John Winter was the grandson of John Winter (Master Cutler, 1682).   He was apprenticed to Thomas Law and became a Freeman in 1755.  He joined the leading Sheffield Plate makers and had a manufactory at Market Place, where he became pre-eminent in the making of silver candlesticks (Law, 2000¹).  Many were supplied to London silversmith John Carter (Crosskey, 2011²).  Winter was involved in Samuel Roberts & Co, Richard Morton & Co, and John Winter & Co (with John Parsons and Charles Hall).  In 1773, this trio applied for the first silver mark registered at the Sheffield Assay Office (Winter registered a mark alone in 1778).  He was Master Cutler in 1775 and became a Town Regent, Town Trustee, Church Burgess, and Guardian at the Assay Office (Wallis, 1952-7).  He retired in 1783 and died on 12 February 1792.  He was buried at the parish churchyard.

^1. Law, Edward J., ‘The Origins of the Silver Trade in Sheffield’ (2000). Posted at: http://homepage.eircom.net/~lawed/index.htm

^2. Crosskey, Gordon, Old Sheffield Plate: A History of the 18th Century Plated Trade (Sheffield, 2011)