WE THANK Raymond Franks of Stourport-on-Severn for once more sharing with us some items from his extensive collection of local ephemera. Here is a selection of packets and tins, most dating from between the wars, which includes some items of Black Country manufacture and some from further afield.
These items are rare survivors from our not too distant past, things that were meant to be thrown away once used, with no consideration of longevity, so their good condition is something remarkable.
Raymond writes, “These were recently found at a collectors’ fair.
“The Ipso, Chipso and Borax were all made by the Patent Borax Co. Ltd., Californian Works, Tipton.
“The Chipso boasted ‘by appointment to the late King George V’ and was priced at 7d. The Ipso was priced at 4½d.
“The others, from left to right, top to bottom, are: Parkinsons wintergreen ointment, Snowene, Duke powdered bath brick, Parkinsons zinc and castor oil, Parkinsons green ointment, Carters cold cream, Parkinsons zinc ointment, Parkinsons Petrojel, Parkinsons boracic ointment, marshmallow ointment, vapour liniment and Parkinsons vapour ointment.
“I wonder if any readers can remember using these or the Californian Works.”
Parkinsons of Burnley were manufacturing chemists from 1848 to 1983, famous for their wide range of pills and patent medicines, while Carters were based in Sheffield; but what can readers tell us about Tipton’s Patent Borax Company?
The company seems to have had origins in Ladywood, Birmingham, and “Californian” appears to originally have been a brand name, but can anyone tell us when the business came to Tipton? The Californian Works were located in Albion Street and at some point the company changed its name to Borax Detergent Ltd., but any further information would be welcome.
