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The Illustrated Towns of England Business
Review: Wolverhampton, published in 1897, gives this account of the
company:
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The Chromographic Enamel
Company, Ltd., Dudley Road.
This important business was established some
twelve years ago. The works and offices in Dudley Road provide
all essential accommodation, while the plant, etc. is equally
satisfactory. A new works has just been erected in Church Lane
for manufacturing enamelled stove plates for lining the interior
of gas stoves. This firm carries on the manufacturing of every
description of enamelled iron advertisement plates, in any color
or design, and employ a large number of hands. The Chromographic
Enamel Company, Limited are contractors to Her Majesty's
Government, while they embrace as patrons most of the large and
leading firms in the country. Samples of the work of this firm
may be seen at all the principal railway stations. Their
productions generally are of world-wide reputation. Telephone No
7027. Telegrams:-" Chromo, Wolverhampton." |
This suggests that the company was established about 1885. If this is
the case they were certainly one of the earliest enamel sign makers in
the country, pre-dating the Patent Enamel Co. of Birmingham, which seems
to have been founded in 1889.
| The size of Chromo's works, on the corner of the
Dudley Road and Frederick Street, shown on the 1901 OS map,
indicates that they must have expanded rapidly.
In a catalogue published somewhat before 1897 (from which the
pictures on later pages are taken) they describe themselves as
"Manufacturers of every description of advertisement plates,
enamelled permanent art decoration for ceiling panels grates
etc. Enamel specially prepared for gas and electric light
reflectors". |
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This advertisement for Chromo appeared in the 1920 edition of the
Wolverhampton Chamber of Trade magazine:-
It suggests that Chromo were not general enamellers but
specialists. They describe themselves as making "enamelled iron
plates" and they list: railway station names, railway truck
plates, railway caution plates, street name plates, door numbers, lamp
notices, fire plug plates, cab fare plates, cabmen's badges, ships' door
plates, electric light reflectors, gas shades, hearth plates, stove
linings - wrought iron, clock dials, pit notice plates, coal mine
regulations, decorated wall plates. With the exception of some
slightly curved items, they are engaged in enamelling flat plates and no
more.
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The company supplied its products to the largest UK
companies and to companies overseas. But anyone might find it
worthwhile to have an enamelled sign on their premises and Chromo
would make it. Here is an example.
This plate was found by Maureen Hunt, who later presented it to
the Black Country Living Museum. The words "Chromo
Wolverhampton" in sans serif capitals are right at the foot of
the sign.
The sign was at the haircutting salon of Arthur Eason at 116
Stafford Road. He was in business at least as early as
1932 and at least as late as 1940. |
| This rusty old badge (from a private collection) is
very similar to a badge shown in the Company's catalogue and was
probably made by Chromo.
Sometimes their advertising signs are marked "Chromo
Wolverhampton", usually in the bottom right corner, but it seems
that often they were not; and certainly many of their other
products were not marked.
A logo appearing on the cover of the 1897 is shown in the
corners at the top of this page. How often this logo was
used is not known: it may have been a one off use in this
catalogue. |
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In the 1959 Wolverhampton Red Book the Chromographic
Enamel Company are still listed. By the 1971 Red Book they have gone,
though a number of other companies engaged in various forms of
enamelling are still listed.
In their time the Chromographic Enamel Company made many
thousand enamelled signs, both advertising signs, of the sort that are
now often called street jewellery, and more utilitarian signs. Their products are now much
sought after, highly prized and highly priced antiques.
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This is an example of Chromo's non-advertising signs.
It has been kindly supplied to us by Graham Woodward.
It is from a Victorian letter box and is marked "Chromo -
Wolv" in the bottom right-hand corner. Graham says:
"many rural sub-post offices had to provide their own post
boxes and they usually turned to the local carpenter to make
a wooden box which was fitted with an enamel plate produced
by any one of a number of companies, such as the Eagle Range
and Foundry Co., E. R. Cole and Co. or James Ludlow & Co.
The Chromographic Enamel Company of Wolverhampton was
another such firm". |
The illustrations of their products which we show here
are all taken from the company's catalogue of about 1897. We have
divided them into two sets. One set shows their advertising signs
and the other set shows other items which can be described as decorative
items and items of practical utility.
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