Button-making at Middleton Hall

During the restoration of Middleton Hall, a common archaeological find was that of buttons made from shells. However, not only were the buttons themselves found but also the remains of the discarded sheets of punched-out shells from which they were made. This evidence of blank cutting conclusively proved that buttons were being made on site at Middleton Hall.

These buttons were made from swan mussels (Anodonta cygnea). Swan mussels are large and can grow up to 15cm long and they can still be found in Middleton Pool. This species is a native freshwater mussel to Britain and can be found in bodies of calm freshwater. The insides of their shells have a thick nacreous layer, which gives an iridescent shine. This meant that the buttons made from these mussels looked similar in style to mother-of-pearl buttons and served as a much cheaper substitute.

Swan mussel shell found in Middleton Pool with some buttons excavated at Middleton Hall. Photograph taken by Amy Evans.

The manufacturing process would have involved first harvesting the mussels from the Pool by hand. The shells would then have been boiled to separate the soft tissue from the hard nacre. Swan mussel shells were extremely thin and brittle and very difficult to work with and thus, before mechanisation, were used only as a thin decorative veneer to a button. Hence, the next step would have been for the base of the button to have been carved into a disc shape from either wood, bone or horn using hand saws. The thin iridescent layer of the shell would then be punched out using a hand tubular saw and then shaped with small files. It was then attached to the base using either an animal glue, which was most commonly used at Middleton, or attaching a metal rim to keep the shell on, which was known as colleting. Holes were then manually drilled through the combined base and shell to produce the finished button. Some shell buttons in various stages of this preparation as well as those that were finished have been discovered at Middleton Hall.

We have no documentation about this industry at Middleton Hall. However, given the date of the construction of Middleton Pool and the wider history of the button-making industry in Britain, it can be estimated that these buttons were probably made in either the 18th or the very early 19th century.

The manufacture of buttons developed into a substantial industry in nearby Birmingham in the 18th century but, against this, rural communities continued to use local resources to make buttons as a cottage industry. Furthermore, in the late 18th century, to protect the booming Birmingham market, Parliament specifically banned the import of mother-of-pearl buttons. This enabled Birmingham to establish itself as a centre for hand-crafted mother-of-pearl buttons. They imported the shells and then had local artisans craft the buttons.

It is extremely unlikely that buttons were made at Middleton Hall after the 1830s. This is because, from that time, the cheap import of mother-of-pearl shells en masse and other materials, as well as the development of mass mechanisation for production, caused a complete collapse in the rural button-making cottage industry.

Author - Debbie Jordan, Middleton Hall Volunteer.

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