Brushes are items most of us take for granted. However, thanks to a plentiful supply of wood, the factories which produced them were once big business in Norfolk. Teams of journeymen (travelling craftsmen) would tramp from one East Anglian town to the next to offer their skills.

 

In 1836, an enterprising grocer, Robert Aldrich, decided to develop a sideline. He opened the first of several brush making workshops in the town. Nine years later, thanks to the newly opened railway line, it was easier to import a wider range of raw material, and to export his products. Meanwhile his son, Robert, had started to import coconut fibre for his own matting business.

 

In 1899, the two family businesses combined at an enlarged Shelfanger Road site. By the early 20th century, Aldrich Bros was the largest employer in Diss, turning out an enormous variety of products. There were 38 varieties of broom, along with stove, flue, banister, fish, pan and milk churn brushes. One of the most popular products was The Jolly Farmer, a large broom used for sweeping farmyards. Electrical cleaning gadgets had not been invented and brushes were essential for keeping the home and business premises clean.

 

The company supplied the doormat at 10 Downing Street, and matting for the House of Commons, along with many circuses and cruise ships. Their products were exported all over the world.

 

The work was physically hard for men and women. Brushes had to be dipped in boiling hot pitch.  Wire needed to be manipulated to attach stiff bristles to the brush backs. See also our display Wired.

 

In the 1960s, like many other manufacturers, the factory started to suffer from cheap foreign competition. Fashions and prices changed.

 

Carpets got cheaper and vacuum cleaners offered an easy cleaning method. In 1968, a serious fire broke out in the factory machine room, and afterwards the damaged machines were never replaced. The company switched from manufacture to storage and distribution.

 

In its heyday, Aldrich Bros had employed a staff of 250. By 1975 there were 52, and in 1988 the factory was closed and the site cleared for housing.

 

This important part of the town's industrial history is now remembered with street names, Aldrich Way, Brushmakers Way and Factory Lane.