John Thurston (Entrepreneur)

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Historical figure of billiards
John Thurston
Thurston Billiards-Portrait of John Thurston young.jpg
Born 1777
Deceased 1850
residence London
nationality EnglandEngland England
job Pool table manufacturer
Known for Invention of rubber table boards, first manufacturer to use slate as a play area, author (translator) of François Mingaud's book "Noble Jeu de Billiard - Coups extraordinaires et surprenans."

John Thurston (* 1777 in England ; † 1850 ibid) was an English manufacturer of pool tables, inventor, translator and author of billiard books. He was also called "The father of the billiards trade" (German: The father of the billiards trade).

Life

John Thurston learned his trade in the London branch of Gillow's (of Lancaster) , which not only offered high quality furniture but also pool tables. It is believed that pool tables were also for sale there when he opened his own furniture store.

In 1799 he founded his own pool table and furniture business on Newcastle Street in The Strand , London . In 1814 he moved to Catherine Street , also to The Strand . There he then specialized in billiard tables and furniture as well as game room furnishings. Back then it was customary to order the tables as custom-made products. With the specialization in billiard tables alone, Thurston was the first manufacturer and dealer to hold a monopoly.

In 1826 he was appointed sole "supplier to the royal court to his majesty King George IV ". His successor William IV . renewed this agreement in 1833 as did Queen Victoria in 1837.

Inventions / further developments

Development of the slate layer

Title page from one of the first catalogs, ca.1890

John Thurston distinguished himself for making significant improvements to the way the pool table worked , which also led to profound changes in the standards in which the game could be played. In 1799 he founded the company "The House of Thurston" as a pool table and general furniture joinery. From 1814 he concentrated exclusively on the production of billiard tables and furniture. Together with player Jonathan Kentfield, Thurston went to great lengths to improve the pool tables.

First Thurston focused on the field. Until now, most of the playing fields were made of a wooden panel, although some were already made of marble. In 1826, Thurston began experimenting with slate. Slate was very suitable as a playing surface, it was heavy and helped to stabilize the table. At the same time, slate is a material that is relatively easy to process into a smooth surface. The use of slate promised Thurston a playing surface that would not twist, sag or bulge, provided it was provided with an adequate wooden frame. Manufactured in four or five parts, the pieces of slate were held together by a tongue and groove connection and then precisely sanded.

Around 1834, Thurston first offered his "Royal Petrosjan billiard table" for sale. It was an immediate success and by 1840 largely replaced the billiard tables with wooden covers that were common in England. From the 1850s onwards, billiard tables with slate were also set up in the USA (by Michael Phelan ) and in Australia (by Henry Alcock ). In France, this innovation was only adopted later.

Development of the rubber bands

Advertisement for the anniversary of the invention of the rubber band in 1835

Finally, Thurston turned his attention to the gang upholstery of the pool tables. Until then, they were stuffed with horsehair and felt. In 1835, Thurston first made a series of rubber bands. The rubber was made in sheets and then cut into strips that were glued in layers onto the wooden board support structure. The rubber buffers, unlike the slate pads, were not immediately applauded by the players. Although the bands were more resilient than their predecessors, they were extremely sensitive to temperature and produced unusual reactions at the angle of movement. That only changed with Charles Goodyear's invention of vulcanization in 1839. Until then, rubber bands were very affected by temperature fluctuations and tended to lose their elasticity in the cold season. The players therefore placed metal "wall pocket warmers" filled with hot water at prominent points on the boards in order to make them pliable again for the game.

In 1845, after further experiments by Thurston, the band made of "vulcanized" rubber was patented. These bands had a more precise angle of reflection and were hardly affected by temperature changes. The basic problems with the rubber bands were thus solved, even if a few slight modifications followed over the course of the century. In North America the rubber bands were introduced in the 1850s, in France not until 1860.

Thurston's Hall

Thorston's Hall picture gallery
Exterior view
Entrance area
War damage after a bomb attack in May 1940
The gaming room
Game room
Destroyed gaming room, May 1940
Showroom (1)
Showroom (2)
Showroom (3)

Thurston already had a gaming room in his house on Catherine Street , where not only members of the royal family but also the best players, such as WJ Peall and J. North or the writer Charles Dickens , played. A check from Dickens is still in the possession of the Norman Clare Museum (see timeline 1990 ).

From 1901 to 1903, Thurston had the houses at 45 and 46 Leicester Square in London remodeled by E. Wimperis & East. In addition to the offices and showrooms, there was also a match room called “Thurston's Hall”.

In 1903, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle , also a visitor to the gaming room, wrote in his Sherlock Holmes tale " The Dancing Men " that Holmes deduced that Watson must have spent the previous evening with a friend in a billiards club called "Thurston".

On November 29, 1926, the first match of a World Snooker Championship was played in the "Thurston's Hall" between Melbourne Inman and Tom Newman ( World Snooker Championship 1927 ). The game ended on December 6th and Inman beat Newman 8-5. In 1930, the final of the Snooker World Cup was held in-house for the first time (at that time, the World Cup was mostly held at different venues over a period of 6 months (approx. November to March)). The years 1932 and 1935 to 1940 followed. The house was badly damaged in the Second World War, but was rebuilt afterwards.

The writer John Boynton Priestley was so impressed by the visit to the World Cup ( English Billiards ?) Final between Joe Davis and Tom Newman that he wrote about it in his essay "At Thurston's":

“Let me put it on record that for one hour and a half, that afternoon, I was happy. If Mr. Thurston ever wants a testimonial for his Billiards Hall, he can have on from me. The moment I entered the place I felt I was about to enjoy myself. It is small, snug, companionable. Four or five rows of plush chairs look down on the great table, above which is a noble shaded light, the shade itself being russet-colored. Autumn to the cloth's bright Spring. Most of the chairs were filled with comfortable men, smoking pipes. I noticed a couple of women among the spectators, but they looked entirely out of place, just as they would have done among the fat leather chairs of a West End club. I had just time to settle down in my seat, fill and light a pipe myself, before the match began ... "

“Let me put on the record that I was happy for an hour and a half that afternoon. If Mr. Thurston wants a certificate for his pool hall, he can get it from me. The moment I walked into the place, I felt that I was starting to enjoy it. It's small, cozy, sociable. Four or five rows of plush chairs look down at the large table, above it noble, shady light, the shadows themselves are colored reddish brown. Autumn on the cloth, bright spring. Most of the chairs were occupied by pleasant men, smoking pipes. I noticed a couple of women in the crowd, but they looked completely out of place, as they would have on the fat leather armchairs of a West End club. I just had time to sit down in my seat, fill my pipe and light it up before the game started ... "

- John Boynton Priestley : AZBilliards.com

Priestley valued the game room very much; he was fascinated by the atmosphere in which he could watch exciting games as a visitor with other like-minded people.

After the war it was renamed "Leicester Square Hall" and demolished in 1956 in favor of the "Fanum House".

The timeline until today

John Thurston

19th century

John Thurston

  • 1799: Founding of the company "Thurston's & Co." in Newcastle Street, St. Clement Danes, Strand, London as a cabinet maker and pool table manufacturer.
  • 1814: Thurston's moves to nearby Catherine Street (offices, showroom, and first gaming room). The workshops were on Cheyne Walk, Chelsea and were called "The Waterloo Billiard Works".
  • 1826: John Thurston is appointed "royal purveyor to his majesty King George IV ". (Sole appointment)
  • 1827: John Thurston introduces the first slate-top pool table.
  • 1833: John Thurston is appointed "royal purveyor to his Majesty King William IV ." (Sole appointment)
  • 1835: John Thurston introduces his rubber band.
  • 1837: John Thurston is appointed "royal purveyor to his Majesty Queen Victoria ". (Sole appointment)
  • 1845: John Thurston introduces his patented "Vulcanized Rubber Band".
  • 1850: John Thurston dies. The deal was run by his "right hand" Samuel Pitts in partnership with GJ Atkins; later by the son Thos. Pitts was active in business until about 1890.

Thorston's & Co.

  • 1851: Thurston's is awarded the highest honor, the silver medal, at the " Great Exhibition ".
  • 1869: Thurston's introduces the first renewed "vulcanized rubber band".
  • 1882: Thurston's introduces the first "Perfect Low Gang". In 1885 the English Billiards World Champion John Roberts wrote: "Your cushions are simply pefect - your cushions are just perfect"
  • 1887: Thurston's introduces the first “bottomless” bag, as it is still used today in English billiards and snooker .

20th century

  • 1901–1903: Renovation and new construction, opening of "Thurston's Hall"
  • 1907: Thurston's became "royal purveyor to his Majesty King Edward VII ".
  • 1923: Thurston's introduces the "retrograde" Janus billiard cloth.
  • 1940: Thurston's Hall is badly damaged in a bombing raid. The management moves to the workshop premises in Chelsea.
  • 1963: Thurston's operates with the table manufacturer EA Clare (founded in 1912). The company also includes the English snooker cue manufacturer Peradon , which was founded in London in 1885 by the French immigrant son Leopold George Peradon . The company is based in Liverpool. The founder's son, Norman Clare, who headed the company from the second half of the 20th century, is best known for his meticulous, almost scientific work on the history of billiards. So he compiled countless documents from 200 years of billiards history and founded a billiard museum, which, along with Heinrich Weingartner's Viennese billiard museum , is one of the largest in the world. It is also located in Liverpool.
  • 1965: Thurston's workshops and offices on Cheyne Walk, Chelsea are redeveloped. The company acquires and moves into premises in I / IA Sharples Hall Street, London NWI.
  • 1979: Thurston's opens new offices and showrooms at 220 Camden High Street in London
  • 1986: Thurston's acquires the trading interests of "Billard Van Laere", the oldest Belgian table manufacturer, and trades in Belgium and Europe under the name "Thurston-Van Laere".
  • 1990: The managing director Norman Clare dies. The museum he maintained in Liverpool is renamed "The Norman Clare Museum".
  • 1991: Thurston's offices and showrooms move to the Padmore House within Birmingham.
  • 1992: The London office moves to 110 High Street, Edgeware.
  • 1997: The "European Billiard Congress" is founded. Thurston's is one of the founding members.
  • 1998: Thurston's launched their website on the Internet.
  • 1999: Thurston's celebrates its 200th company anniversary in the service of billiards.

publication

  • “The noble game of billiards - Wherein are Exhibited Extraordinary & Surprising Strokes”, 1831 (translation of “Noble Jeu de Billiard - Coups extraordinaires et surprenans.” By François Mingaud (published 1827)) • Reading sample on GoogleBooks

Web links

Commons : John Thurston (Entrepreneur)  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. a b c d e f Norman Clare: Billiards and Snooker Bygones . Shire, 2008, ISBN 978-0-85263-730-2 , The developement of the modern billiard table, pp. 11–13 (English, GoogleBooks online ).
  2. ^ John Thurston ( August 13, 2013 memento on the Internet Archive ) on NormanClare.co.uk. Retrieved July 9, 2013.
  3. a b c d e A Short History of Billiards ( Memento from October 14, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) on alcocks.com.au. Retrieved July 9, 2013.
  4. History of Alcock, page 2 ( Memento from July 22, 2013 in the web archive archive.today ) Retrieved on July 13, 2013.
  5. Billiards / Snooker Table Cushions ( Memento of 13 August 2013, Internet Archive ) on NormanClare.co.uk. Retrieved July 12, 2013.
  6. History of billiards gangs on BillardKrause.de. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  7. a b A brief history of the games of Billiards and Snooker on nidderdale.fslife.co.uk. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  8. a b Conversion / rebuilding of Thurston's Hall-Survey of London to British History online. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  9. ^ Thurston's Billiard Hall, Leicester Square, Westminster, Greater London on English Heritage.co.uk. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  10. a b Billiards history in the 20th century ( Memento from August 13, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) on NormanClare.co.uk. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  11. ^ Calendar of events in the history of English Billiards and Snooker (November 29, 1926) on Snookergames.co.uk. Retrieved July 9, 2013.
  12. a b "At Thurstons" by JB Priestly. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  13. ^ Text from "The Work of JB Priestley". Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  14. ^ Billiards history in the 19th century ( Memento from August 13, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) on NormanClare.co.uk. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  15. Peradon Snooker Cues Made In England on Sport64.ch. Retrieved July 10, 2013.