New book by great great grandaughter of Newark business Mumby and Sons founder, explores impact on town’s social history

A new book is exploring the social history of Newark through the lens of one of the town’s most historic businesses.

Mumby and Sons was a clothing business founded in Nottingham in 1874, but expanded into Newark in 1881.

The business was passed down through generations of the Mumby family, before eventually closing its doors for good in 1978.

Now, Wendy Seaton, the great-great-granddaughter of business founder Robert Mumby, has published the book ‘A history of Mumby and Sons Ltd.’

As her father Patrick neared the end of his life, Wendy was keen to preserve this part of her family’s proud history and document it for future generations.

What started out as a simple exercise to pass on the stories to her own children quickly expanded into a feature on the social history of Newark and the important role that Mumby and Sons played in the town for close to a century.

After seeking permission, Wendy made use of the Advertiser’s extensive newspaper and photographic archives.

“So little was known about the business and there were no records kept, so everything was found in the newspaper,” she said.

“I had a lot of fun reading through the old articles and looking at the photos.

“It was really a social history — looking at what people wore, what they did in their leisure time, education, sport and so on.

“There were some really fantastic descriptions too, about things such as what food was served at the employee summer garden party.

“We often think of people in the past as being very different, but what was really interesting to me was the realisation that they were just like us.”

Mumby and Sons sprung up during the Industrial Revolution and established itself as a major employer in the Newark area.

The firm was originally based along the River Trent — now home to The Swan and Salmon restaurant — before expanding and moving into a larger factory on what is now named Mumby Close, just off Lover’s Lane.

The business adopted a policy of what Wendy describes as “profit with a purpose” — fostering wellbeing and connection as a priority, had its own recreational garden for employees to enjoy, and embraced the use of sport for building morale, with their own cricket and football teams.

The owners saw a link between education and sport, and a need to encourage healthy activities in school. Part of this involved establishing The Mumby Shield in 1906, an annual inter-school football tournament which is still played to this day.

The factory also provided a source of employment in the town through two world wars, where workers played a vital part in the ongoing war effort.

At its most successful, the firm employed 200 people, with generations of Newarkers following in their parents footsteps on the factory floor to become skilled textiles workers.

“It closed in the 1970s, so there may not be a lot of people left who worked there,” said Wendy.

“However, there are probably lots of people who remember their parents and grandparents going off to work at the factory.

“There were hundreds of family businesses just like this one in towns across the East Midlands. So it was a very typical story, but I hope it [the book] shows the social history of the town and the workplace in a bygone age.

“I wanted this [book] to be a celebration of not just a family business, but of industry and Newark through the ages.”

The book is priced at £9.99, and those interested in picking up a copy can do so by emailing: trentclothing@icloud.com