SOME EXAMPLES OF COLCLOUGH CHINA

Colclough, at Regent Works, produce bone china tea ware. The firm was established in 1895 by Herbert J. Colclough, a former Lord Mayor of Stoke and a man of great repute 'among all sections of the community. It is said that, at the beginning of his career as a potter he used to fire two ovens himself. Many times, after working all day, he would sit beside his ovens all night, so anxious was he to achieve success.

He seemed to thrive on hard work and consequently made a success of his business. In 1907 he took over the Osborne Works at Longton and in 1918 he added the Regent Works, which had been in production since 1850. A red letter day for the founder was when, in 1913, the late King George V and Queen Mary visited his Vale factory in the course of the tour of the Potteries, hence the Royal Vale backstamp which is still in use on certain Colclough ranges. The Regent Works has undergone extensive reconstruction and, at the present day, the company can boast of being the largest individual bone china producing unit in the industry.