Kieran’s Our City, Our Town Article,

Cork Independent, 31 October 2024

Making an Irish Free State City – Sunbeam & the Future of Fashion

In the days surrounding the formal opening of Sunbeam Knitwear Company in Blackpool on 5 March 1933, there was much press coverage. William Dwyer had launched an important scheme to produce silk and artificial silk hosiery, most of which up to that point was imported from abroad.

To be successful William Dwyer deployed all highly strategic elements including  future thinking investment, being proactive and responding to the changing fashion styles especially in female underwear in the early 1930s, harnessing the use of more modern machinery and manufacturing, making sure his staff were well-trained on the factory floor and undertook the head hunting of a strong sub management team. In particular William hired designers who watched and responded to the fashion changes in Paris and London, the rapid emerging cultural trends in elaborate stocking design and seeing what shapes and designs suited Irish figures and Irish complexions. All the above elements together made for a company well poised to react to economic, social and cultural trends of their time and almost challenging indirectly the culture of conservative Ireland.

The Cork Examiner on 3 March 1933 carried a paid and well-designed and impressive “catch the eye” advertisement stating “ A New Home for a Mighty Irish Industry”. Adjacent was a page and half story on the story todate of Sunbeam and William Dwyer’s journey, with clear input by the Company itself. The newspaper opened its story by describingthe new Company premises standing on the Blackpool side of the city, closely adjoining the main Cork-Dublin railway line. The premises comprised some eight acres of factory space, together with one of the finest chimney shafts and boiler house equipment in the Irish Free State. The article describes a fine industrial building; “The building is particularly well constructed; it was designed to withstand the rigours imposed by the flax industry and is admirably suited for hosiery production. It is suitable, too, for the ambitious programme of expansion and development of new industries planned by William Dwyer when he undertook his project at Blackpool”.

The Cork Examiner article continued to explore the geography or layout of the factory. At the top of the factory was a “battery of nearly fifty machines” engaged on the manufacture of seamless silk stockings. These machines turned out the cheaper grades of artificial silk hose in an infinite variety of shades and colours, “designed by one of the most expert dyeing departments in the hosiery trade”.

In another part the making of fully-fashioned silk hose was concentrated. This was an article that according to William Dwyer, although limited in production because of its price, demanded much more attention in manufacture. There was one giant machine, nearly forty feet in length, which automatically turned out 36 stocking feet at once. The newspaper described its mechanism; “The mechanism of this machine is marvellous. It was designed and produced in Germany. Similar machines are utilised by the most famous fully fashioned hose makers in Great Britain and the Continent”.

Lying beside the giant machine was a machine where the rest of the stocking was made. The Cork Examiner notes of the complicities of the machine: “ It looked, if anything, even more complicated, and as it silently revolves and its cases turn over and over it is easily realised what genius is in its design, and what intense experience and knowledge are required to maintain and to operate such an ingenious unit of production”.

At another part of the factory the Cork Examiner article related that there was a plant of machines for making ladies’ silk hosiery, which were to be sold at a lower price. These were America-made machines. They were the very latest type of machine on the market and were the “very finest gauge made”. They were 300-needle machines. These machines produced semi-fashioned silk hosiery at popular prices and were the only type of machines manufactured, which produced an elastic re-enforced welt. They also made a gusset toe, which added enormously to the comfort of the stocking. The variety of stockings that can be made on these machines is practically limitless, from ladies’ art silk stockings to the finest fishnet and clock stockings.

The Cork Examiner continued that then came the bulk production of socks and stockings;  “Hose and half hose as the trade knew them – coming into existence from mighty machines in millions, packed into neat bundles with intriguing little trademarks, waiting their time for despatch to every corner of the country”.

The Cork Examiner remarked of the use of reinforced welts on stockings; “there were flat look machines for attaching the ribs; a welt which makes perfectly flat seams without any welt whatever. There are also machines, which sew on buttons at the rate of six dozen a minute”.

Through the main factory there were banks of machines turning out woollen underwear that were deemed “essential to health and wellbeing”. In addition to woollen goods here was made underwear or a new kind of artificial silk.

Another part of the factory devoted itself to as the Cork Examiner described “curiously-patterned golf stockings, another to daintily-coloured kiddies’ stockings – lines that until a few short months previously were never made in the Irish Free State”. Even green stockings were made by Sunbeam—made for the Rugby and football teams.

A department specialised in the making of outer wear, which included fashion garments, costumes, all and every kind of jumpers, pullovers, scarves, etc. In anotherspecialised department, Sunbeam golf pullovers were made. The Cork Examiner wrote about their speciality; “No ordinary pullovers were these – for as the foreman shows them he proudly tells of their special waterproof quality, cups a portion of the garment into his hand and fills it with water just to prove that rain cannot get through”.

Down in the basement of the factory was the dye-house, where steam rose from the ground and coloured liquid flows along channels. The Cork Examiner noted: “Here the science of art and of chemistry ensures success to the rest of the manufacturing processes. Everything in a hosiery business depends on the quality of a dye – the vastly different shades, and how consistently and regularly those shades come out in the garments that are made”.

To be continued…

Caption:

1277a. Sunbeam Knitwear Ltd, Cork, Cork, Ireland, 1933; Oblique aerial photograph taken facing south (source: Britain From Above, Reference number: XPW042276 Ireland)

Kieran’s Our City, Our Town Article,

Cork Independent, 17 October 2024

Making an Irish Free State City – Arise the Sunbeam Knitwear Company

The opening of the Sunbeam Knitwear Company at the historic Butter Exchange Building in 1928 by William Dwyer (1887-1951) was the start of his enormous journey of industrial development in Cork. It also provided much needed employment opportunities for Cork in the fledging Irish Free State. William became one of the country’s foremost industrial figures.

On finishing at Presentation College, Cork and in Downside School in Somerset, William initially worked for Dwyer & Company on Cork’s Great George’s Street and gained a great grounding in business acumen. It was established by his grandfather and specialised in the manufacture of clothing for men and boys.

In 1928, William went out on his own and took out a lease of the historic Butter Exchange building and established Sunbeam Knitwear Company. It manufactured knitted underwear. Four of the core machines had been rescued or purchased by William from the ruins of Bandon Hosiery, which had been burned out by British Forces, some years previously in 1920. 

In late February 1929, the new Sunbeam Knitwear Company took part in the two week Cork Examiner Ideal Homes Exhibition, which covered a wide variety of modernity trends for the home including furniture and furnishings and also clothing styles.

A week later on 9 March 1929, a Cork Examiner journalist followed up with the Company on how they got on at the Exhibition. It was part of a reflection by the newspaper on the importance of the exhibition. The newspaper highlighted that a stall was taken by the Sunbeam Knitwear Company with “no very great expectations”. Owing to the stall’s limits only a small range of products could be shown, namely ladies’ fashioned outerwear. However, successful results of the display were immediate. The journalist related that although the factory plant output had been very much increased just before the Exhibition, the exhibition display resulted in a steadier flow of orders.

In a general way commenting on the first year of operation of the Sunbeam Knitwear Company, the Cork Examiner journalist commented that the “results quickly began to exceed all expectations”. The newspaper highlighted that the fledging company found itself working at full pressure to cope with the demands for its products. They considered that they were underselling the English market while maintaining a very high standard of quality in their manufacture. Referring to the modern plant, such as what William Dwyer had installed, the journalist detailed that  “one girl can supervise the work of six machines, each of which has a capacity of 36 to 40 dozen pairs per week”.

The Cork Examiner further related that the bulk of the yarn was bought in white wool. It was first of all dyed to the desired colour. In the case of garments the wool was knitted on circular machines, which could be set to do all kinds of fancy work at an rapid rate and with the pattern absolutely automatically following cut. There were five such machines and each one was capable of dealing with 100 lbs. weight of fabric per day. The article denotes; “This was made up into all sorts of men’s, women’s and children’s outer wear, including sports’ apparel, the wide range extending to 100 different garments and at prices ranging from for retail purchase, from about 4s 11d to 30s per garment”.

Hose and half-hose were manufactured in large quantities, from the heavy sort, for country requirements, to the very finest, in a variety of fancy patterns. In the sports outfitting department, the Company had created a big demand. Cork alone supplied orders for over 200 dozens of football jerseys in the previous season. Such products had been selling in all parts of the Irish Free State. Trade queries had also come from outside the Free State and the Company was hoping to soon create an export trade in several directions.

The Cork Examiner pointed out that the Sunbeam Knitwear Company prided itself on the fine quality of and on the extent of designs of finished garments. Such garments catered for all tastes. In the sphere of really high-class knitwear, the journalist argued that “it would be difficult to excel the splendidly finished manufactures, such as ladies’ fashioned three-piece suits and fashioned pullovers and cardigans”. 

The Cork Examiner article ends with positivity of hope for such industries as Sunbeam Knitwear Company; “Thus from a modest beginning has grown an industry which Cork people, most of all, should support in its present flourishing state so that its future may be as bright and prosperous as has been the short period of its establishment. When people beyond Cork can see the benefit to themselves of buying the products of such a factory surely those at home ought to reap the double benefit, which a prospering concern of this kind confers on them and on their city”.

An interview recorded by the Northside Folklore Project in 2002 highlights the story of one of the workers, Nancy Byrne, in the Shandon premises. Nancy recalled a staff of about fifty in one large room with an open basement and recalls the dyeing process and machine work; “An Englishman, Mr Howarth was the dyer. The raw wool that was brought coloured and dirty cream, how lovely it came out of the dye house in the various colours. On the main floor were many of the different machines, stocking for making wool sacks, flat for wool jumpers which would be put together by overlock workers or sewing machinists. Here also tables were provided for hand-finishers or menders. It was usual to find a small hole here and there in a garment due to the knot in the thread or breaking”.

Nancy also remembered her role as a machinist; “Here I sat in front of a long bench at an electric sewing machine with around three other girls. On the opposite were the overlockers and they worked machines also, finishing off the inside of woollen garments. My task being to stitch up the side of children’s tops. [Sic]. They were a fawn satin without sleeves and later we would attach them to the skirts. We worked from eight to six; the office workers’ hours were nine to six”.

In Guy’s Almanac and Directory of Cork for 1930, three directors are listed for the Sunbeam Knitwear Company – William Dwyer, David Arlson Smythe of Malone Park, Belfast and John O’Donovan, Grenville Place, Cork.

Fast forward to 14 March 1932 and the historic Butter Exchange building was damaged by fire. The Cork Examiner recalls that the Cork Fire Brigade received a call at 8.35am to Church Street. There was a furnace inside the factory with an iron flue running through a wooden and rubberoid roof, which became overheated and it set fire to the latter. A line of hose was laid and after about an hour the fire was got under control. A considerable portion of the roof was destroyed, but any damage done to the interior of the factory premises was recorded as being slight.

The event though sped up William Dwyer’s expansion plans as several weeks later, he revealed his larger plans to take over the late nineteenth century buildings of Cork Flax Spinning and Weaving Company in Millfield, Blackpool and to create a larger premises for the Sunbeam Knitwear Company.

To be continued…

Caption:

1275a. Portrait of William Dwyer, circa 1943 (source: Cork City Library).

Kieran’s Our City, Our Town Article,

Cork Independent, 10 October 2024

Making an Irish Free State City – New Uses for the Historic Butter Exchange

Welcome to the 25 year anniversary of this column beginning. Since October 1999, it has been a very interesting weekly pilgrimage of sorts to discover the story of Cork and its myriad of tangents. One story, which has popped up frequently is the story is that of the Cork Butter Market. This month, 100 years ago, in 1924, coincided with a rapid decline in the fortunes of the Market and in particular talk about the closure of the core building in the heart of Shandon began in earnest.

For centuries, Cork had occupied a leading position as a great centre and port of exportation for butter. The emergence of the Cork Butter Market in the nineteenth century achieved extensive success in establishing trading networks in British colonies. By 1892, the Cork Butter Exchange building was handling annually 500,000 casks of butter, valued at £1.5m. In the early twentieth century, Cork exports represented one third of the total butter export from Ireland.

The publication, Cork, Its Chamber and Commerce – a Cork Chamber of Commerce book from 1919, outlines that considerable improvements in the quality of the butter were made in the early 1900s to keep pace with foreign competition and with the establishment of numerous factories and creameries. Butter became manufactured on scientific principles. Enormous quantities of creamery, factory and farmers’ butter were made up in tins and oaken packages and these were exported to the four corners of the world.

  Margarine was invented by a French Chemist Meg Mouries, circa 1870 and first came into commercial processes in 1872, when it was manufactured exclusively in Holland. Hence it was originally known as Dutch butter. It was soon realised that the South of Ireland was eminently suited for its manufacture owing to the large supply of milk available.

The first margarine factory in the United Kingdom was established in Limerick and later transferred to Waterford. Later again, three margarine factories were set up in Cork. The increasing population and prosperity of Great Britain created a ready market.

The total export of margarine from Cork exceeded 7,000 tons a year and was rapidly increasing. In the second decade of the 1900s, the development of the margarine industry reacted unfavourably upon the butter trade. In addition, butter from France and Scandinavia began to severely challenge the Cork butter industry. In late 1924, due to profound competition that caused declining prices and profits, it was decided by the Market’s Trustees to sell off the historic Butter Exchange building in Shandon.

Strikingly and very much the end of an era and the start of another, new uses were called for the elaborate Butter Exchange building and its Weigh House. An advertisement in the Cork Examiner on Saturday, 27 December 1924 notes that W Marsh and Sons Auctioneers were instructed by the Trustees of the Butter Market to sell by auction at their salesrooms, 70 South Mall, Cork on Friday, 9 January 1925, at 1pm, the extensive City premises known as the Cork Butter Market. It was held in Fee Simple and purchased from the Landed Estates Court in February 1859. The premises for auction was described as “All That and Those of the Butter Weigh House of Cork, and the Portico and new extended front thereof, situate in Shandon Church Street, Mulgrave Street and Cody’s Street, in the City of Cork”.

The advertisement further relates that the “extensive premises” were most centrally situated within easy reach of Railways and Shipping Quays and comprised a “spacious warehouse with fine ground floor accommodation, measuring approximately 120 foot x 140 foot, substantially built and well lit from the roof, with the main portico entrance in Exchange Street and valuable frontage extending down Church Street, with several entrances therefrom”. There was also a Caretaker’s Residence attached to the Premises.

The property was being sold with clear possession and held free of rent. As the Cork Examiner highlighted, the premises offered “a rare opportunity to City Merchants, Manufacturers or Warehousemen seeking well situated extensive promises adaptable to any wholesale trade requiring spacious ground floor accommodation”.

On 9 January 1925, at the public auction no bid was received for the property. Mr John Ronan, Solicitor, represented the firm having carriage of sale. Messrs W Ronan, Solicitors, and Mr F L Blake,  was present on behalf of the Cork Butter Market Trustees. The Cork Examiner recorded that there were only about six members of the general public in attendance. Mr W Donoghue conducted the proceedings. He announced the conditions of and dealt with the suitability of the famed institution as a business property. He invited bids and no bids were made. The premises were withdrawn from sale by auction.

By 14 October 1925, the Cork Examiner reports that Messrs James Daly and Sons had bought the greater portion of the Butter Market premises. A part of the building was still in the possession of the Trustees, who used it for some trade in butter.

A 1942 obituary in the Cork Examiner reveals that James Daly (1856-1942) was born at Moycollop, County Waterford in 1856. James began his business life in his native district as a butter and egg merchant. At an early age founded and was managing director, of the firm of James Daly and Sons, Ltd, which had bases on Cork’s Shandon Street, Dominick Street and Mulgrave Road. James was one of Cork’s most enterprising and successful Corkonians. His association with the butter industry extended over half a century from the 1880s to the early 1930s. Under his own personal supervision James merited for his firm a world-wide reputation and employed many people. In addition to the butter industry, the firm were also proprietors of the Shandon Castle Margarine Factory, which was established until 1905 and erected on the site of the ancient Shandon Castle. He was one of the Trustees of the Cork Butter Exchange and in time he was the principal sponsor of Daly’s Bridge.

On 4 July 1923, the Cork Examiner reported on a serious outbreak of fire in the historic Butter Exchange building, which was brought under control by Cork Fire Brigade. Reference is given that the building had just been acquired and fitted out as a small knitwear factory by William Dwyer. He remained insitu until the early 1930s when the business moved and was expanded and moved to the former site of Cork Spinning & Weaving Company in Blackpool. Meanwhile T O’Gorman and Sons, Garters, Braces, Hats and Caps took over the historic Butter Exchange building and operated its business there until 1976.

Caption:

1274a. Cork Butter Market Exchange Building, c.1900 (picture: Cork City Library)

Kieran’s Our City, Our Town Article,

Cork Independent, 3 October 2024

Making an Irish Free State City – The Future of the School of Commerce

In the decade of the 1920s and against the backdrop of the emerging Irish Free State, the Cork Municipal School of Commerce was another institution, which pursued its programme for the future with dynamism. Since the School’s establishment in November 1908 in a former residential house on the South Mall, there had been steady improvements in aspects such as the intake of students, the average attendance, the School’s teaching programmes, the examination success of its students and also improvements in the post School opportunities of its students. In particular, in 1908 the School started with evening classes. In 1912-13 special afternoon courses were formed from 4 pm-7 pm. In 1923-24, morning courses were added.

Every year, the School of Commerce produced its year-end report and at the start of every School term in September, the report was read out at a public meeting and published in the Cork Examiner. In the 1920s not all of the annual reports were published but those that were offer a large insight into the workings and vision of the School. One such detailed report was published one hundred years ago in the Cork Examiner on 12 September 1924.

The seventeenth session of the Cork Municipal School of Commerce was formally opened on 11 September 1924. Richard Anthony, President of the Cork Workers’ Council, presided. He remarked that it was highly gratifying to find that 616 individual students had attended during the 1923-24 session compared with 526 for the previous one. In the public examinations there had been 544 successes as compared with 400 in the preceding session.

Mr Anthony pointed out there was a need for students to have a standard of primary education of senior grade, which would allow to fully benefit from the programmes of the School of Commerce. Arising from the standard of education issue, there were some students, who dropped out after a few weeks of commencing their course. The annual report detailed that in addition, the average percentage of actual to possible attendance was 66.

Mr Anthony also expressed that he hoped that Irish society would soon reach a stage in industrial and commercial prosperity when, instead of exporting their finished scholars and craftsmen, they would be able to “absorb into commerce and industry at home all the pupils trained in its School and in kindred institutions”.

The Principal of the School, D J Coakley, in submitting the annual report on the work of the School, said the complete return to peace following the Irish Civil War was reflected in the “increased entries and attendance and in the higher standard of work and general progress of the School”.

During the session, which extended from September to June inclusive, the teaching staff comprised the Principal, five full-time teachers and 17 part-time teachers.  There were morning, afternoon and evening classes in business subjects. During the session 1923-24 a complete morning first year specialised course was introduced and this comprised commercial arithmetic, book-keeping, commerce, geography, Irish, shorthand and typewriting.

A scheme of Irish classes for teachers was established in the session 1919-20. Arrangements were made between the School of Commerce and the Munster College of Irish, by which the School took charge of the classes for members of religious communities and the Munster College made provision for lay Secondary and National teachers. Since these, classes were established they had an average yearly attendance of 60 teachers.

During the 1924-25 session the Cork Corporation struck a special 1d rate for the teaching of Irish in the Municipal Schools. This enabled the School of Commerce Committee to form in this subject four morning classes, two afternoon classes and six evening classes. The Irish classes, including those for teachers, had a total enrolment of 480 individual students. All the students in the morning and afternoon divisions took Irish as part of their course.

In order to cultivate an atmosphere of sound, oral Irish and Gaelic culture in the Municipal Schools the Committee awarded to the more advanced students eight scholarships of £10 10s each, tenable for the month of August, in a selected Gaelic speaking district, where a special Summer School of Irish had been formed.

In addition, as a result of a competitive examination in arithmetic, drawing, English and Irish held at the opening of the session, seventy free places were awarded in the introductory courses and forty-five scholarships valued at 15s each in the specialised courses. Indeed, from across all of the School’s courses, the total number of scholarships awarded in 1923-24 was 234, as compared with 160, 179, and 197, respectively, in the previous sessions.

The School of Commerce could also boast a successful employment bureau programme. To enable students to pass quickly from the study to the practice of business, a list of students wishing to obtain appointments, with full particulars as to their education and attainments, was kept at the School. On application from the employer one or more students could at once be selected for interview, either at the employer’s place of business, or by special appointment at the School.

D J Coakley also spoke about the inadequacy of the School of Commerce building to meet the growing requirements of the School. The School was located in an old dwelling house on the South Mall and the spaces for classes were very limited for expansion. He expressed the hope that ways and means could be found in the near future to remedy this serious drawback. However, it was going to be another decade though before the foundation of the new School was placed in 1935 on Morrison’s Island.

Whereas, from 1926-1930, the work of the School through the lens of the annual reports remains strong, in the 1926 report it reveals the introduction of an another notable feature. In September 1926 at the formal opening of the School term, the Constructive Thrift Movement in Cork was inaugurated.  A special School Savings Committee was established and this comprised members of the School staff. Over 600 saving certificates were created during its first year.

Caption:

1273a. Cork Municipal School of Commerce as pictured in 1919 on Jameson Row, South Mall (source: Cork: Its Trade and Commerce available in Cork City Library).