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Old 12-04-10, 08:32 AM
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btns btns is offline
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Default gaunt time line

I can now clarify my previous post.
The family have been "buttonmen" since the 18th century.
The family history has J.R. working his way up the Firmin hierarchy ending up as a site manager in London.
While he lived in London, his father's die cutting, press tool and button firm went bust. There was no "Gaunt firm" for two decades.

The family history has the firm start in 1884 in Clifford Street. I think they may have moved there around 1888.
Circa 1895 they purchased the works in Warstone Lane.
In 1899 they became incorporated.
Around the same time they purchased the assets of Thurckle in London (200 year history)
A rapid expansion followed and the company's manager privately opened sales offices in New York and Montreal. His estate sold them to Waterbury and the Montreal manager in 1939.
The factory in Warstone Lane burned down in 1912.
After WWI they have snapped up a series of struggling companies or assets of bankrupt companies. Many can be traced back until the 18th century.

Note that they continued to use respected names for marketing purposes:
- see notes on "late with Firmin" (c.1885)
- see Faris in the advertisement in the other Gaunt thread (c.1895)
- see notes on Thurkle (c.1900)
- see notes on Jennens (c.1924)

The industry shake out continued until the end of the 20th century, but by 1991 Gaunt itself was gone.
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