J. S. Fry & Sons
Joseph Fry, a Quaker born in 1728, began making chocolate around 1759. In 1761, he and John Vaughan purchased a small shop from an apothecary named Walter Churchman. This transaction included the patent for a chocolate refining process. The new business operated under the name Fry, Vaughan & Co. The company moved its chocolate works from Newgate Street to Union Street in Bristol by 1777. Joseph Fry died in 1787, leaving his wife Anna to run the firm as Anna Fry & Son. Her son Joseph Storrs Fry assumed control of the company in 1795.
Joseph Storrs Fry patented a method of grinding cocoa beans using a Watt steam engine. This innovation introduced factory techniques into the cocoa business for the first time. By 1847, the Fry's chocolate factory moulded an eating chocolate bar often considered the first of its kind. It was named Chocolat Délicieux à Manger and likely inspired by French chocolates. Production of eating chocolate rose from about 10 tonnes in 1852 to over 1,100 tonnes in 1880. A Van Houten press was acquired and installed in 1868 to improve processing capabilities.
The firm launched Fry's Chocolate Cream in 1866, which became the first mass-produced chocolate candy bar. Over 220 products were introduced in the following decades including the UK's first chocolate Easter egg in 1873. Fry's Turkish Delight arrived in 1914 as another major product line. The company also created the first filled chocolate sweet called Cream Sticks in 1853. An employee named H. J. Packer established his own chocolate business in Bristol in 1881. His Greenbank location provided local competition until 2006 under various owners and brands.
In 1919 the company merged with Cadbury's chocolate forming British Cocoa and Chocolate Company. After the merger, the Frys held 45.44% of the company's ordinary shares plus chairmanship and four seats on the board. Under Egbert Cadbury the Fry's division moved from 1923 to Somerdale near Keynsham. By 1969 when Cadbury merged with Schweppes only one Fry family member remained on the thirteen-seat board. The family held just over 10 percent of the ordinary shares at that time. Joseph Storrs Fry II died in 1913 before these changes took full effect.
Cadbury announced plans to close the Somerdale plant by 2010 in October 2007. This decision resulted in the loss of some 500 jobs for the workforce. Production was to be moved to a new factory in Poland to maintain competitiveness. Labour MP Dan Norris called the news a hard and heavy blow to the Keynsham community. In February 2010 Kraft Foods confirmed the closure after taking over Cadbury plc. Kraft had specifically agreed during the takeover battle to keep the site open. Widespread outrage followed in the press leading to a House of Commons Select Committee investigation.
Records relating to both the business and the family are held at Bristol Archives under reference number 38538. Some records concerning the role within Cadbury reside with the Mondelez International repository at Bournville headquarters. An original enamel advertising sign featuring the distinctive five boys design appeared on BBC's Antiques Roadshow in April 2020. The sign was valued between £1,000 and £1,500 during that broadcast. Lindsay Poulton recalled his father induced him to cry for the first photograph using an ammonia-soaked cloth around his neck. He participated in a tour of the Fry's Bristol factory when he was in his eighties.
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Common questions
When did Joseph Fry start making chocolate?
Joseph Fry began making chocolate around 1759. He and John Vaughan purchased a small shop from an apothecary named Walter Churchman in 1761.
What was the first eating chocolate bar created by J. S. Fry & Sons?
By 1847, the Fry's chocolate factory moulded an eating chocolate bar often considered the first of its kind. It was named Chocolat Délicieux à Manger and likely inspired by French chocolates.
Which company merged with J. S. Fry & Sons in 1919?
In 1919 the company merged with Cadbury's chocolate forming British Cocoa and Chocolate Company. The Frys held 45.44% of the company's ordinary shares plus chairmanship and four seats on the board after the merger.
Why did the Somerdale plant close in 2010?
Cadbury announced plans to close the Somerdale plant by 2010 in October 2007. Production was to be moved to a new factory in Poland to maintain competitiveness.
Where are records for J. S. Fry & Sons family business kept today?
Records relating to both the business and the family are held at Bristol Archives under reference number 38538. Some records concerning the role within Cadbury reside with the Mondelez International repository at Bournville headquarters.