Collier and Plucknett were a

Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined with Leamington Spa and Whi ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

based Victorian-era furniture maker, best known for their

Gothic revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

pieces. James Plucknett formed a partnership with Frederick Collier in the 1860s, with a showroom in

Leamington Spa Royal Leamington Spa, commonly known as Leamington Spa or simply Leamington (), is a spa town and civil parish in Warwickshire, England. Originally a small village called Leamington Priors, it grew into a spa town in the 18th century following ...

, and workshops in Warwick where

Ambrose Heal Sir Ambrose Heal (3 September 1872 – 15 November 1959) was an English furniture designer and businessman in the first half of the 20th century. He served as the chairman of Heal's (then called Heal & Son) from 1913 to 1953. Early life Heal ...

was an apprentice. The firm advertised themselves as: From adverts in trade directories the firm gained a wider reputation across the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, with national commissions supplementing work from local families. Their best known works were for William Gibbs, who commissioned John Norton to remodel his country house,

Tyntesfield Tyntesfield is a Victorian Gothic Revival house and estate near Wraxall, North Somerset, England. The house is a Grade I listed building named after the Tynte baronets, who had owned estates in the area since about 1500. The location was form ...

. William Cubitt & Co. were the sub-contracted builders, whose foreman was George Plucknett, a relative of James Plucknett. Today, Tyntesfield is a

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

property, and as well as items of furniture visitors can view the fully fitted Collier and Plucknett bathroom of Matilda Blanche Gibbs. After Collier retired and the old firm was dissolved in January 1880, Plucknett went into partnership with James Steevens and they traded as Plucknett and Steevens. The partnership lasted six years and included the 1884 commission for the Town Hall in Leamington Spa. Plucknett traded independently from 1886 and in 1892 provided the furnishings for The Royal Pavilion at the Royal Agricultural Show. The firm ceased trading in 1908 and the remaining stock was auctioned off.

References

Design companies established in 1860 Design companies disestablished in 1908 Companies based in Warwick British furniture makers 1860 establishments in England 1908 disestablishments in England British companies disestablished in 1908 British companies established in 1860 {{UK-company-stub