- Joined
- Dec 2, 2005
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- 69,181
Quite some time ago, Kris (as in Cuts Like A Kris) got in touch, to tell me he had something he wanted to send back to Leeds, the Yorkshire town where I now live. I was certainly very intrigued, unlike Sheffield, where I was born, Leeds isnt famous for its cutlers, and while they existed, the fruits of their labour are certainly not widely seen.
A package arrived from Kris the other day containing two knives. The older one, a well-loved Swayback, which I think may have originally been a Lambsfoot, was the one from Leeds, but I struggled to make out what the tang said, not least since a couple of letters had been almost completely ground away. I struggled and squinted, managing to make out most of the letters I thought, then checking them against a list of Yorkshire surnames. Unlike the cutlers of Sheffield, there has been virtually nothing written about the cutlers of Leeds, and I struggled to find anything. Of course, not knowing the name of the firm I was looking for hindered matters greatly! I bounced a couple of messages back and forth with Kris, and then he completed the link Croisdale! Once I had that, I was able to find out a little more info, and after half a day poking around various online directories and census registers, I came up with some basic info about where the knife Kris had sent me had come from.
James Croisdale is listed in the 1837 Leeds Directory of Trades & Professions as a cutler of 61 Kirkgate, the towns oldest street. James Croisdale was a fairly common name in 19th Century Leeds, but this was the James Croisdale born in either 1801 or 1808. In the 1839 edition of the same directory, he is listed as a working cutler, surgical instrument and elastic truss maker at 59 and 61 Kirkgate. In 1870, James Croisdale is listed as a partner with George Stephen Cox in Croisdale & Cox, cutlers, truss-makers, and ironmongers at 53-54 Kirkgate, with additional premises later at 36 Briggate. At the beginning of 1880, the partnership was dissolved, with notice being given in the London Gazette of 12th March. In the 1891 Leeds Census, James is listed as a cutler, still residing at 61 Kirkgate (Mr Cox is not mentioned in the same census). I assume that this James is the son of the first James Croisdale, either that or the James Croisdale of 1837 had an extraordinarily long working life! James Croisdales were born in Leeds in 1833, 1836, and 1855.
After the dissolution of Croisdale & Cox, James Croisdale continued to operate from premises at 36 Briggate, just a few yards from where he lived. Croisdale & Son were styled as Cutlers, Sporting and Athletic Outfitters, Ironmongers, and Silversmiths . Harold Croisdale (born 1878) later became a partner in the company, alongside his father and a Fredrick William Beer. In November 1904 however, notice was given in the London Gazette that the partnership was being dissolved by mutual consent, and that the business would continue with James Croisdale and Frederick William Beer as sole partners. The company were gone by the early 1930s.
Croisdale may have originally made knives themselves, but later, they seem to have been more of a retailer, who like many other hardware companies, would have knives, razors, and scissors, (all of which they sold), made up in Sheffield, where there were vastly more working cutlers, and where better prices could probably be found. Some of their knives were marked as being hand-forged in Sheffield, along with the Croisdale, Leeds tang-stamp. The Sheffield name also carried far greater prestige with regard to cutlery of course.
Briggate, the central Leeds thoroughfare where Croisdale were situated has changed massively since this photograph (above) was taken at the turn of the century, but many of the old buildings are still there, albeit with different frontage, and certainly different proprietors. The business on the corner of Briggate in the 1900 photograph Suttons - was at No33. Number 33-36 are now occupied by a branch of McDonalds. Heres how it looks today.
So a nice knife with lots of great character, and an interesting piece of Yorkshire cutlery history. But there was a second knife included in Kriss package my first Canadian knife a Nahco Penknife. So thats something else for me to find out about! Thanks for your kindness Kris, its very much appreciated :thumbup:
Jack
A package arrived from Kris the other day containing two knives. The older one, a well-loved Swayback, which I think may have originally been a Lambsfoot, was the one from Leeds, but I struggled to make out what the tang said, not least since a couple of letters had been almost completely ground away. I struggled and squinted, managing to make out most of the letters I thought, then checking them against a list of Yorkshire surnames. Unlike the cutlers of Sheffield, there has been virtually nothing written about the cutlers of Leeds, and I struggled to find anything. Of course, not knowing the name of the firm I was looking for hindered matters greatly! I bounced a couple of messages back and forth with Kris, and then he completed the link Croisdale! Once I had that, I was able to find out a little more info, and after half a day poking around various online directories and census registers, I came up with some basic info about where the knife Kris had sent me had come from.
James Croisdale is listed in the 1837 Leeds Directory of Trades & Professions as a cutler of 61 Kirkgate, the towns oldest street. James Croisdale was a fairly common name in 19th Century Leeds, but this was the James Croisdale born in either 1801 or 1808. In the 1839 edition of the same directory, he is listed as a working cutler, surgical instrument and elastic truss maker at 59 and 61 Kirkgate. In 1870, James Croisdale is listed as a partner with George Stephen Cox in Croisdale & Cox, cutlers, truss-makers, and ironmongers at 53-54 Kirkgate, with additional premises later at 36 Briggate. At the beginning of 1880, the partnership was dissolved, with notice being given in the London Gazette of 12th March. In the 1891 Leeds Census, James is listed as a cutler, still residing at 61 Kirkgate (Mr Cox is not mentioned in the same census). I assume that this James is the son of the first James Croisdale, either that or the James Croisdale of 1837 had an extraordinarily long working life! James Croisdales were born in Leeds in 1833, 1836, and 1855.
After the dissolution of Croisdale & Cox, James Croisdale continued to operate from premises at 36 Briggate, just a few yards from where he lived. Croisdale & Son were styled as Cutlers, Sporting and Athletic Outfitters, Ironmongers, and Silversmiths . Harold Croisdale (born 1878) later became a partner in the company, alongside his father and a Fredrick William Beer. In November 1904 however, notice was given in the London Gazette that the partnership was being dissolved by mutual consent, and that the business would continue with James Croisdale and Frederick William Beer as sole partners. The company were gone by the early 1930s.
Croisdale may have originally made knives themselves, but later, they seem to have been more of a retailer, who like many other hardware companies, would have knives, razors, and scissors, (all of which they sold), made up in Sheffield, where there were vastly more working cutlers, and where better prices could probably be found. Some of their knives were marked as being hand-forged in Sheffield, along with the Croisdale, Leeds tang-stamp. The Sheffield name also carried far greater prestige with regard to cutlery of course.
Briggate, the central Leeds thoroughfare where Croisdale were situated has changed massively since this photograph (above) was taken at the turn of the century, but many of the old buildings are still there, albeit with different frontage, and certainly different proprietors. The business on the corner of Briggate in the 1900 photograph Suttons - was at No33. Number 33-36 are now occupied by a branch of McDonalds. Heres how it looks today.
So a nice knife with lots of great character, and an interesting piece of Yorkshire cutlery history. But there was a second knife included in Kriss package my first Canadian knife a Nahco Penknife. So thats something else for me to find out about! Thanks for your kindness Kris, its very much appreciated :thumbup:
Jack
I'm still having difficulty uploading pics, so have filched a few images for you. There was some bombing of Leeds in WW2, but absolutely nothing compared to what Sheffield endured. That area was originally composed of a labyrinth of lanes and alleyways, but these were cleared to prevent the spread of diseases like cholera. The whole street has been completely pedestrianised for a long time now, as has much of the city centre, and as you say, much of the old brick and slate has been replaced by concrete and glass, but some of the buildings still have upper floors which havenn't changed so much, and at the top of the street there is a Victorian music hall.
