TIMELINE: The Potteries

1730

Josiah Wedgwood is born in Burslem to a family of potters. In 1759, he sets up his own pottery, soon becoming royal supplier of dinnerware.

1749

Aged 16, Josiah Spode is apprenticed to potter Thomas Whieldon. In 1776, he buys property in Stoke which will become the site of his English Spode works.

1769

The Etruria Works ceramics factory is opened by Josiah Wedgwood. It will remain open for 180 years.

1777

The 93-mile Trent and Mersey Canal is completed. The canal, which runs right by Wedgwood’s Etruria Works, means that china clay can be more easily transported from Cornwall.

c1840

The vast Shelton Bar steelworks are established in Stoke- on-Trent. In its heyday, Shelton Bar employs an estimated 10,000 workers.

1842

The Pottery Riots break out in what is now Stoke- on-Trent. The unrest leads to dozens being sent to prison and more than 50 workers are transported to Australia.

1882

The London-based company Royal Doulton buys a factory at Nile Street, Burslem. In September 2015, the factory finally closes its doors.

1910

The federation of Stoke- on-Trent is formed by the amalgamation of the six towns into a single county borough. City status is granted 15 years later.