Waring and Gillow Serpentine Chest of Drawers

An excellent quality serpentine fronted mahogany chest of drawers by Waring and Gillow. Of very good construction in solid mahogany with attractive mahogany veneers. Of serpentine form with a brushing slide and 4 long graduated drawers, all fitted with their original solid brass hardware, The drawers are flanked by a pair of columns and the whole chest stands on ogee bracket feet. Sympathetically refinished in our workshops and now offered for sale in excellent condition , ready to go straight into the home.

Dimensions:

Width 100cms

Depth 56cms

Height 81cms

Waring and Gillow a potted history:

Waring & Gillow is a noted firm of English furniture manufacturers formed in 1897 by the merger of Gillow of Lancaster and Waring of Liverpool.

The firm of Gillow's of Lancaster can be traced back to the luxury furniture and furnishings firm founded by Robert Gillow (1704–72) in 1730. Robert Gillow served an apprenticeship as a joiner. During the 1730s he began to exploit the lucrative West Indies trade exporting mahogany furniture and importing rum and sugar. Following his death in 1772, the business was continued by his two sons, Richard (1734–1811) and Robert (1745–93). In 1764 a London branch of Gillow's was established at 176 Oxford Road, now Oxford Street, by Thomas Gillow and William Taylor. The firm rapidly established a reputation for supplying high-quality furniture to the richest families in the country.

During the final years of the 19th century the company ran into financial difficulty and from 1897 began a loose financial arrangement with Waring of Liverpool, an arrangement legally ratified by the establishment of Waring & Gillow in 1903. Waring's of Liverpool was founded by John Waring, who arrived in the city from Belfast in 1835 and established a wholesale cabinet making business. He was succeeded by his son Samuel James Waring who rapidly expanded the business during the 1880s, furnishing hotels and public buildings throughout Europe. He also founded Waring-White Building Company which built the Liverpool Corn Exchange, Selfridge's department store and the Ritz Hotel. Samuel James's son and namesake Samuel James Waring (1860-1940) continued the family business and was elevated to the peerage as Baron Waring in 1922.

Gillow's had established a reputation for the outfitting of luxury yachts and liners, including the royal yacht Victoria and Albert, liners Lusitania, Heliopolis and Cairo, Queen Mary (1936) and Queen Elizabeth (1940) for Cunard. During the First World War the Lancaster factory was turned over to war production, making ammunition chests for the Navy and propellers for De Havilland DH9 aircraft. They also established a large tent-manufacturing facility of 8,000 workers during WW1 on the now closed former exhibition site at White City (the former Machinery Hall). They also made gas masks and trench covers from this site.During this time it was also at the White City site that the Workers Union first got recognition after a four-day strike mainly by women. The company also manufactured ammunition belts for use with machine guns, nosebags for horses and protective clothing for use during gas attacks.

During World War II the factory produced parts for gliders and the Mosquito aircraft, while kit-bags, tents and camouflage nets were made by the upholstery department.