DOWN the years since its foundation in 1751, several separate local firms of master craftsmen have gone to make up today's Worcester Royal Porcelain Company which is proudly celebrating its 250th anniversary.

One such firm, Grainger's, was a feature of Worcester's industrial scene in its own right for almost a century.

It became the Faithful City's third porcelain factory when set up in the early 1800s by Thomas Grainger, a grandson of Richard Chamberlain, who founded the Chamberlain porcelain works at Diglis, in the 1780s.

Thomas Grainger served his apprenticeship with Chamberlains before setting up on his own with premises at St Martin's Gate. Alas, his first works was destroyed by a devastating blaze in 1809 but, not to be defeated, he had a new factory built nearby soon afterwards, and called it Grainger's Royal China Works.

The frontage buildings still survive in St Martin's Gate today, as do the prestigious Grainger showrooms which graced The Foregate for many years. The property later became W.H Smith's for a long period and is now a pizza parlour.

Thomas Grainger had a number of financial partners in his business, but he died in 1839, leaving his widow Mary Ann and son George to run the firm.

George Grainger was to become a leading figure on Worcester's industrial and business scene and introduced new types of porcelain production including "chemical porcelain" and "semi-porcelain."

The company had notably successful displays at the Great Exhibition of 1851 and at the London International Exhibition of 1862.

Records show that the Grainger porcelain factory employed about 50 people - up to 40 men and boys and about 10 or 12 women.

George Grainger was not only a successful businessman but also took a prominent part in public life, being a city councillor and a magistrate. He was given a glowing obituary in Berrow's Worcester Journal and in other local newspapers when he died in 1888.

The following year, his son Frank sold the family firm to the Worcester Royal Porcelain Company which retained the Grainger identity, the St Martin's Gate factory and the workforce. Thirteen years later, however, in 1902, the Grainger employees were transferred to the main Royal Worcester factory at Diglis, and the St Martin's Gate works were auctioned off in 1903. The premises have been in a series of different uses since.

* All the information for this article was drawn from the excellent book Porcelain in Worcester 1751-1951 - An Illustrated Social History by Ray Jones of Hallow.