Heeley & Sons

1804

The Heeley family business started in the early 19th century in Birmingham, England, and they were the kings of lever corkscrews. However, corkscrews were not their first product; they were in fact a traditional company with a diverse product range that included steel toys and other steel items. The company were listed as early as 1805 in a Birmingham directory as a maker of steel chains, beads, combs, gilt toys, hairpins & springs. Heeley & Sons evolved their manufacturing business to become one of the most prolific producers of corkscrews. In 1851 the business was run by Francis Heeley and was listed as a 'Steel Toy Manufacturer'. In 1873 Francis died and Neville Heeley (son number 3) took over the running of the company. The 1881 census had the company still listed as a 'Steel Toy Manufacturer' but by 1901 it was listed as 'Manufacturer of small articles in steel', by 1940 they were listed as a 'Corkscrew Maker'.

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