Seed Merchants, J.K.King Seal, Image & Found by Dave Clarke
Found Meopham, Kent, 19mm x 18mm, 6.6g.
J.K.KING is curved over SEED GROWER / COGGESHALL / ESSEX // Turnip, inscription around - TRADE MARK
John King founded the firm in 1793 and it was greatly enlarged by his son, John Kemp King, until it was the world's biggest wholesale supplier of seeds with offices and trial grounds near Reading as well as Coggeshall.
125 Years In The Making - A History Of E.W King & Co:-
"Ernest William King founded E.W.King & Co in 1888 when he was just 18 years old. His great grandfather, John King first started growing seeds in Essex in 1793 initially with just 3 acres of land, but it was greatly enlarged by John's son, John Kemp King who set up his company called J K King Seeds.
It was Williams son, Ernest who asked his grandfather for a job in this family seed firm when he left school. His grandfather (John Kemp King) refused and the young man left, vowing that one day he would own his grandfather's business.
In 1888 Ernest acquired a small shop near his grandfather's establishment and set up a rival firm, called E. W. King & Co. In 1904 he had moved to much larger premises to grow seeds of all sorts, but especially sweet-peas, for which the firm of E. W. King became (and still is) world-famous. By 1918 E. W Kings became the world's biggest wholesale supplier of seeds with offices and trial grounds near Reading as well as in Coggeshall. It is said that Ernest King always wore a buttonhole of sweet peas, no matter the time of the year.
Unfortunately the rival J K King business suffered a spate of misfortunes and E. W. took over the running of J. K. King as well as his own, keeping their separate identities."
