B
Bernardette
Guest
I am trying to find out about a printing works called "Alldays"? It was in Cornwall Street and supposedly printed the "Radio Times"? My great Aunt worked there until she retired, circa 1936. Can anyone help?
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Bernadette
Here is the Kellys entry for 1936:
Allday Limited, colour, offset, lithographers & letterpress printers, 128 & 130 Edmund street & 56,58 & 60 Cornwall street 3. T A "Books ; " T N's Central 1170 & 1171
The first mention of the firm semms to be around 1878 when it is James Lomax Allday, described as “ from Waterlow & Sons, London” (whatever that may mean). It then was described as a law lithographer and specialised in law products and office products rather than books or magazines. They were then at New Edmund St and 37 Waterloo St. By 1880 they had moved to 39 Colmore Row and also did more general printing in addition to the law products. And, in addition to colmore Row, was also at Edmund St. By 1890 He was at Edmund st and Cornwall St. In 1900 it was Allday Ltd and by 1903 they described themselves just as printers, but by 1921 their Telegraph address was”Books”, so by then they had presumably gone away from office type printing to books and/or magazines. The firm was at cornwall St and Edmund St till 1940, but in 1943 and 1944 (bombing ?) were at 12 Vivian Road, Harborne . In 1949 they had moved to 122-137 newhall St where they were still in the last Kellys in 1973
mike
Here is the Kellys entry for 1936:
Allday Limited, colour, offset, lithographers & letterpress printers, 128 & 130 Edmund street & 56,58 & 60 Cornwall street 3. T A "Books ; " T N's Central 1170 & 1171
The first mention of the firm semms to be around 1878 when it is James Lomax Allday, described as “ from Waterlow & Sons, London” (whatever that may mean). It then was described as a law lithographer and specialised in law products and office products rather than books or magazines. They were then at New Edmund St and 37 Waterloo St. By 1880 they had moved to 39 Colmore Row and also did more general printing in addition to the law products. And, in addition to colmore Row, was also at Edmund St. By 1890 He was at Edmund st and Cornwall St. In 1900 it was Allday Ltd and by 1903 they described themselves just as printers, but by 1921 their Telegraph address was”Books”, so by then they had presumably gone away from office type printing to books and/or magazines. The firm was at cornwall St and Edmund St till 1940, but in 1943 and 1944 (bombing ?) were at 12 Vivian Road, Harborne . In 1949 they had moved to 122-137 newhall St where they were still in the last Kellys in 1973
mike
hi mike
cracked it again brilliant ;
i can put my hand on my heart when i say this you have confirmed to us and especialy me
that when that request came in i said to myself its new hall st and i was thinking of cornwall st and how far away it was from new hall street
but i did decide not to say any think because i was rattled by cornwall st
i remember roaming around there in the later years of my teenage years
and seeing that particular sign in the windows stating they do the tv times printed here
and if you walked down passing the asay office on the same side
and walk up the hill the roads bends and once you took that bend i think it was about one hundred yards around that bend where the printers was
i just knew i was right but i thought to myself no let some-one else answer and lets see if i am right . brilliant mike
best wishes astonian ;;;
cracked it again brilliant ;
i can put my hand on my heart when i say this you have confirmed to us and especialy me
that when that request came in i said to myself its new hall st and i was thinking of cornwall st and how far away it was from new hall street
but i did decide not to say any think because i was rattled by cornwall st
i remember roaming around there in the later years of my teenage years
and seeing that particular sign in the windows stating they do the tv times printed here
and if you walked down passing the asay office on the same side
and walk up the hill the roads bends and once you took that bend i think it was about one hundred yards around that bend where the printers was
i just knew i was right but i thought to myself no let some-one else answer and lets see if i am right . brilliant mike
best wishes astonian ;;;
mrgrichards
New Member
I worked at Allday Ltd in Newhall Street from 1969 to 1975 as a letterpress apprentice. At some stage in the early 70's it amalgamated with a London Company called Green and Welburn and became Allday Green and Welburn and mainly became a legal printers printing Check books as well as commercial printing.
Richard Dye
master brummie
What a change that industry has seen!
On the origins of Allday Ltd., printers of Birmingham, and its founder
The Birmingham Daily Post of Wednesday 15th March 1972, carries a full page advertisement announcing the merger of Allday Ltd with Green and Welburn Ltd., written by the new company's managing director, S. E. Allday.
The lengthy article includes a potted history of the Allday side of the company, which begins as follows:
Extract from Five generations in Printing, by S. E. Allday
I've written about Joseph Allday elsewhere on these pages on occasion, as he's one of the more colourful members of my family tree. The above was intriguing, as one thing I know about Joseph and his wife Ann was that they had no children of their own.
The article continues:
Curiouser and curiouser. Now, I know James Lomax Allday to be grandson to William Allday, eldest brother to Joseph, and to my 4 x great grandfather John. James was born in April 1852 to Thomas Digbeth Allday and Sarah Ann Lomax. At the time, Thomas was established in his own butcher's business on Islington (now Broad Street, Birmingham).
William, meanwhile, ran the main Allday family butcher's business in Digbeth, but this all came to an abrupt end in early 1853, when he was convicted of forging a promissory note. His lawyer, appealing for a lenient sentence, mentioned that insanity ran in the defendant's family. The judge was unmoved, William was sentenced to 7 years' transportation, and the family business was taken by the court bailiff, to be sold on behalf of its creditors. A few days later, William took his own life in prison.
This must have been a considerable emotional and financial blow to the infant James' family, and the plea of hereditary insanity proved to be more than just legal artifice. Two years later, Thomas Digbeth Allday was committed to All Saints mental hospital, violent and suicidal, after 6 days "acute mania". After a couple of days rest, he was released, recovered, with no memory of the incident, but in May of 1857 he was readmitted after a month's illness, claiming that a lion had come into his shop and devoured his wares. In September of that year James' mother Sarah Ann was taken ill with typhus and died nine weeks later. Thomas never recovered from his relapse, remaining at the hospital until his death in 1890 (though he does appear to have attained a level of calm in later years, and made himself useful helping out around the ward). A number of his brothers and sisters were similarly committed in the following years. James was therefore effectively orphaned at just 5 years of age.
This may be where Joseph Allday comes in. Joseph was at this point in his mid-fifties, with a wire-working business and a prominent role on Birmingham town council, while his wife Ann ran their Corn Exchange Dining Rooms and Tripe Shop on Union Street (see post-794384). Well-established, and lacking children of their own, Joseph and Ann could always be found in the census with (grand) nephews and nieces in tow, often recently bereaved ones. Though young James Lomax Allday is not among those recorded on the census, it would make sense that the loss of his parents would see him taken in by his well-off great uncle and aunt.
By 1861, Joseph and Ann's fortunes had taken a turn. Their businesses had failed, and both were in poor health. Joseph was to die later that year, leaving Ann facing destitution*. In the 1861 census, nine-year-old James is recorded with another great aunt, Hannah Lomax. He may be just visiting, but perhaps, if Joseph and Ann had been looking after him, they were already unable to continue doing so by this point. Though his family were not among the poorest in Birmingham, it seems that James had far from the easiest of upbringings. With perhaps little memory of his real parents, and with the stigma around mental illness, I can imagine how the narrative of Joseph Allday being James' father might have arisen.
* Ann's fortunes later recovered somewhat, as she was voted to receive a pension from the Iron, Hardware and Metal Trades Pension Society. She lived until 1878, supported by another nephew and ward, Charles Martin.
In the 1871 census. James, now 19, can be found visiting a boarding house in Lambeth, St Mary's, and is recorded as a "Law Stationer" (I think), confirming the account of his moving to London to take a printing apprenticeship. This, presumably, will have been with stationers Waterlow & Sons, as mentioned in the 1878 directory listing that Mike notes in post-264218, and that marks the first directory listing for Allday Ltd. From a difficult start in life, James Lomax Allday founded a Birmingham company that lasted a hundred years.
Sources:
The Birmingham Daily Post of Wednesday 15th March 1972, carries a full page advertisement announcing the merger of Allday Ltd with Green and Welburn Ltd., written by the new company's managing director, S. E. Allday.
The lengthy article includes a potted history of the Allday side of the company, which begins as follows:
Extract from Five generations in Printing, by S. E. Allday
I've written about Joseph Allday elsewhere on these pages on occasion, as he's one of the more colourful members of my family tree. The above was intriguing, as one thing I know about Joseph and his wife Ann was that they had no children of their own.
The article continues:
Curiouser and curiouser. Now, I know James Lomax Allday to be grandson to William Allday, eldest brother to Joseph, and to my 4 x great grandfather John. James was born in April 1852 to Thomas Digbeth Allday and Sarah Ann Lomax. At the time, Thomas was established in his own butcher's business on Islington (now Broad Street, Birmingham).
William, meanwhile, ran the main Allday family butcher's business in Digbeth, but this all came to an abrupt end in early 1853, when he was convicted of forging a promissory note. His lawyer, appealing for a lenient sentence, mentioned that insanity ran in the defendant's family. The judge was unmoved, William was sentenced to 7 years' transportation, and the family business was taken by the court bailiff, to be sold on behalf of its creditors. A few days later, William took his own life in prison.
This must have been a considerable emotional and financial blow to the infant James' family, and the plea of hereditary insanity proved to be more than just legal artifice. Two years later, Thomas Digbeth Allday was committed to All Saints mental hospital, violent and suicidal, after 6 days "acute mania". After a couple of days rest, he was released, recovered, with no memory of the incident, but in May of 1857 he was readmitted after a month's illness, claiming that a lion had come into his shop and devoured his wares. In September of that year James' mother Sarah Ann was taken ill with typhus and died nine weeks later. Thomas never recovered from his relapse, remaining at the hospital until his death in 1890 (though he does appear to have attained a level of calm in later years, and made himself useful helping out around the ward). A number of his brothers and sisters were similarly committed in the following years. James was therefore effectively orphaned at just 5 years of age.
This may be where Joseph Allday comes in. Joseph was at this point in his mid-fifties, with a wire-working business and a prominent role on Birmingham town council, while his wife Ann ran their Corn Exchange Dining Rooms and Tripe Shop on Union Street (see post-794384). Well-established, and lacking children of their own, Joseph and Ann could always be found in the census with (grand) nephews and nieces in tow, often recently bereaved ones. Though young James Lomax Allday is not among those recorded on the census, it would make sense that the loss of his parents would see him taken in by his well-off great uncle and aunt.
By 1861, Joseph and Ann's fortunes had taken a turn. Their businesses had failed, and both were in poor health. Joseph was to die later that year, leaving Ann facing destitution*. In the 1861 census, nine-year-old James is recorded with another great aunt, Hannah Lomax. He may be just visiting, but perhaps, if Joseph and Ann had been looking after him, they were already unable to continue doing so by this point. Though his family were not among the poorest in Birmingham, it seems that James had far from the easiest of upbringings. With perhaps little memory of his real parents, and with the stigma around mental illness, I can imagine how the narrative of Joseph Allday being James' father might have arisen.
* Ann's fortunes later recovered somewhat, as she was voted to receive a pension from the Iron, Hardware and Metal Trades Pension Society. She lived until 1878, supported by another nephew and ward, Charles Martin.
In the 1871 census. James, now 19, can be found visiting a boarding house in Lambeth, St Mary's, and is recorded as a "Law Stationer" (I think), confirming the account of his moving to London to take a printing apprenticeship. This, presumably, will have been with stationers Waterlow & Sons, as mentioned in the 1878 directory listing that Mike notes in post-264218, and that marks the first directory listing for Allday Ltd. From a difficult start in life, James Lomax Allday founded a Birmingham company that lasted a hundred years.
Sources:
- British Newspaper Archive
- Ancestry
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