William Shirley's chair factory Boggs Lane, Caistor, c. 1870

Shirley chair factory Boggs Lane, Caistor, c. 1870. The man with his hand on the child's chair is said to be William Shirley WS110

William Shirley junior was baptised at Grantham on 27th June 1817 and was born into a chair making family. His father. William senior served his apprenticeship under another Windsor chair maker in Grantham, John Taylor, and was made a Freeman of the Borough in 1815.  An advertisement appeared in the Stamford Mercury in June 1815 when William senior seeks an apprentice to join him, describing himself as a maker of Windsor, turn-pin and fancy chairs, and spinning wheel maker. A few Windsor chairs, both armchairs and side, have been found with SHIRLEY GRANTHAM impressed on the upper rear of the seat.

It seems likely that William Shirley junior would have done his apprenticeship under the guidance of his father while living in Grantham, probably being freed in 1838 at the age of 21. He is noted as working as a chair maker and living in Grantham in the census of 1841. However 2 years later he is recorded in the Rate book of Caistor renting a house, garden and (work)shop from the widow Shadford, presumably making chairs. How and why he went to Caistor remains a mystery but at some later his father leaves Grantham as in the 1851 census he is recorded as working as a chair maker in Birmingham.

Within a year or two of arriving in Caistor he takes on his landlord’s son, John Shadford, as his apprentice; a position he occupies for over 14 years. The length of his apprenticeship may be explained by him being born completely deaf. The 1851 census indicates that the business has grown as he has two apprentice chairmakers with him, one is his younger brother Frederick (15) and another called John Young (16).

In 1859 when John Shadford is preparing the wording for his business in his notebook he explains that he is to occupy the workshop vacated by his former master. Perhaps it is at this time that William Shirley builds his own workshop. We are so fortunate to have pictures of the building showing the water wheel at the side of the building driven by water channelled from one of the springs in Caistor.

In the chair making tradition at Caistor William Shirley has always been overshadowed by John Shadford and his famous notebook but it is most likely that he produced far more chairs than Shadford ever did. The 1861 census tells us that he is employing 2 men and 3 boys in his chairmaking business while Shadford is noted as working alone. What the relationship was between these two men we may never know, but they lived very close to each other in fine houses in Duck street and would have seen each other every day if they so wished.

The census of 1871 describes him as a chair manufacturer with his son Alfred (26) as a chairmaker in the same house. Also almost next door is his brother Frederick (35) with his family, also a chair maker. The last mention of him is in the census of 1881 when he is once again described as a chairmaker employing 3 men. So the business was still surviving after nearly 40 years from leaving Grantham and in that time he and his business must have made many thousands of chairs. The pattern of these chairs has not been completely established as no advert or sales leaflet has yet been found but a high back Windsor and a ‘ Grecian side chair with the stamp of SHIRLEY have been consigned from a house close to Caistor to the local saleroom and must have been made by him. Other chairs with just the SHIRLEY stamp (but without the GRANTHAM ) are known to exist.

He died in Caistor just after Christmas in 1889. In his will he appoints his son Alfred as executor and he leaves everything to his wife Hannah. His estate included his dwelling house with a garden and a bath-house. There were some adjoining out buildings plus some thatched cottages.

© William Sergeant 2013 and 2020