Harrison and Sons Limited, printers

This collection comprises business records

Listed by AA/May/01

The collection is arranged as follows:

CORPORATE RECORDS

Minute books

Partnership agreements

Share capital

Company status

ACCOUNTING RECORDS

Balance sheets and profit and loss accounts

Ledgers

Indexes to ledgers

Journals

Cash books

Bank account books

Bill books

Private ledger receipts

Miscellaneous

PRODUCTION RECORDS

Printing samples

Printing methods

PRINTING ORDERS

London Gazette

Stamps

Other government orders

Other official and private orders

BUSINESS CORRESPONDENCE

Private letter books

General letter books

Estimate letter books

Pall Mall letter book

Miscellaneous

STAFF

Wages and working conditions

Apprenticeship

Social

LEGAL RECORDS

Legal cases

Insurance liability

Loans

SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES

Truslove and Bray Ltd

"G K and Co"

Harrison Properties Ltd

St Martin's Publications Co

G H Starling and Co

PROPERTY

General

Deeds and correspondence for individual properties

Insurance

Inventories

FAMILY

Company and family histories

Probate

Accounts

Correspondence

MISCELLANEOUS

Photographs and pictures

Manuscripts and offprints

Other

• <corpname>Harrison and Co, 1839-1849, printers</corpname>
• <corpname>Harrison and Son, 1849-1854, printers</corpname>
• <corpname>Harrison and Sons, 1854-1920, printers</corpname>
• <corpname>Harrison and Sons Ltd, 1920-1997, printers</corpname>

Records were deposited on indefinite loan by by D W Devier, General Services Manager, Harrison and Sons (High Wycombe) Ltd, Coates Lane, High Wycombe, HR13 5EZ in February 1983.

The founder of the company, Thomas Harrison, was apprenticed to the Confidential Government Printer in 1738, and was joined in the business by his younger brother James in 1743. The firm is best known for printing "The London Gazette" from 1765 to 1910.

When Thomas Richard Harrison entered into partnership with John William Parker in 1839, the company was called Harrison and Co., but this changed to Harrison and Son in 1849 and later Harrison and Sons in 1854. Their main premises were at 45-46 St Martin's Lane, but they also maintained private presses at the Foreign Office and the War Office. Another of their famous publications, "Burke's Peerage", was printed at the old Royal Library building in Pall Mall from 1853 to 1905.

The twentieth century saw branches of the business established outside central London in addition to the premises in St Martin's Lane, which they occupied until 1964. Postage stamps were printed first at Hayes, Middlesex, from 1911, and later from 1933 at High Wycombe, where the company is still based. The Hayes branch turned into a paper-coating mill. In 1923 Harrisons acquired the controlling interest in J G Hammond Ltd of Birmingham. The status of the company changed in 1920 to become a private limited liability company and again in 1948 to become a public limited liability company.

Two members of the family have been knighted: Sir Cecil Reeves Harrison in 1918 and Sir Guy Harrison in 1951. Both served as masters of the Stationers Company. The Harrison family connection with the company came to an end with Richard Harrison's departure in 1979 when the firm was taken over by Lonrho. It was taken over again by De La Rue International Ltd in 1997.