PLAISTOWE Hugh NEW

HUGH PLAISTOWE            #1
 

  SILVER PAN CONFECTIONARY COMPANY BUILDING  1895        #2
 

Born in London in 1863, John Hobbs was 11 years old when he began working for Plaistowe and Company Confectioners, London. He stayed with the company for 9 years before leaving to further his studies and interests in the field. He returned to Plaistowe’s, London for a short time before leaving for Western Australia in 1890, where he established Silver Pan Confectionary Company, founded by John Hobbs and Edward Merton. The Silver Pan factory in West Perth produced a range of boiled and sugar candies, sugar ornaments, horehound candies, Turkish delight, chocolate creams, gelatine goods and “every description of confectionery goods”.

In 1895, Hugh Plaistowe arrived in Perth from London, where he had also worked in his father’s confectionery business. He contacted Hobbs and became a partner in the Silver Pan company. It’s not clear why Edward Merton left the original partnership but perhaps the arrival of Hugh Plaistowe caused a disagreement. Merton later sued Hobbs, claiming he had stolen some of his recipes. The case was dismissed.

A new factory was built in Perth less than a mile from the city centre in 1898. For some time, the firm formed by Plaistowe and Hobbs continued to trade as Silver Pan. Then, in 1911, it became Plaistowe & Co. Ltd with both Plaistowe and Hobbs as directors. Each year the business grew, until in 1913 its factories had increased to six times their original size. A new factory opened in 1915 in West Perth with a well-equipped laboratory and a team of chemists, very active in research and development.  In 1919, because of the difficulty in obtaining essential oils and flavourings, Plaistowe’s started developing essential oils from native raw materials. This opened up new business opportunities beyond the food sector and subsequently a new division, called Plaimar, was established. This division ventured into perfumes, distilling sandalwood oil, boronia otto, oil of lemon and peppermint from locally grown plants.

  PLAISTOWE LIMITED NEW FACTORY BUILDING   1914        #3
Please Note:    THE OLD SILVER PAN BUILDING INCORPERATED IN THE MIDDLE
 

By 1920, the company was being hailed as a leader in Western Australia’s industrial world.
In 1928 Plaistowe developed a process for producing tomato concentrate, which was successfully exported to the UK and to the eastern states. The company also obtained a licence for the UK brand Fulcreem. Under the brand, of "Fulcreem Co." custard powder, Don jellies, lemon juice cordial, cakes, etc., were manufactured. Large quantities of W.A. butter, honey, milk, flour, dried fruits, hundreds of tons of lemons, thousands of dozens of eggs were used annually. To feed the boilers and gas producing plant about 1200 tons of Western Australian wood and coal was used every year. At its peak the Plaistowe Company employed some 300 people.
 

VIEW OF EXPANDED PLAISTOWE & CO. FACTORY 1920        #4
 

An article published in 1930 recorded that, at that time, Plaistowe and Co. Ltd. manufactured over 400 different confections including “chocolates, milk chocolates, and sugar confections, triple blend cocoa, icing sugar, lemon and orange peel”. They were also among the early manufacturers of nonpareils, also known as hundreds and thousands – an essential component of that great Australian favourite, fairy bread. Among their products was the famous Choo Choo Bar, now revived by Lagoon Confectioners.
 

     CARAMEL WRAPPING MACHINE   1929       #5
 

    PLAISTOWE PRODUCTS DISPLAY   1929       #6
 

   ROYAL SHOW DISPLAY STAND 1929        #7
 

PROMOTIONAL DISPLAY AT REEGENT THEATRE 1929           #8
 

While Plaistowe and Co. confine its energies to the actual manufacture of its commodities it directly benefits other Western Australian industries which include the cardboard box, printing, tin making, case making industries. The interdependence of the primary and secondary industries is a matter of great importance to the State, and it was seen from the foregoing facts that Plaistowe and Co. were decidedly doing their bit in the forwarding of the State's progress.

     PLAISTOWE TIN FEATURING AUSTRALIAN BIRDS TIN      #9
 
 

 PLAISTOWE TIN FEATURING AUSTRALIAN BIRDS TIN AD       #10
 

 PLAISTOWE TOFFE DE-LUXE TIN       #11
 

    PLAISTOWE CONFECTIONARY TIN  FEATURING AUSTRALIAN ANIMALS       #12
 

 PLAISTOWE PRODUCTS DISPLAY SHOWING FOILING MACHINE IN FOY & GIBSONS WINDOW  1932          #13
 

   ROYAL PERTH SHOW DISPLAY 1932       #14
 

     ROYAL PERTH SHOW DISPLAY 1934      #15
 

   60TH ANNIVERSARY ADVERTISEMENT       #16
 

  CHOCOLATE MILLING MACHINE  1955         #17
 

  SOME PLAISTOWE PRODUCTS 1972         #18
 

Plaistowe released the original Choo Choo Bar in Western Australia, in the mid 1950s. In the 1980s, Choo Choo Bars became unavailable. Lagoon Confectionery, a family business from Williamstown, bought the original Choo Choo Bar recipe and reissued it. In the 1960s, the wrapper featured a little red steam train, the Choo Choo Express, being driven by a golliwog. Lagoon replaced the golliwog with a monkey
 

    SOME PLAISTOWE PRODUCTS 1972          #19
 

    SOME PLAISTOWE PRODUCTS 1972          #20
 

ADVERT FOR AURORA JUBES AND PEPPIES          #21
 

Hugh Plaistowe died in April 1935, aged 65,  after indifferent health for some years. He was a fervent advocate for Western Australia and its production possibilities and played an important part in encouraging producers in this State. He was a member of the Commercial Travellers’ Club and of the Rotary Club. Of a retiring disposition, he had not taken an active part in public affairs, but in his own quite way helped materially in this State’s advancement along the path of industrial progress.
His sons took over control of the business after their fathers death, and continued its rapid growth in the foillowing years
As with many much-loved confectionery makers, Plaistowe became a victim of corporate takeovers and brand rationalisation. Plaistowe’s business, including the plant and equipment, goodwill, brand names, business names and trademarks, was acquired by Life Savers Australia in 1976. Some of the products, including the Choo Choo bar, were then marketed under the Mastercraft brand, also owned by Life Savers. Then, in 1985, Nestlé bought the Life Savers business. The Plaistowe brand is now applied only to cooking chocolate products and cocoa.
Ironically, a brand that was once Western Australia’s pride is now made in Campbellfield, Victoria. The chocolate factory in West Perth is now an office building.

 VIEW OF PLAISTOWE LANE WHICH  WAS  THE SITE WHERE PLAISTOWE'S FACTORY WAS   1989          #22
 

PLAICAN PTY. LTD.

Plaistowe became involved in the canning industry, the operation eventually became a division known as Plaican. It operated into the 1960s. Plaican products included canned fruit, canned tomatoes, tomato sauce, baked beans/spaghetti and at least two soups that they mainly exported:  kangaroo tail and turtle.
It processed tomatoes from the Kalamunda and Wanneroo districts, and fruit from many areas including the hills orchards of the Kalamunda and Karragullen areas.

In 1928, after some careful research in the laboratory, a process for the concentration of tomatoes was evolved and in 1929 200 tons were treated in order to gauge the commercial possibilities of this product. Samples were sent to the Eastern States and to London and favorable reports on the quality, backed up in some cases by orders and repeat orders, were given.

  PLAISTOWE TOMATO CONCENTRATE ADVERT        #23
 

   PLAIMAR LIMITED CREDIT DOCKET FOR LOCAL GROWER 1946        #24
 

  PLAISTOWE RECEIPT FOR LOCAL GROWER 1951         #25
 

With the outbreak of WWII, the company started to process vegetables for the armed services and, in 1942, began the construction of new buildings to house a modern processing plant. In the 1960s, the company secured government contracts for canned beans, potatoes, carrots and tomato juice.  In the late 1960s, Western Australia's carefully created fruit-canning industry was facing the danger of collapse. The only thing that could save it was for an interstate concern to move in and take it over, as the Perth firm of Plaistowe & Co. Ltd. plan to close their doors for canning this summer - a move already postponed last year after pressure from the State Government.
Plaistowe claimed they cannot run their canning operation economically, and that the confectionary side of their business is more lucrative. But this offers little consolation to the growers, who were attracted by the company into planting 30,000 fruit trees on 200 choice acres. To the consumer, the situation seemed ludicrous, for peaches had been favoured by buyers for their quality. The state Government, had helped finance Plaistowe into the scheme, was now working to bring in a group to take up the running of it. It would save the State about $500,000 worth of imports each year.
In 1969, the canning operation was taken over by the Shepparton Preserving Company (SPC)

PLAIMAR LIMITED
 

Plaimar Limited employed Western Australian manufacturing chemists who spent over fifty years in the essential oil, essence, tannin and fruit juice business. It had its head office, laboratories and factories in Havelock St, West Perth from its inception in 1919 until the last employee left the site in 1975, when it was taken over by the Sydney firm Keith Harris and Co, who have since been taken over by Soul Pattison Chemists. From time to time the Company also had subsidiary operations in Belmont, Byford, Boddington, Pindar and Toodyay.
 

Horace Victor Marr, its first Managing Director, worked for Plaistowe’s, the confectioners of Havelock St, West Perth. While working there, he formed the idea that the flora of WA could be the source of many valuable natural products and started experiments with sandalwood oil. Plaimar Limited was incorporated on 10th October 1919 and installed in an old cottage in Havelock St, on the south side of Plaistowe’s. In about 1920 the company acquired several acres of land on the corner of Havelock and Troode Sts. This included about eleven cottages, which were progressively knocked down as the site was developed. There are two versions of why the company was formed. One was that Hugh Plaistowe backed Marr in a joint venture to manufacture the flavouring essences his company had been unable to get in sufficient quantities during the 1914-18 war. The other version is that Marr wanted a company set up for the commercial production of his sandalwood oil. 

   PLAIMAR SANDALWOOD OIL ADVERT        #26
 

In 1922 Plaimar sent some of their Boronia essence to London where they arranged for a chemist to produce a perfume from their product, the idea being that they would then produce the perfume back in Australia to the formula prepared by the chemist. This they did with the perfume becoming commercially available in 1923.
In London in 1924, King George V and Queen Mary attended the British Empire Exhibition where the Queen was presented with a bottle of Plaimar Boronia Perfume.  

PLAIMAR BORONIA OIL ADVERT           #27
 

The cut glass bottle had a stopper made from gold in the shape of a kangaroo; the bottle also had a black swan, the emblem of Western Australia, painted on the front.   Bottles (but definitely not as elaborate) were offered for sale from the Western Australian stand at the exhibition.
Plaimar’s Boronia perfume and powder were advertised for sale from 1924 onwards and advertisements frequently carried the words Perth – London – Paris. Hugh Plaistowe died in 1935 and after WW2 Plaimar Boronia perfume and powder seems to have just faded away. The firm continued to advertise that they would purchase Boronia blossoms right into the 1950s so it seems that they concentrated on making the essential oils and left the manufacture of perfume and cosmetics to other, perhaps larger firms.

Land was purchased in Byford in the the name of Mary Louise Plaistowe in 1927 and in 1932c a holiday retreat house called “Quo Vadis” was built built as a family holiday retreat for Hugh Plaistowe of Plaistowe’s sweets, who resided at 131 Forrest Street Peppermint Grove. This property served a duel purpose not only as a holiday retreat but also a base from which Plaistowe’s off shoot company, Plaimar Limited could operate. It was here that experimental orchards and gardens were established for the production of many articles previously imported by the company. Plaimar’s Mint Farm grew peppermint to flavour ‘Minties’. Roses and lavender were also cultivated for the manufacture of perfumes and soaps.

He began distilling essential oils for use in his own products.   He was quite successful in the distillation of essential oils, including sandalwood, cloves and of course Boronia  and over time he went on to produce a variety of other products using his essences such as cordials and even a product used to protect  sheep from insect attack.

EXPANDED "BURNBRAE ORPHANAGE" WHICH WAS ORIGINALLY            #28
HUGH PLAISTOWE'S HOLIDAY RETREAT
 

PLAIMAR PRODUCTS
Plaimar Limited was well known for the manufacture and supply of high quality essences, essential oils, synthetic chemicals and aromatic extracts. Supplying buyers both nationally and internationally, the Plaimar products were used to form the basis of confectionary, perfumes, pastries, cordial, aerated drinks and other allied products.

Soluble Essences and Flavourings
Almond, Aniseed, Apricot, Banana, Bergamot, Blackberry, Blackcurrant, Capsicene, Caraway, Cardamoms, Cassia, Champagne, Chillie, Citron, Claret, Cloves, Curacoa, Damson, Dandelion, Gooseberry, Grapefruit, Kola, Lichee, Lime, Maraschino, Mulberry, Muscatel, Nutmeg, Orris, Passionfruit, Peach Pear, Pineapple, Quassia, Quinine, Redcurrant, Rum, Sarsaparilla, Sassafras, Tutti Frutti
These natural flavourings were manufactured by Plaimar Limited for its aerated waters, cordials, syrups and non-alcoholic beverages. Highly concentrated and purely soluble when used in the recommended proportions.

Apple 
As above and used natural produce, synthetic and natural isolates to ensure the required intensity of flavour.

Chillieade 
Chillieade was a Plaimar specialty. These natural flavourings were manufactured by Plaimar Limited for its aerated waters, cordials, syrups and non-alcoholic beverages. Highly concentrated and purely soluble when used in the recommended proportions.

Gingerale 
Ginger Ale was manufactured by Plaimar Limited for aerated waters, cordials, syrups and non-alcoholic beverages, using Jamaican ginger. Highly concentrated and purely soluble when used in the recommended proportions.

Jelly Crystal Flavours
Greengage and Portwine 
Plaimar designed these flavourings for long storage periods without deteriorating. As such they were popular amongst producers and were also used for ice creams, fondants and ice blocks.

Flavouring and Fruit Essences 
Bunspice, Butterscotch, Cachou, Cinnamon, Clove, Coconut, Coffee, Chicory, Ghee, Ginger, Grape, Guava, Hawthorn, Hazelnut, Heliotrope, Honey, Honeydew, Horehound, Jasmin, Maple, Mandarin, Madeira, Rockmelon, Mulberry, Musk, Neroli, Nutmeg, Passionfruit, Pimento, Plum, Portwine, Prune, Quince, Sarsaparilla, Spearmint, Smoke, Violet 
These concentrated flavourings from natural sources, were made specifically for confectionary and baked goods such as biscuits and cakes.

Compound Floral Ottos 
Poppy, Cyclamen, Freesia, Honeysuckle, Jonquille, Lilac, Musk, Sweatpea, Wallflower, Ylang
Highly concentrated, these floral ottos were manufactured based on a standard French formula. It was designed to be the fragrant base to products such as handkerchief perfumes, soaps, oils, face powders, lotions and creams.

Intense Food Colours 
Black, Purple, Indigo, Sky Blue, Emerald, Burgundy, Tomato, Primrose 
These Plaimar food colourings were compounded to ensure intense, quality colours.

Hugh Plaistowe bequeathed the Byford property to the Presbyterian Church on his death in 1935, after which it was used as an orphanage. It was also the site of Braemar Farm which supplied white clay to the State Brickworks and became an important post-war industry for the local area. It was re-named “Burnbrae” in honour of Sir James Burns of Sydney who had gifted £1,000 to the church for a home for needy children. The property was opened for this purpose in 1938. In 1943, extensions to the orphanage were made possible through a £3000 donation by Mr Nat Harper. On 2 October 1943, the Nat Harper Wing was officially opened by Sir James Mitchell who was Lieutenant-Governor to the Labor Premier in the absence of a British appointed Governor. In 1975, the orphanage was sold to the State Government and vested in the WA Alcohol and Drug Authority for use as an inebriates’ centre. In 1989 the State Government revoked the property as vested in the Western Australian Alcohol and Drug Authority for the purpose of ‘Inebriates Centre’.  In 1989, the former Burnbrae Orphanage became an Aboriginal rehabilitation centre. The State Government leased the land to the Perth Zoological Gardens for the purposes of growing fodder.
 

PLAIMAR INDUSTRIAL EXTRACTS LIMITED

Industrial Extracts Limited became part of the Plaistowe Group of companies. In Western Australia it embarked on the feasibility of manufacturing tannin from marri gum, karri bark and other raw materials in 1928-1930 and was conducted by the new Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the WA Forests Department. About 20 tons of extract were made and tested at a pilot plant near UWA’s original Engineering Department. Karri and Marri were confirmed as the most likely commercial possibilities. However the new industry was based on a different tree entirely. The pilot plant was sold in about 1932 to Plaimar, who re-erected it at Belmont. Plaimar experimented with wandoo or whitegum (Eucalyptus redunca). Once it was established that wandoo logs could be successfully treated, a subsidiary company – Industrial Extracts Limited – was formed in about 1935. The extract was used for a variety of purposes – leather tanning, oil drilling, boiler compounds etc. Boddington was selected as the site for a major factory and No 1 mill was officially opened in April 1937, with a second mill being built in about 1940. During World War 2 the whole operation worked 24 hours a day to meet the national demand for tanning extract. Boddington No 1 mill was closed down in 1957, worn out after twenty years of continuous operation. At it’s peak the Industrial Extracts produced about 4000 tons of extract per year. A third tanning mill was built in Toodyay and opened in May 1952. In 1964 Industrial Extracts Limited was the only WA recipient of Export Marketing Award from the Department of Trade for outstanding export achievement.

  PLAIMAR'S INDUSTRIAL EXTRACTS FACTORY AT TOODYAY         #29
 

  LOGS READY FOR PROCESSING AT TOODYAY         #30
 

  FELLING SUITABLE TREE AT TOODYAY         #31
 

VIEW INSIDE STORAGE AREA OF PLAIMAR INDUSTRIAL EXTRACTS TOODYAY           #32
 

Industrial Extracts provided accommodation for its employees. Married men and their families lived in one of the more than 20 new houses that were eventually built by the company in Toodyay.
Single men lived at a local boarding house purchased and renovated by the company. This was the two storey property originally used as a warehouse by John Henry Monger in the 1800s and located in what is now Duidgee Park. This building was demolished in 1968 to make way for the new Newcastle Bridge.
By 1964 the factory was producing a new product, a mud thinner used for deep well oil exploration. In that year Industrial Extracts Ltd was the only WA recipient of an Export Marketing Award from the Department of Trade.
In 1971, nearby timber had become difficult to obtain and the factory closed. Many of the 70 workers, along with their families, left Toodyay. Enrolments at local schools fell. The St Aloyisius Convent of Mercy Catholic School closed in early 1972.
By the early 1990s the depth of the water behind Extracts’ Weir on the Avon River was much reduced due to silt brought down by the river. The weir now consisted of a jagged pile of rocks with a pronounced chute down the middle. This proved a dangerous obstacle on the annual Avon Descent white water boat race. In the mid-1990s work was carried out to even out the weir after a near tragedy during the 1991 Avon Descent in full flood conditions.
 

AUTOCLAVE AT  PLAIMAR INDUSTRIAL EXTRACTS TOODYAY           #33
 

  MILLARS OLD RAILWAY SIDING AT TOODYAY         #34
 

TRUCK LOAD OF LOGS PLAIMAR INDUSTRIAL EXTRACTS TOODYAY           #35
 

Extracts Industrial Park, on the site of the old Industrial Extracts factory, currently accommodates various light industries. A number of the original factory buildings remain in use today.
A steam engine used at the Industrial Extracts factory is now on display at Toodyay’s Connor’s Mill museum

Plaistowe Sales Pty Ltd as from 1st January 1964 controlled all company marketing including that of subsidiaries Plaimar Limited and Plaican Pty Ltd.

When Kevin Parry took over the helm of the Parry Group, he steered it on a course that saw it take over the neighboring confectionary manufacturer of Plaistowes Limited. He kept the land and sold the operating side to Lifesavers. Kevin Parry also took over the State's biggest building firm, H. A. Doust Pty Ltd, as well as Esplanade Developments and also a year later, the quality furniture retailer of W. Zimpel Ltd, which operates a chain of five city and suburban stores. Mr. Parry had plans to redevelop the West Perth site.
 

Every endeavour has been made to accurately record the details however if you would like to provide additional images and/or newer information we are pleased to update the details on this site. Please use CONTACT at the top of this page to email us. We appreciate your involvement in recording the history of our area.

References:                 Article:         Gordon Freegard compiled from many scources

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