Perrins & Sons Family History

Master Gunmakers of Worcester

John Perrins was born in Kidderminster Worcestershire in 1796. Little is known of his early life but we can speculate that he probably entered the gun trade, as was the custom, between the ages of 12-14 in 1808-1810 and so embarked on his profession which was to lead him to become the most esteemed gun-maker in the county of Worcestershire. By 1823 John Perrins was working in Faversham in Kent and in 1831 established his own business in College Street Worcester.  By 1841 he was at 4, St Swithins Street Worcester with his family” living above the shop” By 1855 the business had become Perrins & Son with John jnr. (born 1823) being in partnership. Another son Edward Robinson  Perrins (born 1829)  set up business  in Birmingham as a gun & barrel maker and several of the fine Damascus  barrels on Perrins guns are marked “ERP” The business had expanded by 1859 to 6, Mealcheapen Street Worcester, a  building for workshop, retail and family living. In 1862 John Perrins died aged 66 and four years later his son John died aged 42, never having married.

In 1866 Henry Perrins, a younger son, (born 1832) took over the business and it was under his ownership that the firm flourished during the “golden age” of English gunmaking.  The Perrins name become well known for quality craftsmanship, not only in Worcestershire but also nationally as John Perrins’  Senior elder brother Thomas established a gun-making in Windsor in 1843 that by 1860 was supplying fine sporting guns to HRH Prince Albert. It is believed that an association existed between the Worcester & Windsor firms and that some business was shared. Thomas Perrins  died at Windsor in 1864 aged 71.  By 1879 Henry Perrins with his wife and daughters had moved to prestigious premises at 59, Broad Street Worcester and continued to build a wide range of sporting guns and sporting rifles and also to supply personal revolvers made by makers such as William Tranter. In 1884 Henry’s daughter Amy married Herbert Edward Pollard and around 1892 Perrins & Son had become  HE Pollard Gunmakers which continued to trade well into the 20th century. Henry Perrins retired to 6, St Georges Square Worcester where he died in 1908.

Herbert Edward Pollard died in 1937. Their only son Edgar Herbert Perrins Pollard died on 1st August 1930 at Northwest Bay Vancouver Island British Columbia.

Since 2009 around 50 guns made by Perrins & Son have been identified from 1840 onwards and the most prestigious of which is the 8 bore rifle recently sold in May 2015 at Rock Island Illinois for $37373 including a 15% buyer’s commission.