BURGESS AND LEIGH

In July 1851, ‘Hulme & Booth’ founded a business manufacturing earthenware in the centre of the ‘Mother Town’ of The Potteries, Burslem. Little is known about the lives of these two men, but the company was successful for over a decade.

11 years later, Frederick Rathbone Burgess and William Leigh took over. Burgess was a man with great business acumen. Leigh had been working in the pottery industry from childhood. Their combination of creative talent and practical skills meant that the company sat on solid foundations; ‘Burgess & Leigh’ were set apart from the myriad of manufacturers. Leigh was known locally as a kind, fair employer. He understood the importance of running a factory whilst considering the welfare of its workers, having experienced these conditions first-hand...

The contents above are from the Burleigh website.