Cliffe, Joseph, Chester, u, cm, auctioneer and appraiser (1823–33). in 1818–19 recorded at Bold St but at this period he was probably employed in the business of his uncle Samuel Davies in Foregate St. He was in his uncle's employ for 17 years. In 1829 he set up his own business in Bridge St Row which he described as an upholstery warehouse. Here he offered ‘an assortment of CARPETS, PAPER HANGINGS, FLOOR CLOTHS and every other article in the UPHOLSTERY BUSINESS’. An unusual commission came his way in June 1829 when he provided ‘A bed of peculiar construction’ which enabled Chief Justice Warren, who had been detained at the Judge's Lodgings by an indisposition, to ‘return by easy stages to London … without experiencing any inconvenience’. Joseph Cliffe also appears to have specialised at this stage in the disposal of carriages and equipment. The death of his uncle in 1829 gave him the chance of taking over his premises in Foregate St and he opened there on 25 March 1830. His stock included a ‘new assortment of Brussels, Kidderminster and Venetian carpets, printed druggets, floor cloths, paper hangings, chimney and dressing glasses, sofas, chairs and every other article of the upholstery business’. He did not carry on the upholstery business for very long and in December 1833 he advised the public that he had gone into partnership with his brother C. Cliffe and was going to concentrate on the auctioneering and appraising side of the business. He disposed of his stock in the upholstery and cabinet-making lines to Churton & Sons whom he named as his successors. [D; poll bks; Chester Chronicle, 26 June 1829, 28 August 1829, 25 September 1829, 2 October 1829, 16 October 1829, 30 March 1830, 9 December 1833] B.A.