7) A New Warehouse 1885/6 - 1901
To begin with, thirty-eight houses were erected near the new warehouse built for Richard Cooper in 1886, on two sides of what was first known as Phoenix Street, then a further 40 smaller properties facing one another in the field at the town end of the warehouse, when the first street was named after Richard Cooper and the second became Phoenix Street.
The field entrance to the business premises, placed in the charge of Richard Cooper Jnr., was beside the river, on Hook Road. There the 24 year old ironmonger commenced an iron and brass foundry. He and his wife seem to have been tenants of No. 55 Hook Road, the house adjoining the site and the home until his death in 1885 of Robert Harrison.
(NOTE: In total Robert Harrison owned 2 acres 1 rood and 13 perches (bought in 1858 for £300 from the heirs of William Duckels deceased) of which only 1 acre 3 roods and 30 and one-half perches was sold to Richard Cooper in 1884. Following Harrison's death, it is considered that Richard Cooper may have acquired either the remainder of his undeveloped land, or possibly the third strip (formerly the property of Richard Duckels), as the southern boundary of Richard Cooper Street abuts the pre-existing site of Shuffleton Mill/Fleeman's candle manufactory.
09/01/06 Since writing this note, I was thrilled to find someone had realised the value of old title deeds, beyond records already in public archives. I hope other residents will be as public-spirited. Deposited so recently at Goole Reference Library, this resource fills in many gaps, gives new leads to the parties involved. Details will be used to expand the story of the Shuffleton Streets very soon.)
Although 55 Hook Road was sold to a third party in 1889 and re-sold in February 1891, becoming the residence for the manager of The Goole & Hull Steam Towing Co. Ltd., the young Coopers were listed there in the early months of 1891, at the time of the census.
However, in October 1891 Richard Cooper & Son's Phoenix Foundry, on a site exceeding 4000 yards in area, was put up for sale with immediate possession. This may have been for personal/health reasons.
It was hoped that the purchasers - Earles Shipbuilding Co. of Hull - would extend the premises and progress repairs at Goole, ship-repair and engineering work being chronically delayed due to the lack of dry dock accommodation.
Mr. T. H. Jenkin, a naval architect and marine engineer who came to Goole in 1892 to manage the newly formed Goole branch of Earles Shipbuilding Co., remarked in 1893 that: "Shipowners could not afford to keep vessels waiting for the only dry dock in Goole, so ships needing urgent repairs went to Hull".
Earles installed electric lighting (second only in Goole to Hudson's flour mill) and in 1898 extended the works to hold the most efficient machine tools, improving their existing turning, drilling, screwing and tapping machinery, so as to hold their own at a very competitive period. That August the Goole Times reported the men working overtime - "nine o'clock every night with the exception of the last month, when they have left at seven, in order to get a rest." However, national labour problems in the shipbuilding and engineering trades led to Earles of Hull going into voluntary liquidation in June 1900, although it did re-form under new management. Despite all the Goole shipyards being handicapped by "prolonged repairs to the dry dock", in 1901 the Phoenix works at Goole closed with the loss of seventy jobs.
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