Person    | Male  Born 1730  Died 3/1/1795

Josiah Wedgwood

Master potter. Born in Burslem, Stoke, Staffordshire, into a potters family. Married his cousin, Sally. Childhood smallpox left him with a limp. His inability to operate the potters wheel meant he turned to design and management instead.  It is said he often used his stick to smash items that he felt were not good enough. Contacted the Cherokees Indians to find a source of the whitest possible clay. His London showrooms became a fashionable place to visit. Flaxman, Stubbs and Lady Diana Beauclerk all provided designs for him. Promoter of social reform and active in the fight against the slave trade. Wedgwood is nowadays compared with Henry Ford for his innovative introduction of methods of mass production.

Comments are provided by Facebook, please ensure you are signed in here to see them

This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Josiah Wedgwood

Commemorated ati

Josiah Wedgwood

Charming plaque, in the Wedgwood blue pottery style.

Read More

Spirit of Soho Mural

Interesting that Coca Cola are specifically mentioned on the panel but not as...

Read More

Other Subjects

Stephen Bird

Stephen Bird

Artist/designer/craft-person.  Born Stoke-on-Trent.  Initially we could find no information about "S. Bird" but Andrew Behan was more successful so we have him to thank for this page.

Person, Art, Craft / Design

3 memorials
John Cranfield
1 memorial
Walter Wakley

Walter Wakley

Walter Wakley was born on 4 October 1883 in Clapham, Surrey, the fifth of the eight children of Albert Wakley (1852-1915) and Sophia Wakley née Watson (1855-1923). His birth was registered in the 4...

Person, Craft / Design

1 memorial
Edward Massey

Edward Massey

Clockmaker. From a family of clockmakers. Baptized in 1768 in Staffordshire (which, if true, makes the birth date on the plaque wrong).

Person, Craft / Design

1 memorial