Collections Report - December 2005
Donation of Trug Workshop Contents
Towards the end of November I was contacted by Mr Robin Tuppen who ran one of the very few remaining trug workshops left in Sussex.
Due to adverse market pressures he was unfortunately having to close down the workshop at fairly short notice, however he wanted the contents to remain together and in as complete a state as possible which is why he called to offer the contents to the museum rather than sell items off.
He had run the workshop (and associated shop) for around 25 years although ‘The Trug Shop’ as it is currently known, is only the latest incarnation of a much older business which began life in around 1829 in Herstmonceux. This company was originally set up by Thomas Smith who was apparently the first to make what we recognise as a typical Sussex trug and the business carried on through various guises to become todays Trug Shop (see attached for a more comprehensive history).
Guy and I visited the workshop at the end of November to assess the scale of the collection. Besides the tools and materials for producing traditional chestnut and willow trugs, there was also a complementary set for producing plywood trugs; an innovation Mr Tuppen had introduced some years ago. Mr Tuppen also had a great sense of historical responsibility for the business he ran and had built up quite a large paper archive dealing with customer information, invoices and so on, but he had also gathered quite a number of historical documents and photographs relating to past achievements; most of this ephemera we understood were his own personal items which he would be happy for us to copy.
Diana Rowsell had asked us to assess if Mr Tuppen would be willing to demonstrate trug making or even possible run a course at some point; both suggestions he agreed to enthusiastically.
Partly to preserve the workshop in an historically accurate manner as possible, and partly to facilitate any future demonstrations, we decided that we should preserve both historical and more modern items. Having discussed the matter with Richard, we decided that we could not do this and also preserve the archive; I therefore contacted the East Sussex Record Office who arranged to take on this aspect of the business.
We collected the workshop contents on the 15th December; a comprehensive list is to be drawn up shortly with Mr Tuppens help, detailing exactly what we have and the function of each item.
The range of items is quite comprehensive, including formers and boxes for the sizing and completion of the trugs, work benches and shaves horses, a steaming box, old business signs and some pieces of modern machinery. Most of the traditional tools used were modern replicas which Mr Tuppen has retained for the time being in order to complete a number of outstanding orders, although these, and other materials we will collect once he has finished with them.
He and a colleague are very keen to maintain the tradition of trug making by demonstrating at the museum whenever possible. We now have all the necessary equipment to facilitate this.
Julian Bell -
Curator
December 2005
The Workshop
Measures
Formers for the handles
and rims
Steaming Box