Building record 1160/491/1 - Nos 9-12 Palmerston Road (The Northampton Legging, Gaiter & Spat Co.)

Formerly Humphreys & Scrivenor, A.W.Flatau & Co., A.Jones & Sons, A.J.Shoes Ltd. A three-storey boot and shoe factory built on the west side of Palmerston Road. The rectangular-plan factory has polychromatic brickwork in the front elevation and a slate covered roof. Ordnance Survey and other mapping, suggest that it was built c.1880. Locally listed building.

{1} The factory lies on Palmerston Road and is ornamented with gothic arches and buff brick pilasters.

{2} The Northampton Legging, Gaiter and Spat Company Limited occupy a factory on the west side of Palmerston Road. This has a frontage of 50 feet, extending back for 55 feet, although the main three storey block is only about 30 feet wide. The side of this block, facing the road, is in seven bays, with double doors in the centre bay of the second storey flanked by a swinging cast iron hoist jib mounted on the brick pier to the right of the door. There are three doors at street level, one in each of the end bays and on ein the central bay. There are cast iron shoe scrapers let into the walls on the left of the door at the left end of the building and on both sides of the doorway at the other end. First and second storey windows are surmounted by slightly curved brick arches whereas the seven windows in the top storey have two-centred brick arches. There are no windows at pavement level. The appearance of the front of the building is enlivened by the use of yellow bricks at the windows and doorways and for the main vertical piers, contrasting with the red brick of the rest of the structure. The rear of the building is of plain red brick with six large windows on each floor together with staggered smaller windows at the south end, presumably at the staircase.

[6} Built in Venetian Gothic style. Used by a variety of shoe manufacturers- AW Flatau & Co (1887-19010, George H Nelson, polish manufacturer (1914-1942). During WWII it became a kosher canteen supplying some 80 meals a day to Jewish servicemen. Now converted to apartments.

<1> Palmer M; Neaverson P., 1992, Industrial Landscapes of the East Midlands, p.197 (checked) (Book). SNN3691.

<2> Goodfellow A.V.; Starmer G.H., 1970, A Survey of Part of Victorian Northampton, p.9-10 (checked) (Interim Report). SNN102467.

<3> Historic England, Undated, Palmerston House, 9-12 Palmerston Road, Northampton, BF103505 (Archive). SNN113848.

<4> ENGLISH HERITAGE, 2000, Northamptonshire Boot and Shoe Survey, Site 135 (Catalogue). SNN105075.

<5> Northampton Borough Council, 2011, Northampton's Boot and Shoe Quarter: Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Plan, p. 34 (Report). SNN112202.

<6> Perkins, P, Whittaker, R and Denton, A, 2022, A Guide to the Industrial Heritage of Northamptonshire, p. 62/ Site 272 (Book). SNN113793.

<7> Starmer G.H., 1967, CBA Record Cards: Industrial Archaeology in Northamptonshire, Photograph (Recording Form (Not SMR)). SNN565.

<8> West Northamptonshire Council, 2024, Local Heritage List, November 2024, p. 10 (Report). SNN116732.

Record last edited

Mar 3 2025 2:54PM