Famous black pudding sign comes home at last

Date published: 08 February 2012

A historic sign from the home of black puddings is back where it belongs in Bury.

Bury Art Museum has acquired the Casewell’s Black Pudding sign and restored it to its former glory.

It will ultimately go on show in the museum, but has been loaned to the Bury Black Pudding Company Ltd in the meantime as thanks for their financial contribution towards the restoration.

Susan Lord, museum curator, explained the history behind the sign and how it came back to Bury.

“Some believe that the making of black puddings in Bury started in 1810 when Casewell’s made and sold them in their shop at 60 Union Street, just off the old Union Square,” she said.

“The ‘shop’ was an ordinary terrace house and in the front room a little table acted as a counter and the black puddings were displayed on a large plate which sat in the window. The shop passed through the Casewell family via a great, great uncle who married a Mary Harriet Casewell.

“It eventually arrived at Vincent Ashworth who owned the shop until 1968 when Union Street was demolished. Betty Ashworth, Vincent’s daughter, was brought up in the shop and has many fond memories of it. Betty still lives in Bury and was intrigued to hear of what had happened to the sign.

“In November 2010, Bury Art Museum received a phone call from a Mrs Marsh of Richmond, Yorkshire who bought the sign in 2002 at an auction in Richmond. Intrigued to learn more about the vendor, Mrs Marsh made enquiries; some days later a Mr Rawston from Harrogate contacted her and she learned that he once owned the chemist shop in Princess Street, Bury which was demolished at the same time as Casewell’s, so he managed to rescue the sign and it had been in his possession ever since. Mrs Marsh was eager for the sign to return to Bury once more and decided to donate it to Bury Art Museum. The museum gratefully accepted the sign.

“Unfortunately the sign, which is made of glass, was badly damaged in transit. Because the sign was considered of significant historical importance the museum decided to have it restored. Half of the restoration cost was very kindly met by the Bury Black Pudding Company at Heap Bridge. It was sent away to Pritchards Restoration Studio, Burscough, Lancashire where it underwent months of painstaking restoration work.

“In return for the help received from Debbie Pierce of the Bury Black Pudding Company, Bury Art Museum is lending the sign to the company and it will be on display in their foyer for the next three years. The sign will then be put on display in the museum.”