Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

A most attractive ‘Inter-War’ period hand-illuminated Certificate for Gallantry awarded to Mr. J. Johnson, Benzol Department Foreman, Staffordshire Chemical Company Works, who survived two powerful explosions with fifty-foot flames shooting into the air; although ‘half gassed by the fumes’ he managed to rescue a girl in distress from eleven acres of devastation

Certificate for Gallantry: ‘The Staffordshire Chemical Company (1917) Limited. Chatterley, Tunstall, Stoke-on-Trent. This Certificate places on record the Company’s deep appreciation of the services rendered by John Johnson and other officials and workmen on the occasion of the disastrous fire at the Works on June 3rd, 1931. At great personal risk the Company’s fire-fighting apparatus was bravely manned and the fire raging in the Benzole House was put out promptly, thereby probably saving the works from destruction’, marked to lower-right corner Hughes & Humber Ltd., Illuminating Artists, Longton, ink and watercolour with gold embellishments, framed behind glass, approx. 42cm x 32cm, good condition £80-£100

The Works of the Staffordshire Chemical Company (1917) Limited were located alongside the L.M.S. Railway line from the Potteries to Crewe and Manchester. Amidst apparently normal weather conditions, one of the large tanks holding the highly flammable coal-tar product began to fail, alerting Signalman Mr. Norman Brook. His account was later published by the Evening Sentinel:

‘I heard a noise - a kind of hissing noise - and then a terrible explosion. I saw a gigantic flame shoot more than fifty feet into the air. With an old man who was standing near, I started to run. I saw workmen running in all directions and one of them appeared to be badly burned. There was a second explosion as I was running, and then smoke and flame hid the place from my view.’

Chaos ensued. On the whole site there were more than 100 tanks of a capacity of up to 2,000 gallons each, nearly a dozen of which lay adjacent to the benzol washing plant. The Shields Daily News takes up the story:

‘A Miraculous Escape - Benzol Department Foreman at Seat of Fire
A miraculous escape was that of Mr. John Johnson, of Glenthorpe, Chell Green, Foreman in the Benzol Department. He told a “Sentinel” representative that he had just come from under the washer when the explosion occurred. He ran straight to the brickyard fence, half gassed, and lay down for a minute or two. Turning round he saw flames leap 30 to 40 feet from the top of the washer. He heard the scream of a girl from the offices, and went over as soon as he could. The place was already well-alight, and he did not know how the people working there managed to get away.’

Using water and foam the fire was eventually brought under control by the Stoke-on-Trent fire brigade; offices, laboratories and garages had all been gutted, and two young scientists, Reginald Nixon and Cecil Gourdjian died in the explosion, with another man dying of burns at the North Staffordshire Royal Infirmary shortly afterwards.