S.P, Scotch Black, Best Common and Violet Brown Scotch are among the many recipes found in a museum archive, formulated long before long before Frederick Lloyd’s time. For now I’m keeping the whereabouts close but anyone researching Sales and Pollard can find them as I did. Most of the text is beautifully written but, understandably, is faded with time. My son made hundreds of photographs to sort through. All photographic material is copyrighted but we somehow forgot to return the signed copyright declaration form in compliance with copyright legislation and the archivist forgot to ask for it when leaving.
I have a vast amount of material to sift through and am not sure how to take things from here. What I will probably do over the next few weeks – if readers are interested - is to compile a full list of items by name and post them here together, if I can, with a brief description.
Many snuffs I’ve never heard of before such as Zealey’s, English Gentleman, Frankfurt Rappee, Polhill’s Black Rappee, Common No.9 or Jefferson’s Mixture and many, many more recipes - some of which are made by simply mixing ready-made snuffs (the mixtures). Others such as Bureau, Grand Cairo and Santo Domingo are well-known although the recipes might now differ.
The adulterations seem quite straightforward. For example it comes as no surprise that S.P was flavoured with English Lavender, Bergamot and Cinnamon in specific proportions. But it’s in the curing of various grades of leaf, smalls and stalk in such large quantities that seems daunting. S.P Scotch, for example, requires no less than nine layers of varied leaf grades and types, stalks and shorts, gradually stacked over a number of specific days. Also I’m not sure whether liquoring involving, for example – Pearl Ash, alum, salt tartar and potash would be legal these days. Does anyone have any idea as I’m thinking ahead to possibly resurrecting some recipes? Various other ingredients for liquoring include: Orris Root, Rhodium Oil, Logwood Extract, Spanish Juice (whatever that is) Cloves and Honey.
Most of the tobaccos are familiar American names such as Virginia Leaf, Kentucky Leaf (bright, fine and medium) but I’m unsure of the difference between Kentucky Leaf and Kentucky Strip and I’m puzzled by Java Leaf and Japan.
Sharrow would doubtless have the know-how and resources to make a facsimile of one or more of these items – assuming James Hanson is interested – although other mills would not exactly replicate the 18th century mills powered by the River Wandle in Carshalton, Surrey – such as Ansell’s Water Mill - which were used by Sales Pollard and other wholesale snuff manufacturers.
Failing that an artisan manufacturer might be interested although, as expected with a wholesale manufacturer, the quantities involved, time and preparation would probably be beyond the resources of a cottage industry. Some recipes cost over £12,000 in raw materials, an astonishing amount of cash to invest back then and a very risky business venture for a manufacturer.
If someone can guide me on inserting pictures I’ll enclose the start of the 1830’s recipe for Sales and Pollard’s Violet Brown Scotch – popular in Cornwall for some reason – as a sample.
NB. On page 65 of Mark Chaytor’s book ‘The Wilsons of Sharrow-The Snuff-Makers of Sheffield’ he recalls early snuffs – no longer made at Sharrow - of which the significance of the letters is lost. For example he mentions BA snuff. I know now that BA stands for Black Amersfoort, a Dutch style snuff and I have the long-forgotten recipe for that as well.
