Object number
2010/119
Collection
Exhibition
Description
White plastic bag printed on both sides with the words ‘Suttons Seeds Ltd., Torquay’. From John Cox, who worked at Suttons from 1931 to 1976.
This is a white plastic bag printed on both sides with the words ‘Suttons Seeds Ltd. // Torquay’, addresses and telephone numbers of Suttons shops in London and Torquay, and the company logo in brown. It dates from after the move of Suttons Seeds Ltd. to Torquay in 1976. The bag is part of a large collection of objects relating to Suttons Seeds Ltd., as well as other rural artefacts, compiled by John Cox, who worked at Suttons from 1931 to 1976, starting as an office boy and finishing as Company Secretary.
Physical description
1 bag: plastic
Label Text
Many of the Sutton’s Seeds objects in the Museum feature branding that Ron [Butler] would have been familiar with for much of his life. The different addresses on these carrier bags mark the move of Sutton’s headquarters from Reading to Torquay. // Ron followed the company and so these artefacts also chart life changes brought by his career. In retirement, Ron helped to sort a Museum collection that included this Sutton’s Seeds pension plaque, at a time when he was presumably a beneficiary of its funds. // MERL 2010/72, 2010/118-119.
Archival history
MERL 'Handwritten accession' form (Museum of English Rural Life) – ‘Associated information: This item was part of a large collection of Suttons Seeds related objects and other rural artefacts collected by the late John Cox. Mr Cox was company secretary at Suttons 1968–1976. He started at Suttons in 1931. The collections he amassed were sorted by his daughters, Bridget and Katherine, following his death. The Museum agreed to purchase a number of objects, which were then identified and assessed with the help of Gerry Westall and Ron Butler (MERL volunteers and former colleagues of Mr Cox).’, Bag text – ‘Suttons Seeds Ltd. // Torquay // Suttons Shop • 33 Catherine Street London WC2 • Tel 01 836 0619 // Head Office • Hele Road Torquay Devon • Tel Torquay 62011’, MERL miscellaneous note, Greta Bertram, 2 August 2012 – Suttons Seeds Ltd. was founded in 1806 by John Sutton (1777–1863) and traded as a corn merchant. It was known as the ‘House of Sutton’ and had premises on King Street, Reading. John’s two sons joined the business in 1832 and in 1836 it was renamed ‘Sutton & Son’. In 1837 the company moved to the Market Place, Reading, and expanded into seeds and acquired nursery grounds in Queens Road, Reading. In 1840 they established a testing laboratory and in 1873 new buildings replaced those in Market Place. These included various offices, separate store rooms for different types of seeds and bulbs, recreation rooms, residences and a fire station. In 1962 Suttons moved to new grounds and premises on the eastern outskirts of Reading, before moving to Torquay, Devon, in 1976 and then Paington, Devon, in 1998.
Production date
1976 - 1998
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Material
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