Cannon (Holdings) Ltd, which is itself controlled by GEC. The records listed below were inspected on 25 April 1991 by kind permission of Mr AC Pritchard, Personnel and Administration Manager.
Corporate records
Minute books (6) from 1884
Accounting records
Account of expenses paid by T Hartland for Smith, Sheldon & Co (1 volume) 1820-24
Ledger of E & S Sheldon 1830-33
Cash receipt book of Edward Sheldon 1852
Account of John Bradley with E Sheldon & Co and related correspondence and papers (1 envelope) 1856-79
Cheque from E Sheldon & Co to CA Scott 1873
Correspondence with accountants and related papers (1 bundle) 1894-96
Ledgers, bank books and other accounting records (c20 volumes) 20th century
Sales and production records
Agreements and correspondence with the firm's agents and representatives in Britain and overseas (c70 envelopes) c1904-39
Accounts, receipts, agency agreements, etc (c18 envelopes and bundles) 1914-31
'Memo book re Gas Stove Department’ 1898-1909
Gas stove department weekly output and delivery books (2 volumes) 1899-1923
Gas stove department complaints book 1907-10
Analysis of meter sales (1 volume) 1918-27
Gas oven department quarterly statements, etc (1 envelope) 1924-26
Stock book 1891-95
Pattern book including specifications c1896-c1933
Blueprints and specifications (26 files) mainly 1960s-1970s
Enamel recipe books [20th century?]
Lists of serial numbers (4 items) nd
Printed catalogues and price lists c1847-1980s
Miscellaneous counterfoil books (2 volumes) 1934-36
Patent and trade mark records
Correspondence and papers relating to patents and trade marks, including original patents and extensive correspondence with patent and trade mark agents (190 files, 1 volume, 2 bundles, 1 envelope, etc) 1857-1952
Agreements with individuals concerning technical improvements, and related papers (2 envelopes, 1 file) 1889, 1912
Framed trade mark registration certificate 1886
Staff records
Framed apprenticeship indenture 1840
Employment agreements and papers (2 envelopes) 1878-91
'Holloware Turners Piecework Prices’ (1 volume) 1889
Correspondence and papers relating to dismissal of Thomas Whyman, works manager (3 envelopes) 1895
Cannon Fire Brigade rules (1 volume) 1913
List of employees serving with HM Forces, and Comforts Fund records (1 volume, 1 envelope) 1939-47
Staff overtime records (1 envelope) 1957-58
Estate records
Correspondence, deeds, plans and legal papers relating to the firm's estate in Coseley and elsewhere (16 files, 2 parcels, 9 bundles, 1 envelope, c50 items) 1787-1935
Miscellaneous deeds and agreements mid 20th century
Schedule of deeds 1817-1967
Register of deeds amended to 1959
Records relating to company history
Album of letters, agreements, photographs, advertising material. press cuttings, etc c1880-c1942
Album of centenary celebrations, and souvenir booklets 1926
Correspondence and papers about plans for the firm's celebration of the coronation of Edward VIII (1 file) 1936-37
Photographs of premises, products and staff late 19th-20th century
Wills of Richard Clayton 1913-14 and ES Barnett 1922
R Talbot Clayton's press cuttings book 1914-55
Samples of the firm's stationery 1850s
Miscellaneous printed papers 1898-1970s.