This firm was established in 1861 and was based at Wheeldon Works, Wheeldon Street.  The founder was Henry Innocent (1831-1896), a pen and pocket blade maker, who was the son of George Innocent (a forger) and his wife, Amelia.  A trade advertisement has the firm at the ‘top of Broad Lane’, where it was surrounded by busy cutlers.  Innocent supplied them with ‘all kinds of Fancy Pen and Pocket Knife Scales, Springs, Blades and Shields and Pencil Desk and Erase Blades, Warranted Cast Steel’.  He also advertised for ‘work done for hire’.  In 1871, the workforce was seven men and eleven boys;  by 1881, a dozen men and fifteen boys.   

In about 1876, Henry suffered an illness through overwork and handed over to his son, John Arthur Innocent, though he was ‘in the habit of going to the works every day’ (Sheffield Daily Telegraph, 26 May 1896).   In the 1880s, he moved to Croydon Villa, Crookesmoor Road.  He died there on 25 May 1896, aged 64, leaving £9,512.  His burial was at Ecclesall.  His son began providing local firms with stamped scissors blanks, after studying German methods (Sheffield Independent, 7 May 1890).   In 1920, Henry Innocent & Co Ltd was registered with £50,000 capital (Sheffield Daily Independent, 24 June 1920).   Wheeldon Works still operated as a ‘cutlery materials store’ and advertised blades of crucible cast steel.  It remained in Broad Lane during the inter-war period.   The factory was still standing in 1940, though a photograph in Sheffield Local Studies Library shows that many surrounding buildings had been demolished.   The firm ceased business by the 1950s.   John A. Innocent died at Lawson Road on 4 February 1951, aged 89.  His obituary noted that he ‘did not retire, but kept in touch with his firm’ (Sheffield Telegraph, 5 February 1951).  His funeral was at Ecclesall Church.  He left £19,307 net.