Edward Pryor Products Trade Advertisement

The company of Edward Pryor & Son was established in the mid-19th century and is still in operation today.

On 23^rd May 1849 William Pryor purchased a mark making business in Sheffield from its previous proprietor, John White. The business, located in White Street, Sheffield, was aquired as a going concern for his son Edward who was serving the last year of his apprenticeship there. Edward went on to become a master engraver and led his business to international renown in its field. The company’s output included several different types of checks and tokens.  Examples of their maker’s name have been recorded on checks from engineering works plus quarries and colliery as well as on at least one Co-operative Society dividend token.

Edward’s eldest and youngest sons, Edward Staniforth Pryor and George Albert Pryor took over the running of the company in 1883 and 1898 respectively, before handing over to William’s grandson Ronnie Pryor in 1938.

From c.1916 the firm rented additional premises in Rockingham Street, Sheffield. George’s son, Ronald Pryor, joined the company in 1919 and continued to run the firm up until his death in 1984.

In 1928 a small factory was acquired in Broom Street, Sheffield, and machinery was installed for producing marking devices, followed in 1931 by machines of much greater accuracy which have been further developed since using computer aided systems. In the 1940s further premises were taken on in Mary Street and Langsett Road, Sheffield. These were replaced in 1951 by the present premises in Egerton Street where all the company’s activities were then concentrated apart from the retention of offices in Broom Street which remained open until 1980. The late 20^th and early 21^st Centuries have seen Pryor maintain their position as a world-leading supplier of identification technologies with the development of machines, software and automated marking machinery.

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