What Is the History of Foley China?
Foley bone china was first produced in 1872 at the Foley Pottery in Fenton, England by Wileman and Company. In 1925 Wileman and Company was reformed as Shelley Potteries. Between 1881 and 1903 the Foley potteries were shared by another company, Robinson and Sons, who also manufactured porcelain branded as Foley bone china but with the trademark “EB.”
Robinson and Sons continued to manufacture porcelain at the Foley factory in Fenton into the 1960s under a different name: E. Brain and Company. In 1963 E. Brain became Coalport China. After the name change, the porcelain manufactured by the company was branded as Coalport instead of Foley. According to ChinaMiner, all of this was eventually bought up by the Royal Doulton Group.
To confuse the situation further, a completely different company at a different location also produced wares branded as Foley bone china between 1898 and 1940. This company, J Goodwin Stoddard, manufactured porcelain at King Street, Foley, located in Longton.
Pottery pieces can be easily identified as to maker and approximate date of manufacture by looking at the watermark. A distinct mark indicates that the piece was Foley bone china and was manufactured by a particular company, according to Foley Antiques.
