Cash's
Encyclopedia
Cash's, or J. J. Cash Ltd., is a company in Coventry, England, founded in 1846, that manufactures woven name tapes and other woven products and is known for formerly making ribbons.
.
In 1846, the two brothers set up a ribbon-making factory with 100 loom
s, at West Orchards.
. This friendly society
provided 400 allotment
s for working people, as well as a store selling groceries.
He built an infants' school in the garden of his home, Sherborne House, in 1853, which he also allowed local Wesleyans
to use as a place of worship.
John Cash bought his house, 'Rosehill', from George Eliot
, who then moved into a cottage in its grounds. John's wife was Mary Sibree, to whom Eliot had been tutor of German
.
at Kingfield, and on a road now known as Cash's Lane (52.42208°N 1.50796°W), then in countryside, outside the city boundary. Initially 100 such cottages were planned, but eventually only 48 were built, in two blocks. These used bricks, with tiled roofs and mock Tudor barge-boards on the gables.. Each had a garden. On the top floor of each cottage was a well-lit work area, known collectively as 'Cash's Topshops', housing a Jacquard loom
, powered by a central, steam-powered beam engine
. They opened for business on 12 October 1857, and the individual workshops were combined into single, large, workspaces in 1862. The houses still stand, and were Grade II listed on 10 October 1975.
A park called Cash's Park lies nearby, to the west (52.42245°N 1.51057°W).
("The Herbert").
Andrews (1835-1914) joined the firm in 1855, as a designer, immediately after completing his apprenticeship. The Cash brothers contracted him for three years, at annual salary of £100. In late 1857 he was offered managership of the Kingfield site, and took up residence at 8, Kingfield. He negotiated a salary of £120, with his house, gas and coal provided free. In addition, he was to be paid separately for his design work. He was not popular with the weavers, and left in June 1858 to manage another part of the business, at Drapers Fields.
, and parts subsequently demolished.
During the 1960s, Cash's absorbed other Coventry weaving companies, including B. Laird, Lester Harris and W.H. Grant. Other local competitors failed, leaving Cash's the only survivor of the type in the city. In January 1964, Cash's were appointed 'Manufacturers of Woven Name Tapes to Her Majesty the Queen.'
The company was sold to the Jones Stroud Group in 1976, ending the involvement of the Cash family. In 1984, the Kingfield site was vacated, and the company move to more modern premises on Torrington Avenue, where it continues to make woven products. Cash's no longer make ribbons.
Cash's original records were destroyed by a bomb, but many of the company's subsequent archives are in the Coventry local history centre, in The Herbert. In 1996, the 150th anniversary of the opening of the company's first factory was celebrated by an exhibition at The Herbert, 'A Woven Image'.
Foundation
The company was founded by two brothers, John and Joseph Cash, sons of a wealthy stuff (or textile)-merchant, also called Joseph. At the time of the company's founding, the father and sons already had a warehouse and offices in Hertford Street, Coventry. They sold ribbons made for them by outworkersPutting-Out system
The putting-out system was a means of subcontracting work. It was also known as the workshop system. In putting-out, work was contracted by a central agent to subcontractors who completed the work in their own facilities, usually their own homes....
.
In 1846, the two brothers set up a ribbon-making factory with 100 loom
Loom
A loom is a device used to weave cloth. The basic purpose of any loom is to hold the warp threads under tension to facilitate the interweaving of the weft threads...
s, at West Orchards.
Cash Family
The brothers, who were Quakers, were philanthropists and model employers; Joseph for example founded the Coventry Labourers' and Artisans' Friendly Society, in 1843, along with his friend Charles BrayCharles Bray
Charles Bray was a prosperous British ribbon manufacturer, social reformer, philanthropist, philosopher, and phrenologist.-Life:...
. This friendly society
Friendly society
A friendly society is a mutual association for insurance, pensions or savings and loan-like purposes, or cooperative banking. It is a mutual organization or benefit society composed of a body of people who join together for a common financial or social purpose...
provided 400 allotment
Allotment
Allotment may refer to:* Allotment , a small area of land, let out at a nominal yearly rent by local government or independent allotment associations, for individuals to grow their own food...
s for working people, as well as a store selling groceries.
He built an infants' school in the garden of his home, Sherborne House, in 1853, which he also allowed local Wesleyans
Methodism
Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement within Anglicanism. His younger brother...
to use as a place of worship.
John Cash bought his house, 'Rosehill', from George Eliot
George Eliot
Mary Anne Evans , better known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, journalist and translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era...
, who then moved into a cottage in its grounds. John's wife was Mary Sibree, to whom Eliot had been tutor of German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
.
Cash's Topshops
In 1857, Cash's commissioned a series of three-storey weavers' cottages on a plot of land alongside the Coventry CanalCoventry Canal
The Coventry Canal is a navigable narrow canal in the Midlands of England.It starts in Coventry and ends 38 miles north at Fradley Junction, just north of Lichfield, where it joins the Trent and Mersey Canal...
at Kingfield, and on a road now known as Cash's Lane (52.42208°N 1.50796°W), then in countryside, outside the city boundary. Initially 100 such cottages were planned, but eventually only 48 were built, in two blocks. These used bricks, with tiled roofs and mock Tudor barge-boards on the gables.. Each had a garden. On the top floor of each cottage was a well-lit work area, known collectively as 'Cash's Topshops', housing a Jacquard loom
Jacquard loom
The Jacquard loom is a mechanical loom, invented by Joseph Marie Jacquard in 1801, that simplifies the process of manufacturing textiles with complex patterns such as brocade, damask and matelasse. The loom is controlled by punched cards with punched holes, each row of which corresponds to one row...
, powered by a central, steam-powered beam engine
Beam engine
A beam engine is a type of steam engine where a pivoted overhead beam is used to apply the force from a vertical piston to a vertical connecting rod. This configuration, with the engine directly driving a pump, was first used by Thomas Newcomen around 1705 to remove water from mines in Cornwall...
. They opened for business on 12 October 1857, and the individual workshops were combined into single, large, workspaces in 1862. The houses still stand, and were Grade II listed on 10 October 1975.
A park called Cash's Park lies nearby, to the west (52.42245°N 1.51057°W).
William Andrews
The dairy of Cash's first factory manager at Kingfield, William Andrews, was the subject of a book, Master and Artisan in Victorian England, published in 1969, in which it was reproduced. The original is held in the city's Herbert Art Gallery and MuseumHerbert Art Gallery and Museum
Herbert Art Gallery & Museum is a museum, art gallery, records archive, learning centre and creative arts facility on Jordan Well, Coventry, United Kingdom....
("The Herbert").
Andrews (1835-1914) joined the firm in 1855, as a designer, immediately after completing his apprenticeship. The Cash brothers contracted him for three years, at annual salary of £100. In late 1857 he was offered managership of the Kingfield site, and took up residence at 8, Kingfield. He negotiated a salary of £120, with his house, gas and coal provided free. In addition, he was to be paid separately for his design work. He was not popular with the weavers, and left in June 1858 to manage another part of the business, at Drapers Fields.
Post war
The factory was damaged by bombing in World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and parts subsequently demolished.
During the 1960s, Cash's absorbed other Coventry weaving companies, including B. Laird, Lester Harris and W.H. Grant. Other local competitors failed, leaving Cash's the only survivor of the type in the city. In January 1964, Cash's were appointed 'Manufacturers of Woven Name Tapes to Her Majesty the Queen.'
The company was sold to the Jones Stroud Group in 1976, ending the involvement of the Cash family. In 1984, the Kingfield site was vacated, and the company move to more modern premises on Torrington Avenue, where it continues to make woven products. Cash's no longer make ribbons.
Legacy
Many Cash's products are sought after by collectors, and featured in museum collections.Cash's original records were destroyed by a bomb, but many of the company's subsequent archives are in the Coventry local history centre, in The Herbert. In 1996, the 150th anniversary of the opening of the company's first factory was celebrated by an exhibition at The Herbert, 'A Woven Image'.