manah

Originally Posted by manah

A little bit of history:

Thomas Tillotson was the founder of the business, which began in the Lambert street area by 1774, but by the 1780s was operating in Coalpit Lane (now Cambridge Street) in the town centre. The trademark was "ALBION". Thomas Tillotson became Master Cutler in 1789. Tillotson died on 2 November 1803. Thomas had two sons - George and John - and by 1797 the business had been styled Thomas Tillotson & Sons.
John joined the family firm in Coalpit Lane, which by the 1820s had been renamed John Tillotson & Son, merchants and manufacturers of scissors and table knives, butchers' steels, and dealers in edge tools and files. John became Master Cutler in 1810. During the 1820s, his brother, George, operated a separate business as a merchant and manufacturer of table knives and scissors in Carver Street. George Tillotson became Master Cutler in 1817. He died on 21 June 1825, aged 47.
In 1831, John Tillotson handed over the direction of the Coalpit Lane business to his sons - Thomas Knowles Tillotson and John Knowles Tillotson. He died on 30 March 1838, aged 73. In the 1841 Census, his sons were enumerated as merchants living in a house in Glossop Road. In 1840, T. & J. Tillotson had a New York office (with Edward Marshall) in Platt Street. By 1850, this office was in John Street in Thomas's name, because in 1843 John had withdrawn from the business. John died at Scarborough on 7 December 1852, aged 49, leaving Thomas as the senior partner.
By 1852, the firm was located at Columbia Place, Suffolk Road. This factory had been the location of Bowie maker John Brown & Co. and Tillotson was also involved with this trade. Several Tillotson Bowie knives have survived in American collections, usually stamped "Columbia Place". Perhaps the American Civil War had hit business or more probably Thomas had made enough money. In 1850, he had married, Charlotte Simpson (1827-1913) - a woman half his age. After a lavish wedding and honeymoon in Italy, they made a home in Sharrow. By 1861, he was a "retired merchant" and living in Aston cum Aughton, near Rotherham. Later the couple moved to Whatton House, Long Whatton, Leicestershire, where Thomas settled into the life of a country squire (he was a deputy lieutenant and county magistrate). He died at his home on 3 January 1878, aged 76.