John Baker's Late 17th-century Glasshouse at Vauxhall

John Baker's Thameside glasshouse in Vauxhall is the first of London's 17th-century glasshouses to be excavated. This publication describes the finds from the site and demonstrates how Vauxhall competed with London's other glasshouses to keep its place in the market. The nature of London's late 17th-century glass industry is discussed, setting Baker's glasshouse in its proper historical context. The glasshouse opened sometime between 1663 and 1681, and had closed down by 1704. Excavations undertaken by the Museum of London in 1989 found a furnace, crucibles, tools, working waste and finished vessels, showing that although Vauxhall operated at the time when lead crystal was first being made in England this manufactory produced vessels for a proven market: wine bottles, green-glass vessels and fine wares. The remains of a well-preserved 17th century bargehouse were also recorded at the site; it was constructed for the Clothworkers', Fishmongers' and Mercers' Companies in the 1640s and subsequently renewed.