Address: 5 Feasegate, York, YO1 8SH (now Patisserie Valerie)
Description
The text “Thomlinson Walker Iron Founder York” is engraved in stone at the base of a pillar on either side of the building.
Though painted over in white and partially worn down, the inscriptions are still legible.
History
William Thomlinson Walker (1828–1911) inherited the ironmongery business from his father, John Walker (1801–1853).
Under William’s leadership, the business flourished, gaining prestigious clients and manufacturing gates and railings for export to destinations as far-flung as the Botanical Gardens in Mauritius and Indian Maharajas’ estates.
William’s designs were so esteemed that a leather-bound book featuring them is now part of the collection at the Castle Museum in York.
Notably, Walker became the appointed royal iron founder to Queen Victoria herself.
This is attached to a pair of Victorian internal stable dividers
Beyond his business achievements, William was also a compassionate employer, reducing the workday by half an hour on weekdays and by an hour on Saturdays.
His employees appreciated this so much that they presented him with a silver inkstand, a pen, a pencil case, a gold pen, a letter seal, and a papier-mâché tray.
When William died in 1911, his son, John, took over the business. Unfortunately, John lacked his father’s and grandfather’s business savvy, and the enterprise began to decline.
Found attached to a Victorian boiler system
A fire in 1916, combined with the post-war economic slump, dealt severe blows to the company’s fortunes.
With no other family members to continue the legacy, the business ceased trading in 1923, soon after John’s death.
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