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Original Text (Annotation: EAW028590 / 963027)
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Ideal Boiler and Radiator Works, Hull (or Kingston upon Hull)
In the 1880's in America there was talk of heating buildings by means of hot water (or steam) circulating in pipes. John Pierce and Joseph Bond were amongst those to profit from this concept, running Pierce Steam Heating Company. A merger in 1892 with Michigan Radiator Company formed the American Radiator Company.
The American Radiator Company introduced its boilers and radiators to Europe anda local manufacturing site was required. The Hull site was championed by its then mayor Alderman Larard. Work commenced March 1906 in a largely greenfield site, with just a small brickworks being demolished. The factory furnace was lit in December 1906.
The National Radiator Company was born and in 1907 the road name became National Avenue. Already by 1910 extensions were required with more in 1917.
American homes then mostly had basements where the boilers were placed but in many English homes the boilers were more visible and a less industrial design was introduced. By the 1930's the use of gas became popular as it did not have the storage requirements of solid fuel (coal). Oil was another fuel possibility.
In 1935 American Radiator and Standard Sanitary combined and a new factory was built making vitreous china fixtures and porcelain enamelled cast iron baths. More expansion in the 1950s for light steel radiators and more vitreous chinaware and a separate bath factory. The site came to cover 90 acres.
1953 saw a name change to Ideal Standard.
In 1976 the boiler and radiator sections were purchased by Metal Box and that part of the production went under the name Stelrad whilst the china side continued as a separate business, Ideal Standard. Hull stopped making radiators and concentrated on boilers.
Lots of mergers and name changes in 1989 left the Hull factory as Caradon Heating until 1993 when the Hull boiler plant became Caradon Ideal making boilers under the name Ideal. '