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Cumming & Smith (1825-1942)

Cumming & Smith

Glasgow & London; cabinet makers and upholsterers (fl. 1825-1942)

Cumming & Smith were first recorded in a 1825 Glasgow Directory as warehousemen at 37 Candleriggs and in 1829-30 as Cumming & Smith Ltd (successors to Morton & Hume), Couper Place, off North Wallace Street. By 1877 their trades were listed as upholstery trimming manufacturers & wholesale cabinet makers & upholsterers based at 108 Argyle Street. In 1879 recorded as successors to M’Lelland & Dickson as wholesale upholstery furnishers; cabinet, chair, sofa frame, trimming & bedding manufacturers at North Wallace Street, off Parliamentary Road with a London warehouse at 53 Scrutton Street, Curtain Road, Shoreditch.

The Furniture Gazette, 22 March 1884, reported Thomas Cumming of the firm was on the platform at the 7th Annual meeting of the Glasgow Upholsterers on 14 March 1884 at the Queen’s Rooms. Mr Campbell of the Glasgow cabinet making & upholstery firm of Campbell, Barr & Peddle mentioned Cumming & Smith in an address at this meeting. 

In 1885 the firm announced they had enlarged their Glasgow premises, The City Cabinet Works, North Wallace Street, to make it one the largest outside London. The increased floor space gave over 6,000 square feet of ground floor showroom accommodation and 15,000 square feet for galleries. The workshop space had also been increased by an additional five storeys to the west of the building for the use of upholsterers and other workmen [The Furniture Gazette, 3 January 1885]. 

The London warehouses & offices were based at 96 Curtain Road, Shoreditch in 1883 and in 1886 moved to 33 & 35½ Great Eastern Street, a commodious new block. James Faulds was the firm’s manager in London [The Furniture Gazette, 1 November 1886].

By 1891 the firm was described as ‘wholesale upholstery furnishers, cabinet, chair, sofa frame, bedding manufacturers, complete house furnishers etc.’, the City Cabinet Works, North Wallace Street and Great Eastern Road, Glasgow. From 1891 to 1897 Alexander Martin was designer and manager of the business, at which time over 200 people were employed. 

In 1894 they opened a grand red sandstone warehouse, designed by Hugh & David Barclay, at 140 Sauciehall Street but returned to their former premises ten years later.

Glasgow directories list Cumming & Smith as cabinet makers until 1942; at Couper Place (1908) and 311 Bell Street (1932-42).