Notes on the ancient art of tanning
TANNING was one of the most noxious and hazardous of industries, and so it was not welcome in the cities, towns or most villages.
Urine and animal faeces were all associated with the treatment of leather, before the advent of chemicals.
Homer went a long way to describe the process back in the 7th century BC:
“The ox hide, which is soaked in fat, is pulled to and fro by men standing in a circle, thus stretching the skin and causing the fat to penetrate the pores.”
The tanning process begins with the washing of the hides in water. They are then soaked in a solution of lime water, which loosens the hair so that it can be removed easily.
Once the flesh and hair have gone the hides are immersed in liquors of progressively greater strength so that the leather is tanned right through the substance.
The hides then go through the currying (dressing) process. They are dressed by a process involving the application of oil, usually of fish and marine mammal oil and tallows.
The earliest records of a tannery existing in Walsall date from about 1780. The town’s importance as a centre of the leather industry grew out of the skills of the local trades people, and the many natural resources in the area, such as animal hides, iron ore and limestone.
By 1925 there were eight tanneries and 39 curriers’ workshops in the town, supporting 150 saddlers, harness makers and bridle cutters. Now of course, since the sad decline
of
Walsall’s industrial craft base, there are no longer any tanneries in the town, but there are still saddle makers, bridle makers and fancy leather manufacturers keeping up those traditional crafts.
Sir Edward Holden was a prominent figure of the Victorian leather industry. At the age of 13 years he began to work at the family tannery in Walsall, which was established in 1819. On the death of his father, Edward began managing the tannery at the age of 19. His company gained a reputation for the production of pigskins used in the local saddle, harness and upholstery trades.
For most of its existence the tannery occupied a small area in Park Street, the company was very successful, employing over 100 men and boys at its height in the 1880s. The leather it produced was exported all over the world.
In 1892 Holden also acquired a pigskin tanner near Glasgow. Edward Holden served as mayor of Walsall and became Chairman of the School Board, resulting in him founding the town’s Science and Art Institute.
Sir Edward Holden was the main driver in the building of the Digbeth Arcade, which was built between 1895-97. It provided high-class covered shoipping on two ground floor malls, plus shopping on the Bradford Street balcony and assembly rooms.
Holden was elected MP for Walsall in 1891 and was knighted in 1907. He died in 1926.
After his death, the business remained family-run into the 20th century, but the firm ceased trading in the mid-1970s.
On a personal note, I discovered a number of my relatives had worked as tanners since 1839, according to census returns, as set out below.
1839, Henry Page, tanner in Godalming,
Surrey.
1841, James Page, tanner in Leatherhead, Surrey.
1851, John Fisher, tanner in Bermondsey.
1861, James Page, tanner, Bermondsey.
1881, Harry Page, tanner, Bermondsey; George Page, Currier, Bermondsey.
John Joseph O’quinn (1876-1951) was a currier in Bermondsey and Walsall.
James Lawrence O’quinn (1905-1977) was a currier in Bermondsey.
I was myself a saddle maker in Walsall.
As with so many crafts, one generally followed the family custom and tradition – it was all part of a different time in our social history.
There are no longer any tanneries in Walsall, but there are still saddle and bridle makers