The company experience the period of 'boom' in 1973. followed by 'gloom' in 1974-5 – (Timber Trades Journal, 31 May 1975)
Founded by Elijah Sherry who started out dealing in dockyard off-cuts and opened a timber yard in Bethnal Green soon moved into dealing in pine and mahogany in new premises on Nichols Row. 1890 when Sherry’s son Mr A. H. (Dick) Sherry started working at the business.
“A man willing to handle any form of solid wood product, and it is no surprise to find him in 1896, carrying out his first transaction in plywood, which must make E Sherry one of the first UK timber firms to enter the new ‘sheet’ materials trade”
(Timber Trades Journal, 31 May 1975)
Continuing to expand in 1903 they acquired Stour Wharf at Old Ford, Fish Island and then later in 1912 bought a site along the Hackney Cut at Homerton Bridge kitted out with a new steam and electric plants – including band mill, sawmill, planing and mould mill, soon brought to a stop by the first world war. Like Harris Lebus in Tottenham, E Sherry contributed to the war effort making aeroplane wings.
After E Sherry died in 1929 the new managing director Mr A J Moore continues to expand buying an additional 17 acres in Barking opening up a new wharf. The death of Mr Moore in 1966 after 45 years at the firm saw the closing chapter in the firm as E Sherry. It merged with the Horsley Smith and Jewson group, then with Gliksten’s forming “one of the leading forest products enterprises – The International Timber Corporation” (Timber Trades Journal, 31 May 1975) in 1970 the year in which the ‘Sherry’s of Homerton’ site closed after 56 years and two world wars.
Image Courtesy of The Geffrye, Museum of the Home
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Historic location
E Sherry had timber wharves at Homerton Bridge, Stour Wharf and later Barking.
You can find information about E Sherry at the archives of The Geffrye, Museum of the Home
This item is now housed at the The Geffrye Museum. You can visit it here.