The history of the Stourbridge glass making factories is a life’s work of research in its own right. Since my interests lie primarily in the glass that was produced I cannot add to what others have written before.
The definitive work on this subject was published by Jason Ellis in his book Glassmakers of Stourbridge and Dudley 1612-2002. If you wish to study in depth the history of each glassmaker in chronological order then this is the book for you. It will define who built them, who owned them and the significant craftsmen who worked there.
The Mark & Moody Almanack (1885 – 1917) is a further source of information on the factories with glass associations in the Stourbridge area.
A number of the books in the “Resources” section also deal with some of the glass making factories.
An unlikely website dealing with “Railway and Industrial History of the South West Black Country” has transcripts of articles published in 1903 on Stevens & Williams and Thomas Webb & Sons which make interesting reading.
Archive films
During the 1960s films were made covering glass making activities at Stevens & Williams, and Thomas Webb & Sons these black and white films although of poor quality give a fascinating insight into these unique glass factories.
