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Pulley-Rack for blinds

Maker Loach and Clarke

DateBefore 1857

Object number00041866

NameLatch

MediumMetal

Dimensions15.5 x 111 x 14 mm, 26 g

ClassificationsTools and equipment

Credit LineANMM Collection Purchased with the assistance of the Andrew Thyne Reid Trust

Terms

DescriptionA rectangular metal latch plate used as a pulley-rack for blinds. Inscriptions written one side read "PATENT" and "LOACH & CLARKE". Part of the material from the historic shipwreck DUNBAR. The DUNBAR Collection was retrieved under the auspices of an amnesty enacted through the jurisdiction of the Historic Shipwrecks Act, 1976.HistoryLoach and Clarke was a brass foundry active in Birmingham from at least as early as 1835. They started out at Little Charles Street but by the late 1800's were located at 20 - 25 Essington Street. It appears they were a very well respected firm and they made a range of products including high quality cork screws. In 1840 their blind pulley-rack received high praise. The following is from a letter published in April in London: LOACH AND CLARKE'S PATENT PULLEY RACK FOR BLINDS "I am glad to make them known" - Byron "Sir, Stepping into Henly and Co.'s in Blackfriars-road the other day to purchase some pulley-racks for blinds, they introduced to my notice a novelty in this line, the merits of which were so palpable, that there remained no question as to which I was to purchase - the old or the new principle. The superiority of the latter was so decided that I did not long halt between two opinions, but willingly paid the few extra pence and possessed myself of a quantum suf. of Messer's Loach and Clarke's patent blind pulleys. If ever there was an article of which it might be said that it was time for it to fall into the march of improvement this was most assurdadly the case with blind pulleys. As heretofore made, they were either too slack or too tight - the spring was broken, or the rack stripped, or something or other was continually wrong so as to render them a source of external annoyance. Messer’s. Loach and Clarke, however, greatly simplified and perfected this article..The ingenuity and simplicity of this contrivance strongly commend it to public favour; it is neat in appearance, moderate in price, and not likely to get out of order. Since the above was written I have seen a window-fastener by the same gentleman, made upon a wedge principle, which is also a really useful and meritorious contrivance, in many respects, surpassing its predecessors. I remain, Sir, yours respectfully, W.M. Baddeley, London, April 23rd, 1840." Built in 1852, the 1167-ton, wooden, three-masted sailing ship DUNBAR was designed to cater for this new trade. Costing over 30,000 pounds and constructed from British oak and Indian teak and held together by copper fastenings and iron knees, the vessel was designed to carry passengers and cargo quickly between England and Australia. As the vessel was requestioned by the Royal Navy for use as a troop carrier during the Crimean War, it was not until 1856 that the vessel made its first visit to Australia. The ship remained in Sydney for three months before returning to England in the same year. In late May 1857 the ship departed London for its second voyage to Australia, carrying at least 63 passengers, 59 crew and a substantial cargo, including metal dyes for the colonies first postage stamps, machinery, furniture, trade tokens, cutlery, manufactured and fine goods, food and alcohol. Many of the vessel's first-class passengers were prominent Sydney residents, returning to Australia after visiting their English homeland. After a relatively fast voyage the vessel was only hours out of Sydney when on the night of 20 August 1857, in heavy seas and poor visibility, the vessel struck the cliffs just north of the Signal Station at South Head - midway between the lighthouse and The Gap. Within a few minutes the ship began to break up. All perished in the disaster but one person - a young sailor who was hurled from the deck onto to a rocky ledge. As dawn gradually unveiled the enormity of the event to the community of Sydney, the great loss of life (at least 121 men, women and children, many of whom were known to the local population) deeply affected the population. Thousands were drawn to the scene of the wreck to watch the rescue of the single survivor, the recovery of the bodies and the salvage of some of the cargo. For days afterwards the newspapers were filled with graphic descriptions of the wreck and the public interest in the spectacle. Pamphlets, engravings, poems, paintings and brochures soon began to appear in Sydney as part of the memorabilia industry associated with the tragedy. Many of the victims of DUNBAR were buried at St Stephens Church in Newtown. Some 20,000 people lined George Street for the funeral procession. Banks and offices closed, every ship in the harbour flew their ensigns at half-mast and minute guns were fired as the seven hearses and 100 carriages went past. The effect of the DUNBAR disaster is hard to imagine in these days of safe and efficient air and sea travel. The repercussions of the event still live on with the descendants of some of the victims attending the annual DUNBAR Commemorative Services at Camperdown Cemetery and St Stephens Church, Newtown.