9th November 1972
PONTEFRACT BRUSHMAKER RETIRES - END OF HIS CRAFT

When an 82-year-old Pontefract brush-maker retires at the end of this year, it will mean the end of his craft as far as Pontefract is concerned - but the atmosphere will be preserved through arrangements being made to transfer the interior of his workshop to a museum.

Mr. John England has been in the brush-making trade in Pontefract since 1904. Before leaving school he assisted at Fordham’s pipe factory in the Booths, and also took a horse-drawn cart to Leeds on occasions, to earn welcome coppers. On leaving school he tried a number of jobs and finally began an apprenticeship with Mr. Jones, brushmaker.

After a spell in the army during the First World War he returned to brushmaking inheriting the business from Mr. Jones, on the latter’s death in 1942. Over a year ago a trade journal recognised him as the oldest brushmaker in the country. Most of the equipment in the workshop dates from the turn of the century or before, and entering is like stepping into the past. One of the most interesting items is a job-book which details orders received and the cost of the finished products. A 24-inch bass broom was 2/9d in the reign of Edward V11. The job book could be regarded as a trade directory of the district, for not only did hardware shops order brushes in bulk, but many other businesses ordered special brushes, such as dairy and stable brooms.

When Mr. England retires at Christmas, Pontefract will lose another of its craftsmen, and the craft itself will no longer be represented in the town, for his workshop, approached from the Cornmarket yard of South Yorkshire Motors, will close. A team from the Pontefract Archaeological Society has been busy taking photographs in colour and monochrome of the old craftsman at work; and arrangements are being made to transfer the interior of the workshop to a folk and industrial museum.

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