| Company acquired by directors from the Richardson shareholders in 1959 (The Builders Merchants Journal May 1959 p 110) (TJR) | |
| Founder of the family firm A & WT Richardson Ltd, which lasted over 100 years. The following is a brief history of the company which was written to celebrate the 100th anniversary in 1950: The year 1950 marks the Centenary of our business founded by the late Charles Richardson in 1850 with wharves and offices at Vauxhall and Paddington, these premises being the London points of distribution for his stock bricks and red facing bricks manufactured at Teynham in Kent and Wood Lane, Shepherd's Bush. Portland cement and Roman cement manufactured at Conyers Quay near Sittingbourne were also handled here. On his death the founder of the Company was succeeded by his two sons, Mr Alec and Mr Walter T Richardson and a partnership formed, to be known by the title of A & WT Richardson until, following the decease of Mr Alec Richardson, the firm was formed into a private limited company in 1923, having as its first board of Directors, Mrs A E Watson, Mr Alfred J Richardson, Mr H W Worsfold and Mr R E Moores, under the Joint Managing Directorshgip of Admiral C R Wason CMG CIE and Colonel C Richardson. Three members of the family Mrs N M Monsell and Mrs A Sich, granddaughters of the founder, and Mr John W Sich great grandson, still serve the board under the Managing Director Colonel C Richardson, grandson of the founder. It is interesting to note that Mr Charles Richardson commenced business immediately after the repeal of the tax on bricks which lasted from 1784-1850 and following the demand created for the then "new" Portland Cement first discovered in 1824 by William Aspdin a bricklayer of Leeds. The White City at Shepherds Bush now occupies the old site of the Wood Lane Brickworks, from which more than a million stock bricks were supplied for the foundations of the Albert Memorial. In more recent years the Company also supplied the bricks used in the foundation of Eros, when that graceful statue by Gilbert was finally replaced in Piccadilly Circus. Early in the present century bricks and portland cement were also supplied for Surrey's famous home of cricket, the Oval at Kennington, whilst much of the early production of cement from the Conyer Works was exported to New Zealand, where the high quality of the product won for us the Silver Medal at New Zealand International Exhibition in 1882. The Company ceased production of cement at Conyer in 1906 and of bricks at Teynham in 1919, but in 1945 with the acquisition of the Auclaye Brickfields Limited, are again producing multi coloured stock bricks, the bulk of which have been supplied to help meet the needs of London's post war housing problems, many millions being used by the London County Council and the Ministry of Works. Times have changed, demands have changed, and methods of transport have changed since 1850, but the good name of the Company gained by its service to the building trade has remained unchanged throughout the last 100 years, and we look forward with confidence to the future. | |
| Premises at LMS Railway Goods Depot, Wandsworth Road, London SW8 (TJR) | |
| Supplied bricks for The Lodge and a row of terraced houses, Walmer in Kent (The Builder) (TJR) | |
| 1819 | Born in Woodford, Essex (TJR) |
| 1839 | Working as foreman to Mr. John Rutty, a timber-merchant at Paddington (TJR) |
| 18/10/1840 | Married Selina Ellis at St Mary's Gardens, Lambeth (TJR) |
| 1878 | Living in Cary Castle, Torquay (TJR) |
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