Company name: Arthur & Co
Dates in business: 1855-1878

Type of business: textile manufacturer and wholesaler

Type of company: Partnership

Locations:

• Argyle Street, Glasgow, Scotland
• Queen Street, Glasgow, Scotland

Management of company

In 1855, James Arthur was the senior partner and Hugh Fraser the managing partner. In 1860, William Arthur, James Arthur's elder brother, and William Ogilvie, formerly of Mitchell, Miller & Ogilvie, wholesale warehousemen, both became partners. In 1864, William Wingate, of Wingate & Co, also joined the partnership. In 1865, on the dissolution of the Arthur & Fraser partnership, Hugh Fraser retired from the Arthur & Co partnership.

Company history

Arthur & Co was established in 1855 to handle the expanding wholesale business of Arthur & Fraser, drapers, of Glasgow. It initially occupied premises at 118 Argyle Street, Glasgow. The business grew rapidly, establishing representation in London and Londonderry and conducting a large trade in England as well as the West of Scotland. In 1856, it moved to a larger warehouse in Queen Street, Glasgow. In 1864, Arthur & Co acquired the wholesale firm of Wingate & Co in Glasgow which provided an extensive warehouse as well as a large connection. At around the same time, it also acquired John R Kay of Cheapside, London, which traded for some time as Arthur, Kay and Evans before becoming a branch of Arthur & Co. In 1865, the Arthur & Fraser partnership was dissolved and Arthur & Co was continued as a separate concern. In 1878, a limited company, Arthur & Co Ltd, was formed to acquire the business.

Access points: Textile manufacturers - Wholesale trade