© Ken Hawley Collection Trust - K.0660
The Meeson family came from Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, and had settled in Sheffield by the mid-nineteenth century. In the Census (1851), Alfred Meeson was a watchman, living at George Lane with his wife, Eliza, and their sons. These included John William Meeson (c.1841-1919), who had been born in Hull. He had a varied career as a French polisher, then ivory cutter, before establishing himself in the 1890s as a cutlery manufacturer. His address was 143 Neill Road, which ran parallel to Ecclesall Road near Hunter’s Bar. That address has been found on the boxes of traditional Sheffield razors made by Meeson. James W. Meeson died at 143 Neill Road on 30 July 1919, aged 78, and was buried in the nearby General Cemetery. His wife, Emma, died less than two months later on 27 September 1919, aged 73.
James William’s son, George (1884-1950), continued the family’s involvement in cutlery. By 1911, he was living in Bradford (where his wife, Emily had been born) and working as a cutlery and tool dealer. They lived at Barker End Road with two sons: James William (1905-1986) and Arthur (1910-1989). James William became a retail grocer; Arthur joined his father’s cutlery business (which apparently continued to trade under the old style of James William Meeson & Sons). In the early 1920s, the address was Kirkgate Market, Leeds, where George sold household cutlery and safety razor blades. At the start of the 1930s, Meeson’s also offered a service for sharpening mower blades and grinding knives. George and Emily then seemed to have changed tack: they operated as J. Meeson & Son (a butchers’ outfitters) at 6 King’s Court, John Street, Bradford. This business was in receivership in 1934. However, Meeson’s cutlery dealings continued. In the Register of England & Wales (1939), George was a cutlery and tool shop manager; Emily was a cutlery shop assistant.
George died in 1950, aged 65, and the family business was incorporated as a private limited company, J. W. Meeson & Sons Ltd. It was described as a manufacturer, importer, and dealer in razors, knives, forks, spoons, and tools. A brief prospectus stated that the nominal capital was £15,000; the address was 6 King’s Court, John Street, Bradford; and the directors were Emily Meeson, Westwood Avenue, Eccleshill, Bradford; Arthur Meeson, Avondale Road, Shipley; and F. Goodall, Acre Drive, Eccleshill, Bradford (Yorkshire Post & Leeds Mercury, 12 April 1951). Arthur Meeson died on 30 January 1989, leaving £73,770. The cutlery firm had been liquidated in 1985.