Nazeing

The history of Nazeing Glass began in London in the 1870’s with Charles Kempton who progressed from being a warehouseman to become a supplier and manufacturer of glass, and finally a producer of glass, along with his two elder sons – quite possibly through the influence of his father-in-law who was a glassblower for James Powell and Sons (Whitefriars). Charles’s company went through various guises, with a number of partners and at different addresses in Southwark and Vauxhall before its final move to Nazeing under the auspices of his son Richard.

Much of the production during the Victorian period was centred round lighting as well as what is now regarded as Victorian “fancy glass”. Work from this period has often hitherto been attributed to the London firm of James Powell & Sons, and occasionally to the better quality Stourbridge factories. In particular, a series of Trumpet vases that range from small solifleur vases through to huge floor standing two-piece items with metal connectors are now known to be by Charles Kempton.

In 1928, what is now the last family owned glass manufacturer in England moved from Southwark, London due to redevelopment of the area to a site in Hertfordshire. The company, known as Nazeing Glass, then owned by the Kempton family of glassmakers, bought a property in a low-lying field on the Broxbourne/Nazeing border called ‘The Goats’. There was a large shed, which became the centre for glass production until it was superseded by the complex of buildings that exist to this day. Indeed, the company logo still incorporates a pair of goats, referring back to its origins.

It was not until 1930/31 that production began in the “Goat Shed”. Production consisted of a range of art glass items that included vases, bowls, lighting, desk accessories and paperweights. Most of the wares were what we now term as “cloudy” and were not unlike the work of Gray-Stan, or some of that produced by Powell in the late 1920’s and 1930’s. The majority of the pieces produced used a colour, with white enamel underneath giving a pastel effect. There were also heavily cased pieces that exhibited traits of Italian glass, such as the work of Barovier.

During WWII the firm went over to production for the war effort. Malcolm Pollock-Hill became a shareholder in the 1930’s, eventually purchasing the company in 1942. A tank furnace was installed to assist in producing work for the Ministry of Aircraft, which enabled other wares to be introduced to the company’s production.

After the war the company started making drinking glasses and ashtrays for commercial businesses such as hotels and airlines. This culminated in the firm finding work in niche markets, including pub glass, advertising wares and even a range of Bristol Blue glass retailed through the museum at Bristol. Malcolm Pollock-Hill’s son, Stephen, became joint managing director in 1990 and only recently retired from that position, however he still remains active within the company.

For a brief period in 1999 the firm experimented with producing Art Glass again and marketed a range of items, but the project was found to be uncommercial, so ceased.

Much of the current production includes press-moulded glass raging from traffic light lenses to architectural street lenses (for basements). Only twenty percent of the current output is domestic in nature, being mainly tableware for hotels and caterers. Nowadays the company has close links with glass artists who can produce more intricate wares that require different skills to those available in-house.