Joel Settle ³

  General Notes:

At first he was a miner. He went to night school in order to pass his exams and became a colliery manager. At Durham Mining Museum www the record of certificates of competency show that Joel Settle gained his manager's certificate on 2nd January 1883 and then became a Member of the Federated Institution of Mining Engineers (MFIME).

After they married in 1865 Joel and Margaret lived at Madeley, Staffordshire. All their children were born there except my mother Kathleen also known as K (who was b March 29th 1905 when they were living at The Hill, Alsager - which the Josephs later renamed The Hall).

Their black and white house has an unusual central chimney with exceptionally thick chimney walls. It is right in the middle of the house, and may still hide secrets from recoussant times. It is thought that Charles 11 hid in a hole within that chimney after the battle of Worcester. My mother and I were invited to tea there when I was a child. The owner showed us round, which included taking us upstairs to look at the central chimney in the middle of the upstairs landing. We were shown ancient cutlery that had been found in a hole in the thick wall of the chimney and I was told that nobody really knows if all the hiding places in the chimney have been found. I was fascinated.

While living at Madeley Joel was the manager of Leycett colliery Madeley. Colliery disasters were frequent and inevitable in Victorian times, and 2 pit disasters occurred in 1883 and 1886 while he was manager at Leycett colliery. In both disasters Joel rescued people. In Brian Warrilow's 'Sociological History of Stoke-on-Trent' singles him out and names him for his courage in rescuing others.

About the turn of the century his career changed when he became the first person to think of washing 'dirty coal'. He no longer managed mines. Instead he purchased the entire stock from mines for his washeries and coke plants, then sold it on. That was how he made his name and became a millionaire. His progress is recorded in 'The History of the Settle Speakman Company 1960'. I will attach some pages, hoping this is of interest, with every good wish, Diana

Diana Turner via email

From http://www.stokecoll.ac.uk/NSCFWeb/Mouldspits/bpits.htm

BIGNALL HILL See Jamage Colliery 516 826 app.G.R.826516

Jamage Colliery, the first pit, the Rookery was sunk by John Wedgwood of Bignall End in 1828 (Wedgwood Colliery Co.) After 1838 became the property of the Wood family.
Slaters Directory of the Midlands 1850 Wood Price, Bignall Hill.

1862 Nicholas Price Wood, Bignall End.

Jammage colliery was opened in 1875 and was the first of the Bignall Hill collieries.
Enoch Gater being the first manager. It was owned by the representatives of the late John Wedgwood, N.P. Wood the managing partner.

N.S.I.M.M.Eng's Reginald Wood, Bignall Hill, Stoke-on-Trent, elected 1874. ( Known locally as "Rijy" but not to his face. )

1885 36 regenerative coke ovens by Simon Carves, (the second such plant installed in the country). 24' long, 7'6" high and 19 1/2" wide, 48 Hours per charge of 3 tons.

These ovens required round the clock shift working as opposed to bee-hive ovens which could be run by day work.

In 1896, Bignall Hill Colliery (Jamage) was owned by the representatives of the late John Wedgwood. Manager Enoch Gater, Under Manager William Bennett, underground 174 men, above ground 119 men. The coals worked were the 7 and 8 feet Banbury's and the Bullhurst. (All good coking coals.) The high number of men employed above ground was probably a result of the coking plant.

Joel Settle managed the coke plant and in 1902, he installed a coal washing plant at the colliery. The plant was then known as the Jamage Washer and Coke Ovens. Settle obtained control of the coking plant and by 1911, Settle Speakman were working the washer and coke ovens. Settle contracted to buy the whole of the colliery output for the coking plant. At this time the collieries employed about 900 men and produced 1400 tons a day.

In 1918, Settle Speakman took over the whole of the share capital of Bignall Hill Colliery Co. In 1923, there were still 36 Simon Carves ovens managed by Amos Daniels. They were then 39 years old and must have been reaching the end of their useful life. Jamage Main closed in 1925 and the coking plant probably closed about this time. No new ovens were built. Jamage closed in 1941 and Rookery in 1947.

The Times 30 Nov 1926

The death occurred at Alsager, Stoke on Trent, yesterday, at the age of 68, of Mr Joel Settle, head of the firm of Settle, Speakman and Co, colliery proprietors and coal factors. Mr Settle had a lifelong association with the mining industry, beginning as a colliery manager. He was also a racehorse owner, best known in steeplechasing. He leaves a widow and five daughters, one of whom is the wife of Sir Francis Joseph, president of the North Staffordshire Chamber of Commerce. His two sons were killed in the war.

  Research Notes:

Johnson: Deeds relating to Mrs Marjorie Johnson in the matter of the trusts of the settlement dated 30 Jul 1925 by Mr Joel Settle upon his daughters - ref. D4452/8/24 - date: 1953-1955

According to the Daily Mail his estate was worth £504,245.00

The Partnership 1901-1911

THE Articles of Partnership between Joel Settle and William Carroll were entered into for ten years from 1st October, 1901. The form and style of the partnership, curiously enough, was to be "Philip Speakman & Sons" in Liverpool and "Joel Settle" at Alsager in Cheshire.

Joel Settle was a mining engineer who, besides being the manager of Birchen wood Collieries on the Cheshire border of North Staffordshire and at the Madeley Collieries, had several other business interests. He owned, for instance, 70 railway wagons, having started with seven wagons of 7 tons capacity which he hired out, and also had a small wagon repairing shop at Alsager; these were brought into the partnership. He was better known, however, as a pioneer in the washing of coal. He advised upon and established washeries at several pits in North Stafford¬shire, the first being at Birchen wood in 1901.

His outside interests continued to occupy Settle after the partnership with William Carroll, but as he became immersed in the factoring business, he gradually dropped them one by one.

Joel Settle had great influence in the mining area of North Staffordshire, and undertook that part of the business which lay in that area. He conducted his affairs from his spacious private residence, The Hall, Alsager, where a room over the laundry was given over to office work, later to be augmented by rooms over the stables and outbuildings.

A vivid picture of office life at The Hall is given by Mr. John Black, now the Secretary of Settle Speakman & Co. Ltd., who commenced there in November 1901, 59 years ago, as office boy in knickerbockers. The office staff then consisted of two others, George Mason, Settle's brother-in-law, who acted as his secretary, and Joseph Brownsword, the clerk.

Joel Settle was one of the old school of Victorian employers, a strict disciplinarian, hardworking himself and working others hard. Work commenced at 8 sharp, and woe betide anyone who was late! It was John Black's job to see to the post, which was brought up to the office from the village of Alsager by the gardener.

As the business flourished, staff was added at Alsager, and many of those who commenced at The Hall, and were subject to its spartan training, are still with the Company. John Black was promoted to a clerk and then Settle's secretary and it transpired that his duties involved attendance at The Hall every Sunday afternoon to take instructions from Settle. These were of the most varied nature, from business letters and memoranda to the drafting of telegrams relating to the backing of horses, in which Settle took more than a passing interest! All these were then taken down to the post office in a little red bag.

John Black became Secretary to the partnership in 1924, and later Secretary to the private and public limited companies which followed it.

The interest of Joel Settle in coal washing led to a new development in the business. Instead of factoring, i.e. buying as required in accordance with their sales, the partners entered into long term contracts. They would undertake to purchase the whole output ot a colliery, relying upon their widespread connections to dispose of the run-of-mine coal to the best advantage. In other cases they under- took to handle the whole output of dry slacks, which were then at very low prices-indeed, many collieries had large stocks on the ground. Settle purchased these stocks from the Stafford Coal & Iron Company, Bignail & Talke o'th Hill, and put down washeries at Jamage Pit in 1902 and Great Fenton in 1904.

Meanwhile the Liverpool end of the business, under William Carroll and his son John, continued to flourish. To the sale of unwashed slacks and ungraded coal was now added the washed and graded qualities. Very good trade was done in 'peas and beans' and an excellent business opened up in the sale of graded coal to the gas industry in North Staffordshire, Birmingham and the Black Country, and in washed coal from the Jamage Pit. An office was opened in Birmingham to facilitate this business, and the sale of pig iron from the Stafford Coal & Iron Company's blast furnaces was undertaken from Birmingham-a new line for the firm.

Looking further afield still, the partners cast their eyes towards the London area. They thought that raw coal could be taken by sea from the coalfields of Yorkshire and the North East Coast to the Thames estuary, washed and graded there, and sold profitably to industrial and domestic users. They settled on a site at Queenborough on the Isle of Sheppey, arranged wharf facilities and built a coal washery there with a nominal output of 500 tons per day. The Queenborough washery (1908) was the first in the South East of England, and was the beginning of the Queenborough enterprise which is described elsewhere in this book.

It will be seen that the main new development in the business during the period of the partnership was the construction of coal washeries, the purchase of the whole output of collieries on long term contracts and the sale of washed and graded coal. In this latter connection, William Carroll regarded it as one of his best strokes of business when he persuaded Brunner, Mond to take washed smalls for all their factories, to everybody's satisfaction, for the customers were convinced they had a 'good buy' in comparison with dry uncleaned smalls.

The natural outcome of this policy of closer connection with the collieries was to lead naturally to an interest in and the acquisition of the colliery undertakings themselves, although this was not to take place till the next decade.

Towards the end of 1911 the agreed term of the partnership drew to a close, and in October a notice was circulated to the press and to customers that, the terms of the partnership articles having expired, the business was to be converted into a private limited company under the name of Settle Speakman & Company Limited. The reasons for the conversion were stated: the large growth of the business, to secure the advantages incident to incorporation and to avoid dislocations and inconvenience which might result from the death or retirement of a partner. Customers were assured that the business would be carried on as here tofore, the Directors being the previous partners.
⁴²

  Noted events in his life were:

• Occupation/Address: Mil, 1861 census, Little Lever, Lancashire.

• Occupation/Address: Bookeeper, 1871, 5 Fearneysides, Little Lever, Lancashire.

• Occupation/Address: Clerk at a colliery, 1881 census, 29 Village of Madeley.

• Occupation/Address: Mining Engineer - Employer, 1891 Census, The Hill, Alsager, Cheshire.

• Occupation/Address: Civil Mining Engineer - Worker, 1901 census, The Hill, Alsager, Cheshire.

Joel married Margaret Caroline Mellard, daughter of William Mellard JP and Mary Ann Coyte Bartlett, on 4 Mar 1886 in St Giles, Newcastle Under Lyme, Staffordshire ⁸.^,41 (Margaret Caroline Mellard was born on 15 Feb 1865 in Newcastle Under Lyme, Staffordshire ^5,8, christened on 12 Mar 1865 in St Giles, Newcastle Under Lyme, Staffordshire ⁴¹ and died in 1930 ⁸.)