Rodgers and Richards (2021)

Originally given as an online lecture, this film compares and contrasts the fortunes of two Sheffield cutlery giants - Joseph Rodgers and Richards of Sheffield. Rodgers originating from 1682, focused on high quality products and markets, whilst Richards was a relative newcomer. It was German in origin, only arriving in Sheffield in the 1930s focussing on modern mass production techniques to produce cheap and lower quality products. However both eventually foundered, operating their final years in Sheffield within the same company! The lecture was originally given by Doug Hindmarch on on 21 July 2021. The film was developed as part of the Name on the Knife Blade Project funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. The website developed by the project giving detail of the huge array of table knife manufacturers in Sheffield over the last 200 years can be found at https://hawleysheffieldknives.com/ To find out more about the Hawley Collection and to donate, visit our website: https://www.hawleytoolcollection.com/