INDUSTRIAL WORKERS WELFARE HOUSING- STEWARTBY, ENGLAND

LOCATION:

STEWARTBY IS A MODEL VILLAGE AND CIVIL PARISH IN BEDFORDSHIRE, ORIGINALLY

BUILT FOR THE WORKERS OF THE LONDON BRICK COMPANY. THE VILLAGE WAS DESIGNED
AND BUILT TO THE PLANS OF THE COMPANY'S ARCHITECT MR F W WALKER, LAID OUT ON
‘GARDEN CITY’ PRINCIPLE.
HISTORY:
ORIGINALLY THERE WERE TWO WOOTTON FARMING SETTLEMENTS- WOOTTON PILLINGE
AND NEIGHBOURING WOOTTON BROADMEAD, THE WOOTTON PILLINGE LBC VILLAGE WAS
RENAMED AS STEWARTBY IN 1936, TAKING ITS NEW NAME FROM THE STEWART FAMILY,
DIRECTORS OF LONDON BRICK COMPANY SINCE 1900. STEWARTBY WAS THE LARGEST
BRICKWORKS IN TERMS OF OUTPUT IN THE WORLD. THE FIRM BECAME LONDON BRICK
COMPANY AND FORDERS LIMITED IN 1926, AND SHORTENED TO LONDON BRICK COMPANY
IN 1936.

TIMELINE:
1889 - THE LONDON BRICK COMPANY WAS FOUNDED IN FLETTON,
HUNTINGDONSHIRE:

THE LONDON BRICK COMPANY OWES ITS

ORIGINS TO JOHN CATHLES HILL, A
DEVELOPER-ARCHITECT WHO BUILT HOUSES
IN LONDON AND PETERBOROUGH. IN 1889,
HILL BOUGHT THE SMALL T.W. HARDY &
SONS BRICKYARD AT FLETTON NEAR
PETERBOROUGH, AND THE BUSINESS WAS
INCORPORATED AS THE LONDON BRICK
COMPANY IN 1900.
1897- BRICKMAKING BEGINS IN STEWARTBY:

ORIGINALLY TWO WOOTTON FARMING SETTLEMENTS, WOOTTON

PILLINGE AND NEIGHBOURING WOOTTON BROADMEAD, THE WOOTTON
PILLINGE LBC VILLAGE WAS IN 1936 RENAMED STEWARTBY, TAKING
ITS NEW NAME FROM THE STEWART FAMILY, DIRECTORS OF LONDON
BRICK COMPANY SINCE 1900.

1900 - HALLEY STEWART AND HIS SON, P. MALCOLM STEWART BECOME

DIRECTORS OF B.J. FORDERS AND SON

HALLEY STEWART ENTERED HIS FATHER’S BUSINESS IN 1891.

HALLEY AND HIS SON MALCOM STEWART THEN BECAME
DIRECTORS OF THE CEMENT BUSINESS IN WHICH THE FAMILY WAS
INTERESTED – B. J. FORDER & SON LTD – BECAME PART OF THE
BRITISH PORTLAND CEMENT MANUFACTURERS LTD IN 1912.

1901 - WOOTTON PILLINGE BRICK COMPANY FOUNDED.

DURING THE YEAR 1900-1901 L.B.C. ACQUIRE

LAND IN BEDFORDSHIRE INCLUDING LAND IN
WOOTTON BROADMEAD OWNED BY JAMES
RANDALL.
1905 - L.B.C. ACQUIRE 450 ACRES IN WOOTON PILLINGE

THERE WERE ALREADY SEVERAL BRICKYARDS

THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY. LONDON BRICK
CAPITALISED ON THIS AND BOUGHT THE
COMPANY OF JAMES RANDALL IN 1900,
OPERATING IN WOOTTON BROADMEAD, SHORTLY
FOLLOWED BY A FURTHER 450 ACRES OF LAND AT
WOOTTON PILLINGE IN 1905.

1920 – L.B.C AND WOOTTON BRICK COMPANY MERGE.

THE WOOTTON PILLINGE BRICK

COMPANY, FOUNDED IN 1901, WAS
FINALLY BOUGHT OUT BY LBC DURING
THE SLUMP OF THE EARLY 1920S. THE
TWO COMPANYS THEN WENT ON TO
MERGE TOGETHER.

1923 - L.B.C. AND B.J.FORDERS AND SON MERGE TO CREATE LONDON BRICK COMPANY AND
FORDERS LTD. (EVENTUALLY SHORTENED BACK TO LONDON BRICK COMPANY LTD.)
1926 - PROPOSED PLANS OF A GARDEN VILLAGE CALLED STEWARTBY SUBMITTED, WHICH
WAS A MODEL VILLAGE BUILT IN THE EXISTING HAMLET OF WOOTTON PILLINGE.
DESIGNED BY MR F.W. WALKER, THE ARCHITECT FOR THE COMPANY.

IN 1926 THE LBC BEGAN TO BUILD A ‘GARDEN

VILLAGE’ FOR IT’S EMPLOYEES AT WOOTON
PILLINGE; THE VILLAGE WAS TO BE NAMED
STEWARTBY AFTER SIR HALLEY STEWART.

1928 - FIRST SQUARE COMPLETED (CHURCHILL CLOSE). THE HOUSES WERE

VERY MODERN FOR THE TIME AS THEY HAD A WATER SUPPLY, DRAINAGE,
ELECTRICITY ETC.

1929 - STEWARTBY MEMORIAL HALL BUILT IN MEMORY OF THE VILLAGERS WHO

LOST THEIR LIVES IN WORLD WAR 1 AND IS WHERE THE PARISH MEETINGS HAVE
TAKEN PLACE SINCE 1937. DESIGNED BY E VINCENT HARRIS.
STEWARTBY MEMORIAL HALL WS BUILT IN 1929, THE MEMORIAL HALL STANDS IN THE CENTRE OF
STEWARTBY, THE ROLL OF HONOUR CONSISTS OF FOUR STONE PLAQUES SET INTO THE INNER WALLS.

SUNIDHI VERMA

171110226

B.ARCH, SEM-8TH

PROJECT MANAGEMENT