IDENTITY STATEMENT
Reference code(s): GB 0074 CLC/B/222
Held at: London Metropolitan Archives
Title: WELCH, MARGETSON AND COMPANY
Date(s): 1853-1980
Level of description: Collection
Extent: 33 production units.
Name of creator(s): Welch, Margetson and Co Ltd | menswear manufacturers
CONTEXT
Administrative/Biographical history:
Welch, Margetson and Company, a firm of menswear manufacturers specialising in shirts, collars, silk handkerchiefs, silk neckties, scarves and braces, was established in 1832. It was one of the first companies to introduce an in-working factory arrangement for the making of shirts. In 1847 the first Londonderry factory was opened, followed by Carlisle Road factory, Londonderry, in 1876. A tie factory was built in Bermondsey in 1890, to which the production of all other company products moved in due course. Early in the 20th century a factory for the shirt, collar and tie trade was opened in Melbourne, Australia, and in 1911 a limited liability company was formed, Welch, Margetson and Company (Overseas).
Welch, Margetson and Company became a public company in 1948 and was taken over by Viyella International Limited in 1968. During the early 20th century there was a company social club called the Crownfield Sports and Social Club. The Martus Fifty Club, a social club for employees who had completed fifty years with the company, was formed in 1949.
The company was based at 7 Farringdon Street (1832-5), 132 Cheapside (1836-43), 134 Cheapside (1844-9), 17 Cheapside and 46 Old Change (1850-7), 16-17 Cheapside (1858-98), 16-30 Moor Lane (1899-40), 5 Warwick Street (1943-63) and 237 Long Lane, Bermondsey (1929-).
CONTENT
Scope and content/abstract:
Records of Welch, Margetson and Company Limited, menswear manufacturers, including memorandum and articles of association; Board minutes; correspondence; annual reports and accounts; photographs of offices in Australia and of staff at work in offices, shops, factories and laundry; file on products, process and other firms; advertising; catalogues and price lists; papers relating to staff clubs; papers relating to property; and notes on the history of the company.
ACCESS AND USE
Language/scripts of material: English
System of arrangement:
Records arranged by MS number, assigned during cataloguing at the Guildhall Library Manuscripts Section.
Conditions governing access:
Access by appointment only. Please contact staff.
Conditions governing reproduction:
Copyright to this collection rests with the depositor.
Finding aids:
Please see online catalogues at: http://search.lma.gov.uk/opac_lma/index.htm
ARCHIVAL INFORMATION
Archival history:
Immediate source of acquisition:
The company's archives were deposited in the Manuscripts Section of Guildhall Library in 1986. They were catalogued by an assistant archivist in December 2002. The Guildhall Library Manuscripts Section merged with the London Metropolitan Archives in 2009.
ALLIED MATERIALS
DESCRIPTION NOTES
Archivist's note:
Date(s) of descriptions: January to May 2011.