Charles Keyworth, The New Patent Plastic Brick Company

[Guest akademik]

My interest in Charles Keyworth and in his business, The New Patent Plastic Brick Company, derives from their involvement in the history of the terraced houses on Dodd Street (Sheffield). The latter houses were built by William Johnson Patchett (1875-1931), builder & contractor in Sheffield, in 1911-1912. Many of the triangular bricks used in capping the various garden walls and similar walls show the inscription “Chas”; which, from the evidence of one such triangular brick that has tumbled down (and that has sadly been left to just lie there …), can be read in full as “Chas / Keyworth / Wadsley Bridge”.

As far as is presently known, W.J. Patchett built houses mainly in three areas: in the triangle of Penistone Road – Leppings Lane - Owlerton (latterly Hillsborough) Stadium (in partnership with Frederick Joseph Dawson (* 185, at least partially); in the area around Crofton Avenue - Overton Avenue – Darwin Road; and on Dodd Street - Trickett Street. In each of these three areas, evidence of Keyworth having supplied bricks is present:

- omnipresent triangular “Chas” bricks in Dodd Street and Trickett Road:

and

- 37 Leppings Lane / corner of Leake Street: oblong bricks, “C. Keyworth”

and

- 47 Darwin Road: oblong bricks, “Chas Keyworth Wadsley Bridge”

- 6 Darwin Road / corner of Overton Road: oblong brick, “Chas Keyworth Wadsley Bridge”

- 54 Withens Avenue / corner of Overton Road: triangular capping bricks, “Chas” (rest hidden)

Clearly, at least for ‘ornamental’ bricks, Keyworth seems to have been the regular supplier of W.J. Patchett (whether Keyworth also supplied the bricks used by Patchett for ‘proper’ walls and the like, it has not yet been possible to establish). Not associated with Patchett (so far), Keyworth bricks have been ‘accidentally’ noticed at

- 129 Hammerton Road: oblong brick, “C. Keyworth”

- [987?] Penistone Road / corner of Winster Road: oblong bricks, “Keyworth”

In White’s Registers in the Local Studies section of Sheffield Central Library, Charles Keyworth seems to mentioned for the first time in 1898, as the proprietor of the New Patent Plastic Brick Company in Wadsley Bridge; the last time he is mentioned is in 1913, when the address is given as Halifax Road. Next, in 1916, the New Patent Plastic Brick Company in Halifax Road is mentioned with Mrs. Elizabeth Brindley as proprietress (perhaps Chas. had died, and Mrs B is his married daughter?); thereafter neither Company nor proprietress seem to occur any more. It would seem that by 1925, when the Sheffield Brick Co. Ltd. had a brick yard on Halifax Road, the New Patent Plastic Brick Company had been taken over by the S'd Brick Co.

The only literature I have so far seen on brickmaking in Sheffield is the article ‘The Brick-making Industry in Sheffield’ by Graham Hague, off-print from Victorian Society Newsletter, Summer 1981, pp. 38-[40] (available in the Local Studies section of Sheffield Central Library); neither Charles Keyworth nor the New Patent Plastic Brick Company (nor Mrs Brindley) are mentioned here; the Sheffield Brick Co. (1879-1978; earlier the S'd PATENT Brick Co.) features very largely.

ANY FURTHER INFORMATION OR RELEVANT LITERATURE WELCOME

[RichardB]

You seem to be putting us to shame with your detailed postings ! Most excellent they are too

Don't know if this is an addition to your knowledge, small though it is, it's my offering !

Charles Keyworth, Brick manufacturer. 22 Parkside Road, Hillsborough (White's 1911)

I went to School on Parkside Road, I didn't see him 1967-1971 !!!

Any pictures of said brickwork ???