Reid & Sons - Newcastle's Great Survivors

[oel]

Hi All,

From the dining table to the forum silver Salt Pepper & Mustard set. Made by Reid & Sons Newcastle on Tyne, London year letter D for 1919. Mustard pot and open salt cellar have base with four ball feet.The mustard pot with a shell shape thumb piece, all have a cobalt blue glass liner. Pierced decoration, reed border.





Cheers,

Peter

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Reid & Sons - Newcastle - 1863

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Reid & Sons - Newcastle - 1847

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Salt spoons by Reid & Sons assayed at Newcastle (1 x 1863, 3 x 1865):










DR below Crown (David Reid I) - Newcastle - 1863

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JEWELLERY ROBBERY

On Wednesday evening the premises of Messrs Reid and Sons, goldsmiths, Grainger-street, Newcastle, were broken into by thieves, supposed to be members of a London gang, who made off with several thousand pounds' worth of jewellery. The thieves entered a room above the shop and lowered themselves by ropes.

Source: South Wales Daily News - 23rd June 1899

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SILVER PRESENTATION

To celebrate the 175 years of establishment in the city, the firm of Reid & Sons, Goldsmiths and Silversmiths, will today make a presentation to the City of Newcastle. The House of Reids was founded in 1778 by Christian Ker Reid, whose first place of business was close to St. Nicholas Cathedral. To-day the establishments are well known in Blackett Street and Grainger Street. The silver presented to the collection at the Mansion House is a circular tray with pieced silver border of the well known Lindisfarne Decoration. The hall-mark bears the special mark issued for Coronation year and will add a note of great interest to the Collection already there. The presentation will be made at the Mansion House to the Lord Mayor, Alderman William McKeag by Mr. Percival Langford, chairman and managing director of Reid and Sons and the silver bears the engraved Coat-of-Arms of the City of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and the following inscription:- "This Lindisfarne Silver was presented to the Corporation of Newcastle-upon-Tyne by Reid & Sons, Goldsmiths of this City in commemoration of Coronation Year and also to celebrate the 175th Anniversary of their foundation in 1778. - Alderman William McKeag, Lord Mayor, 1953-54."

Source: The Berwick Advertiser - 29th April 1954

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THE NORTHERN OUTLOOK by ELDON

A VERY OLD FIRM

I was interested to read the other day that Reid and Sons, the Newcastle jewellers, possess a poster dated October 16, 1834 of a sale they had at their Dean Street shop about the time of the death of the founder of the business, Mr. Christian Ker Reid.

In 1914 the late Mr. C. Leo Reid presented to me a copy of his beautifully printed and illustrated book giving the family pedigree of the Kers, the Ker-Reids and an account of the founding of Reid and Sons, together with the coming to Newcastle from Edinburgh in 1778 of Christian Ker Reid, who established the firm of goldsmiths in our midst.

The Kers were a very old Border family, and the Reids came from Scotland. Estates from the Kers passed to Christian Ker Reid, who founded the firm that exists today.

Christian Ker Reid was the great-great grandfather of Mr. Leo Reid.

Probably throughout the North of England there is no family connected with the goldsmith and silversmith trade that has so great a unbroken record as that of the Reid family. Indeed few businesses may be able to show the uninterrupted descent from father to son as was possible when Mr. Leo Reid compiled his valuable record.

Seven of the Reids were, at one time or another, Wardens of the local Goldsmiths Hall, our city being one of the few places that was granted in the older time a royal charter for the assaying and stamping of gold and silver plate.

Source: The Evening Chronicle - 12th January 1939

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Reid & Sons Ltd. - Newcastle - 1954

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Examples of the work and mark of Christian Ker Reid:












CR - Newcastle - 1813

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THEFT OF JEWELLERY

A MAN CHARGED WITH VARIOUS ROBBERIES

At North London Police court on Thursday John Moore, alias Hennessy, 37, jeweller, Hornsey, was charged on remand with stealing £400 worth of jewellery from a shop at Gravesend, and £3,000 worth from the premises of Reid and Sons, jewellers, Newcastle. A further charge was now preferred against accused of stealing a bag, containing £3,000 worth of jewellery, belonging to a traveller of Henry Griffiths, wholesale jewellers, of Birmingham. Witnesses on Thursday identified certain jewellery found in the possession of the prisoner. Of this jewellery £50 worth was the proceeds of the Gravesend burglary, and another £50 worth the proceeds of the Newcastle coup. Frederick Burgess, traveller to Griffiths and Son, Birmingham, deposed, with reference to the third charge, that the bag was stolen at Lime-street Station, Liverpool. He had placed it down while sending a telegram, and had put his foot on it. He had occasion to move for a moment, and when he went to put his foot on the bag again it had disappeared. Witness now identified jewellery to the value of £300 as part of the contents of the bag. Roben Brilliant, a jeweller, of Stoke Newington, who purchased the above lot from prisoner for £140, said when he discovered Griffiths's initials on it he informed the police. Prisoner was committed for trial for stealing and receiving the property actually recovered.

Source: The Weekly Mail - 30th September 1899

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A pair of fish servers by Martin, Hall & Co., assayed at Sheffield in 1910, retailed by Reid & Sons:




RM/EH - Sheffield - 1910



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Replica Roman spoons by Reid & Sons:








R&S - London - 1928

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NEWCASTLE JEWELLERY ROBBERY

SEVERAL CHILIANS ARRESTED

The Newcastle detectives at midnight on Friday smartly arrested several Chilians lodging in the city for the robbery of £2,500 worth of jewellery from Reid and Sons' establishment, Newcastle, on Saturday last. The greater part of the property has been secured.

Source: Evening Express - 14th May 1898

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Forks by Reid & Sons assayed at London in 1919:








R&S - London - 1919

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Notice is hereby given, that the Partnership heretofore subsisting between us the undersigned, William Ker Reid and Edward Ker Reid, carried on at Bream's-buildings, Chancery-lane, in the liberty of the Rolls, in the county of Middlesex, as Gold and Silversmiths, under the style or firm of W. K. Reid and Son, was dissolved by mutual consent, on the 1st day of January, 1853.—Dated this 18th day of March, 1853.
W. K. Reid.
E. K. Reid

Source: The London Gazette - 26th October 1855

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A sauce-boat by Reid & Sons, with Lindisfarne decoration, assayed at Birmingham in 1997:












R&S Ltd - Birmingham - 1997

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An interesting account of how an English firm of jewelers, Reid & Sons, Newcastle on the Tyne, protect their establishment from the depredations of thieves appeared in a recent issue of the London Watchmaker. The store, comprising a total floor space of 1700 square feet has literally been put into a safe.

When the firm decided to remove from their premises in Grey St., which they had they had the occupied for over 60 years, they had the present premises, Gem buildings, Blackett St., specially built for them, after having gone thoroughly into the practical advantages of construction on the principle of making the whole of their shop front and interior showrooms practically thief and fireproof; two unfortunate experiences of the dexterity of burglars made this appear particularly desirable.

The premises were designed by themselves, a note of simplicity being kept predominant; and the whole of the steel plating, together with the safe doors and shutter, in conjunction with Chatwood of Bolton. The shop front has a total width of 30 feet. As the traffic along Blackett St is very heavy, the windows are set back, recessed, to the depth of 3 feet in center, allowing people to stand out of the stream of traffic in order to examine, in comfort, the goods therein displayed. This arrangement has another advantage, because, out of a 30-foot span of the front over 43 feet of actual window space is obtained, exclusive of two 4-foot doors giving admission to the interior of the shop.



The interior of half the shop is care fully thought out. A central case forms a screen in the shop for about two-thirds of its length, and practically divides it into two showrooms. Long counters run either side of this central case from immediately behind the center window in the view of the front, which is devoted to the firm’s jewelry and watch display, thus allowing the assistants easy access to the whole of the jewelry stock, either in the windows or in reserve, as the surplus stock, together with the jobbing and trade conveniences, such as boxes, stationery, etc., are kept in drawers beneath the center case. By an ingenious arrangement, these drawers are available from either side of the shop.

This arrangement of a double showroom the firm thought desirable, because prior to removing their business to the Gem buildings, they carried on an exclusive high-class business at their head establishment in Grey St. and had two branches dealing with the less expensive class goods in other parts of the town. In their new premises, the east showroom is stocked with the high-class goods, while the west showroom is devoted to a display of the more popular priced stocks.

The shop is 53 feet deep and 33 feet wide and the whole of the walls, ceiling and floor are constructed to form one immense safe in the building of which over one hundred tons of steel was used. The steel is protected and reinforced by specially prepared granite concrete of extreme hardness in such a manner as to afford great addtional protection. In the accompanying illustration is shown, partially lifted, the steel shutter which is 30 feet long, and weighs five tons, and forms the fourth side of the safe. When raised to its full height, when the shop is closed, the line of inspection holes, just above the pavement in the illustration, are then about 5 feet in height from the ground, and by them the police can command a complete view of all the windows and the interior. This shutter is raised and lowered by electrical power into a well. On the left-hand side of the shutter will be seen a steel door in it, by which access is obtained to the premises. A back door, for the delivery of goods, is also provided, and this is a powerful Chatwood banker’s door, locked from the inside at night.

The practical working of this arrangement is very convenient. None of the jewelry display in the windows or counter-cases is disturbed when the premises are closed, and the saving of time and work is therefore considerable. Moreover, directly the shutter is lowered in the morning, and until it is raised a few minutes before the shop is closed, the display of goods in the windows is in perfect order for public inspection. From a financial point of view, the scheme is a thoroughly sound one, as, owing to the premises being practically fireproof and thiefproof. Reid & Sons have been able to arrange for very low rates of insurance.

The business can also be carried on with a smaller staff than would otherwise be necessary. The steel shutter which closes the premises is counterbalanced, and costs about three half-pence per week for electric power to raise and lower it.

The firm has also arranged many novel details, interesting to those working a retail jewelry establishment, in the internal fitting of their showrooms, all of which tend to quickness of service and economy in the working of the business. The firm has an interesting record. Founded in June, 1778, it has an unbroken record of five generations of the same family; Christian Kerr Reid, founder; David Reid, son; Christian John Reid, grandson; while the present partnership consists of Thomas Arthur Reid, great grandson; Christian Leopold Reid, great, great grandson; and William Septimus Leete.

Source: The Jewelers' Circular - 7th September 1910

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An example of the work and mark of Christian Ker Reid and David Reid, a tea-caddy spoon, assayed at Newcastle in 1824:




CR/DR - Newcastle - 1824

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