William Howson Taylor
Born 1876
Died 22 September 1935
Active: 1896 - 1935
Country of birth and death: England
Potter, designer, business owner
Born in Lincoln. Died in Ashprington, Devon. William was the son of Edward Richard Taylor, the headmaster of Birmingham School of Art. Edward founded the Ruskin Pottery at Smethwick, Birmingham in 1898 and William took over running the firm on his father's death.
The Ruskin Pottery was primarily known for its innovative and experimental use of glazes. The recipes were kept secret so when William died in 1935 they were lost. In the early 1900s, the firm began making small round cabochons, which were called 'enamels' or 'plaques'. These were intended to be inserted into wood, or mounted on metal or jewellery.
The most significant collections of works by William Howson Taylor and the Ruskin Pottery are at the Wednesbury Museum and Art Gallery (Wednesbury, Sandwell, West Midlands) and the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery. There are also some examples of their wares in the Victoria and Albert Museum.
This record includes information submitted by Martyn Park.
Wealth at death: £13,622 17s. 11d.
Probate date: 3 February 1936
Works
Dates are usually the year a work was exhibited so may differ from date of production.
New entries have been made each time a work was exhibited. Click here for more information.
Scent Bottle
1902 (Presumed)
Vase
1902 (Presumed)
Bowl
1902 (Presumed)
Salt
1902 (Presumed)
Vase
1902 (Presumed)
Vase
1902 (Presumed)
Puff Box
1902 (Presumed)
Vase
1902 (Presumed)
Vase
1902 (Presumed)
Bowl
1902 (Presumed)
Ink
1902 (Presumed)
Pottery
1903 (Presumed)
Ruskin Pottery
1904 (Presumed)
Ruskin Pottery
1904 (Presumed)
Locations
Address Springbank Tuckenhay Totnes | View on map
1935
Died at the Cottage Hospital, Totnes. This was his home address given in the Probate Calendar.
Address 26 Highfield Road Edgbaston Birmingham | View on map
1884 (Presumed) - 1911 (Circa)
Address 173 Oldbury Road West Smethwick Birmingham | View on map
1904 (Circa) - 1905 (Circa)
Exhibitions, Meetings, Awards and other Events
Exhibited at The Seventy-Sixth Autumn Exhibition at the Rooms of the Society, New Street (Royal Birmingham Society of Artists), 1902
'Puff Box'
Exhibited at The Thirty-Ninth Spring Exhibition at the Rooms of the Society, New Street (Royal Birmingham Society of Artists), 1904
'Ruskin Pottery'
Exhibited at The Seventy-Eighth Autumn Exhibition at the Rooms of the Society, New Street (Royal Birmingham Society of Artists), 1904
'Ruskin Pottery '
Exhibited at The Seventy-Seventh Autumn Exhibition at the Rooms of the Society, New Street (Royal Birmingham Society of Artists), 1903
'Pottery'
Exhibited at Leeds City Art Gallery, Arts & Crafts Exhibition, 1904
'Plaque'
Exhibited at Leeds City Art Gallery, The Spring Exhibition, 1905
Multiple works
Exhibited at Birmingham Municipal School of Art, Exhibition of Students' Work, 1896
1896
Institutional and Business Connections
Student at Birmingham Municipal School of Art, Central School
1896
Personal and Professional Connections
Daughter/son/child of Edward Richard Taylor
See 'Death of Mr. E. R. Taylor', Birmingham Despatch, 16 January, 1912, in 'Birmingham Biography, vol. 8, p. 34.
Descriptions of Practice
Occupation given in Census Returns of England and Wales, 1901
'Headmaster (School of Art)' and his son William Howson Taylor 'Earthenware Manufacturer' employer
Occupation given in Census Returns of England and Wales, 1911
Both father and son 'Manufacturer of Earthenware' employer (Edward Richard Taylor also entered as 'Artist (painter)' but this has been crossed out).
Sources
Birmingham Biography, Newspaper Cuttings, 1872-1966 Birmingham Biography
See 'Death of Mr. E. R. Taylor', Birmingham Despatch, 16 January, 1912, in 'Birmingham Biography, vol. 8, p. 34.
Catalogue of the Arts & Crafts Exhibition 1904
1904
Cat. Nos. 673, pp. 43, 135
Catalogue of the Spring Exhibition, The City Art Gallery, Leeds 1905
1905
Cat. Nos. 279, 293, pp. 31, 32, 100
Census Returns of England and Wales, 1901
2005
RG13 piece 2815 folio 167 page 37
Census Returns of England and Wales, 1911
2011
RG14PN17926 RG78PN1093 RD383 SD3 ED16 SN77
England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1966
2010
Name: William Howson Taylor
Probate Date: 3 Feb 1936
Death Date: 22 Sep 1935
Death Place: Devon, England
Registry: Birmingham, England
Royal Birmingham Society of Artists. The Thirty-Ninth Spring Exhibition at the Rooms of the Society, New Street, 1904
1904
p. 64 of supplement.
Citing this record
'William Howson Taylor', Mapping the Practice and Profession of Sculpture in Britain and Ireland 1851-1951, University of Glasgow History of Art and HATII, online database 2011 [http://sculpture.gla.ac.uk/view/person.php?id=msib4_1203081531, accessed 04 Oct 2023]
