Eli Barron (1846)

Born 1846 in Hunslet, Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom

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Overview

Eli Barron was born in Castleford, Yorkshire, England.

Eli was born in 1846, to parents, Thomas and Sarah Armitage of Hunslet, Yorkshire, England. Eli was the fifth of ten children. The family moved to Castleford and eventually permanently settled in Mexborough. Eli's grandfather, Joseph Barron, started the glass works in Mexborough and passed the business to his sons Thomas and Joseph. Eli and his brothers followed in their footsteps. Eli married Elizabeth Ellen Foster in 1871, and together they had three sons. They were financially comfortable to afford a live-in domestic servant. In 1893, Eli sold real estate he owned, including his home in Mexborough, and bought the old Tees Bottle Works in Thornaby with the hope of revitalizing the factory. Several issues affected his success. He had problems with the furnaces which resulted in the color of the glass not being satisfactory. In May of 1894, a fire at the factory destroyed a warehouse and its contents. The cause of the fire was not found. The buildings and contents were insured and luckily the furnaces were not harmed. Despite the insurance, Eli faced bankruptcy and appeared several times for bankruptcy court. With all these challenges, it appears that Eli stepped away from the glass bottle manufacturing business. In the 1901 Census, he was recorded as being employed as a India rubber traveler. He was 55 years old. Then in the 1911 Census, he was recorded as a commercial traveler for glass bottle manufacturers. It seems Eli went back to doing what he knew best and returned to the glass bottle trade but in a different capacity. Eli may have died in 1925. More research is needed to confirm this.

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Biography

Eli was born in 1846 and baptized on March 1, 1846 at All Saints in Castleford, Yorkshire, England. He is the fifth child and third son of Thomas Barron and Sarah Armitage. ^[1]

In 1851, Eli was 5 years old. The family lived in Mexborough where his father was a glass maker and laborer. Eli was one of seven children in the household. Their ages ranged from 15 to 7 months. Eli's two older brothers, Francis and Walter were employed at the glass works. ^[2]

By 1861, Eli was 15 years old and was a blacksmith. He didn't work in the glass bottle trade like his father and older siblings. Eli was the oldest child living at home with five younger siblings. ^[3]

In June of 1869, Eli along with his three brothers were involved in an altercation with Joshua Thompson. The newspaper notice read as follows.

Mexbrough - A Traders' Assault - At the West Riding Police court, on Saturday, before William Walker, and James Brown, Esqrs., Francis, Thomas, Walter and Eli Barron, four brothers, whose father is a glass bottle manufacturer of Mexbro', were summoned for assaulting Joshua Thompson, a glass blower, of Saturday evening, the 27th June. Mr. Barritt, of Wakefield, appeared for the man Thompson, and his case was that his client, who is in the "society," had been attacked by the defendants and beaten in a savage manner, on the evening in question. For the defense it was urged by Mr. Shirley that the complainant and another man had gone up to Francis Barron and Thomas Barron, had called them black sheep, and struck Francis, and that afterwards a fair fight took place between Thomas Barron and Thompson. It was elicited that Thompson had been in prison a month for assaulting a non-society man who had worked for the Barrons. The magistrates fined Thomas and Francis Barron 1£ , Walter and Eli 5s. each and costs, and dismissed the counter case in which Thompson and William Scaife (for whom Mr. C.E. Palmer appeared) were charged with assaulting Francis Barron. The cases lasted several hours. ^[4]

In 1871, Eli was living with his parents and five siblings on Glass House Lane in Mexborough. He was employed as a glass bottle maker. ^[5] On March 8, 1871, at the age of 25, Eli married Elizabeth Ellen Foster, the youngest daughter of Mr. R.T. Foster of Illingworth House in Ecclesfield. ^[6]

By the 1881 Census, Eli and his wife had three children; Montagu, Sydney and Rowland. They ranged in age from 7 years to 11 months. Eli and his family lived on High Street and employed a domestic servant, Betsy Hallway. She was only 12 years old. Eli worked as a commercial traveler for the glass bottle trade. ^[7]

Eli's father, Thomas Barron of the Phoenix Glass Works, died August 13, 1887, as the result of injuries he sustained in a accident while traveling from Mexborough to Rotherham. ^[8] Eli and his brother Thomas, along with two other men, were named executors of his will. They were responsible for distributing Thomas' estate as well as, pay and collect any money owned to the estate. ^[9]

Eli was 42 years old at the time of the 1891 Census. He lived on Wath Road with his wife Elizabeth Ellen and their three sons, ages 17 to 11. Eli was employed as a glass bottle trader. Their eldest, Montagu, was employed as a clerk. They employed a domestic servant, Mary Wilson. ^[10]

In mid September of 1893, Eli offered three properties for sale, as well as, his residence. Bidding was well attended, but the properties were withdrawn because the sale price for the three houses only reached to £520, and his residence only reached £800. However, the next day's newspaper gave notice of the sale of Eli's residence to a Mr. Oxley of Swinton for the price of £850. ^{[11] [12]}

In September of 1893, Eli purchased the Tees Bottle Co. Ltd., also known as the Thornaby Bottleworks. The dilapidated factory had been closed in 1888-89. Under Eli's direction, the glass works factory underwent upgrades and modernization. It was Eli's hope to employ 50 men, and as many as 300 once all the renovations were completed. ^[13] Eli placed ads in newspapers looking for qualified workers and ^[14] A serious fire occurred in May of 1894, at Eli's glass works. It was described by the North Eastern Daily Gazette as one of the most extensive fires Thornaby had experience for some years, and it was witnessed by thousands of people from the Victoria Bridge. When the fire occurred the glass works had not been in full operation for about five weeks, because there was a problem with the color of the glass that was being produced. Although the factory wasn't in full operation, there were some workers still employed packing and shipping goods. The factory had been closed for the night around 7 pm, and shortly before 10 pm an alarm was raised that the works were on fire. The Thornaby fire department responded and was on scene within 3 minutes. A warehouse, containing about 4 tons of straw, stacks of various bottles awaiting shipment, and glass tumblers imported from Germany, were engulfed in flames lighting the evening sky for miles. The warehouse could not be saved but the brigade was able to save the adjoining buildings and the vital furnaces. By 11 pm the fire had exhausted itself and there was no longer a danger of it spreading. The cause of the fire was not known. The building and contents were covered by insurance. ^[15]

In June of 1894, Eli appeared before the Bankruptcy court. During his statement he claimed he lost £1500 of his £1800 investment because money was needed for the furnaces to solve the problem with the color of the glass. He felt he had resolved the problem and if he had more capital he would be able to continue operating the glass works. ^[16] Bankruptcy proceedings continued in August. Eli, under examination, said he had an interest under his father's will, but upon his father's concern being converted into a limited company bankrupt was paid out with £1800. He invested about £1650 into his glass works in Thornaby, and used the remaining funds to pay off personal debts. He admitted to writing a letter in July to Messrs. Bratty and Hinchliffe. " Dear Sirs, Your enormous claim comes before me to-morrow to oppose, defend, or know nothing about. Please wire what sum I am to have to defend or not oppose." Eli was questioned as to what he meant by this letter. During the lengthy proceedings, the Registrar reprimanded Eli and threatened to adjourn the examination. Eli simply answered, that he wrote the letter because he wanted some money. He was also questioned about sending bottles to Messrs. Wren & Co. a day before he filed his petition. Also in question, was one of his men sending glasses to two hotels to discharge drink bills. The examination was once again adjourned until more information was provided. ^[17]

In 1901, Eli was 55 years old and was employed as an India rubber traveler. He and his wife lived alone at their Coinbury Road residence. Their two younger sons were living with their older brother in his household. ^{[18] [19]}

During the time of the 1911 Census, Eli was a visitor at 3 Grove Villas, High Street, East Ham, Essex, England. He was 65 years old and employed as a commercial traveler for glass bottle manufacturers. ^[20]

Work in progress...

Sources

1. ↑ West Yorkshire, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1910
2. ↑ Class: HO107; Piece: 2346; Folio: 31; Page: 14; GSU roll: 87604-87605.
3. ↑ Class: RG 9; Piece: 3516; Folio: 83; Page: 13; GSU roll: 543144.
4. ↑ Sheffield and Rotherham Independent, 10 Jul 1869, Sat, Page 10
5. ↑ Class: RG10; Piece: 4717; Folio: 98; Page: 46; GSU roll: 847247
6. ↑ England, Select Marriages, 1538–1973
7. ↑ Class: RG11; Piece: 4687; Folio: 126; Page: 4; GSU roll: 1342134.
8. ↑ The Leeds Mercury (Leeds, West Yorkshire, England) · Mon, Aug 15, 1887 · Page 5
9. ↑ The Morning Post (London, Greater London, England) · Wed, Oct 12, 1887 · Page 1
10. ↑ Class: RG12; Piece: 3861; Folio 97; Page 33; GSU roll: 6098971.
11. ↑ Sheffield_and_Rotherham_Independent_Fri__Sep_15__1893_
12. ↑ Sheffield_and_Rotherham_Independent_Sat__Sep_16__1893_
13. ↑ Northern Echo (Dalington, Durham, England) · Sat, Sep 16, 1893 · Page 3
14. ↑ The_North_Eastern_Daily_Gazette_Fri__Sep_15__1893_
15. ↑ The_North_Eastern_Daily_Gazette_Thu__May_10__1894_
16. ↑ Northern_Echo_Thu__Jun_28__1894_
17. ↑ Northern_Echo_Thu__Aug_30__1894_
18. ↑ Class: RG13; Piece: 192; Folio: 127; Page: 37.
19. ↑ Class: RG13; Piece: 4408; Folio: 137; Page: 51
20. ↑ 1911 England Census