Group Description

Middlemore and their partner Lamplugh

The roots of this bicycle saddle company go back a long way. By 1730 Robert Middlemore of Birmingham had an established leather business making equipment for horses.
His family descendents continued in the leather trade. Middlemores can be traced back to when Richard Middlemore started a leather products company circa 1811.
A 1832 newspaper mentions that the firm Richard Middlemore And Sons, of 31 Holloway Head, was dissolved but any debts were paid immediately by sons William (1802-1887) and James Middlemore (1807-1891) and the company started again as William Middlemore, the sons had joint control until 1841 when William took over.
Another brother, also named Richard, 1804-1891, entered a medical career and became the top eye surgeon in the country and known around the world in the medical profession.
William's son Sir John Middlemore, Baronet of Selly Oak from May 1919 and after obtaining a medical degree also Doctor Middlemore, in the 1860s, worked in the factory for a while but later became a Birmingham MP from 1899-1918. Sir John lived from 1844-1924. He is thought to have had nine daughters and a son Sir William Hawkslow Middlemore 1908-1987.
The factory supplied horse saddles and leather equipment to the British army in the pre-motorised days. A government investigation into the wages paid by companies in the leather industry contracted to them found that William Middlemore was paying the best wages. Back in 1860 they employed 400 people and were one of the largest employers in the country.
William wanted to involve the company in other products, although he retired in 1882 and another son Thomas Middlemore 1842-1923 became head of the company and decided to concentrate on bicycle saddles and accessories in 1885.
In 1896 Thomas sold his share in the company and with his inheritance from William moved, with his wife Theodosia, to the Orkney Islands and bought the great Melsetter Estate, which became Admiralty Fleet Headquarters during WW2 when the fleet was based at Scapa Flow, the waters around the islands. The estate included Hoy island and several smaller islands. Thomas was a serious mountaineer and is known for being the first person along with a partner and guides to climb Les Droites in the French Alps along with other mountain ascents.
Also in 1896 the firm of William Middlemore, joined with Lamplugh and Co. to become Middlemore and Lamplugh Ltd. This was soon after William Middlemore Ltd had aquired a factory at Bayley Buildings, formerly the house of Katherine Bayley who died in the 1700s. By the 1800s a small school founded by money from her will had moved from it's previous location to here, 89 Little Park Street, Coventry. Middlemore had expanded the company here to make bicycle saddles and accessories.
Thomas still owned land in the Birmingham area and in 1916 sold 120 acres to Herbert Austin so he could build a village for the workers of his expanding car factory.
In June 1920 the company was liquidated, the Holloway Head factory being absorbed into the company of D. Mason and Son Ltd, Birmingham and the Coventry bicycle saddle division becoming the separate company Middlemores (Coventry) Ltd. A 1920 advert shows them as 'Middlemores (Coventry) Ltd (late Middlemore & Lamplugh Ltd)'
In 1953, they expanded to additional premises at Torrington Avenue. The Little Park Street factory continued until 1961 when the council's compulsory purchase order meant various buildings in the street were demolished for redevelopment. The company existed, at least on paper, until 21st May 1991 when an extraordinary general meeting took place at 141 Great Charles Street, Birmingham, where it was decided that due to it's liabilities the company could no longer continue in business and would voluntarily be liquidated. The street where Brooks began, Middlemores ended.

Harry Dudley Stevens worked with Middlemores on various designs, including a walking stick/seat that was an improvement on anything available at that time, the patent being filed in 1930.

Famous racing cyclist and cycling manager Bob Thom worked at Middlemores after his racing manager period.

As with Lamplugh and Brown, Middlemores made a saddle for royalty, this time for Princess Margaret.

It was mentioned in 1891 that the company of Lamplugh and Brown (who made a saddle for queen Victoria) of 135 Great Colmore Street, Birmingham, owned by James Alfred Lamplugh c1843-1895 and George Frederick Brown had been dissolved by mutual consent, Mr Brown having retired and Mr Lamplugh forming the company Lamplugh and Co., which also set up a French division, 'Lamplugh, Paris', that continued on after the Middlemore merger until maybe the 1950s
An 1897 patent document deals with an invention of James Alfred Lamplugh, deceased, with his interests looked after by a Charles Frederick Brown.
One of James' sons, Henry Arthur Lamplugh, born 1873, was described in the 1901 census as a 'cycle accessory manufacturer'.

William Middlemore and Grandson Sir William Hawkslow Middlemore
search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?gl=ROOT_CATEGORY&...

William's brother James Middlemore
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William's son Thomas Middlemore with wife Theodosia and below a younger portrait
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William's son Sir John Throgmorton Middlemore, father of Sir William Hawkslow
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Sir John Middlemore in 1904, second from right in photo
www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portraitLarge/mw210036/...


Some pictures of Little Park Street showing the Middlemores location; The second picture down shows the Middlemores building in colour, at the right, with a car parked outside.
The third picture down shows the cleared Middlemores location just after the trees beyond the trianglular pathways.
forum.historiccoventry.co.uk/main/forum-posts.php?id=5936
If, after seeing the colour picture, you go to Little Park Street to see where Middlemores was don't be confused by the small side road, St Johns Street, as that wasn't there at the time. You may have heard there was a St Johns Street since medievel times but the real one was beyond the end of Little Park Street and wiped out when the ring road was built.

Middlemores, Little Park Street exterior view 1 www.picturesofcoventry.co.uk/cgi-bin/coventry.pl?_cgifunc...

Middlemores, Little Park Street exterior view 2 www.picturesofcoventry.co.uk/cgi-bin/coventry.pl?_cgifunc...

Middlemores, Little Park Street interior view 1 www.picturesofcoventry.co.uk/cgi-bin/coventry.pl?_cgifunc...

Middlemores, Little Park Street interior view 2 www.picturesofcoventry.co.uk/cgi-bin/coventry.pl?_cgifunc...

Middlemores, Little Park Street interior view 3 www.picturesofcoventry.co.uk/cgi-bin/coventry.pl?_cgifunc...

Thomas Middlemore's ascent of Les Droites on Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Les_Droites

Please add your saddles branded Middlemore, Middlemores, Middlemore And Lamplugh, Lamplugh and Brown, Lamplugh and Middlemores parts and accessories.