Frederick Mortlock

Frederick Mortlock (London)

Frederick Herbert Mortlock (1852-1897) was born in Clare, Suffolk, where he learned his trade as cabinet maker before moving to London and taking employment with Burroughes & Watts. Here he acquired additional skills in billiard table manufacture, but left them in 1888 under circumstances which are not entirely clear. A clue perhaps, is provided in his adverts where he claims to be “the original inventor and first manufacturer of any low cushion.” Coincidentally, Burroughes & Watts started producing their ‘Eureka Low Fast Cushion’ in 1888, and perhaps this was the source of a disagreement and ultimate divergence?

1888-1895 F H Mortlock

After starting to trade independently, Mortlock began to market his very own ‘Low Cushion,’ and in the latter part of 1888, took workshop premises at 219 Pentonville Road, near King’s Cross railway station in London. Here he produced not only billiard tables but also cues and scoreboards.

In the early part of 1895, Mortlock seems to have been affected by illness and decided to close his Pentonville Road facilities, putting the entire contents of his workshop up for auction, including the lease on the premises. However, rather than leaving the billiard table business, he formed a partnership with H. F. Coltram, a Romford based billiard table manufacturer.

1895 Mortlock and Coltram

Coltram, first appears in 1893, when he began to advertise his services from Harold Wood in Romford. There are distinct similarities with the adverts produced by him, which mirror the claim of Mortlock to be the ‘original inventor and first manufacturer of any Low Cushion’, to the extent that he even uses exactly the same words. This may suggest a prior connection between them, possibly a previous working relationship with Burroughes & Watts. Whatever their previous relationship, they began trading as ‘Mortlock, Coltram & Co.,’ from March 1895 and initially operated from Coltrams’s premises in Romford.

1895-1897 Mortlock Coltram & Co

However, almost immediately, and possibly due to the intended sale of Mortlock’s lease on his previous premises failing to find a buyer, the pair closed the Romford workshops and moved back into 219 Pentonville Road. A plate from this period, with the original red lettering faded, is shown below. Mortlock continued to advertise himself as having formerly worked for Burroughes & Watts.

The partnership ended in 1897 when Fred Mortlock, aged only 45, appears to have died. The company ceased trading at this time, with the assets being sold off for a second time.

Peter Ainsworth

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