Two families, the Winchesters and the Tottles, boasted 16 pipe makers between them, including George Tottle, aged 11. George, his father George, and his grandfather George Elias Tottle, had all been pipe makers, and the line may well have gone back further.

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We don't know if each family would have had their own kiln or whether there was a communal facility, as the pipe kiln was usually a 'muffle' with a clay chamber inside the brick kiln. We know however that the work took place somewhere near the Athelney Garage, as kiln debris, clay waste and many types of broken pipes were found in an orchard across the road in Stanmoor. One of the pipes bore the mark 'G.T.', presumably one of the George Tottles.

 

The clay would have been dug from the river bank and then processed by soaking in water and pressing to remove any air bubbles. It was then a skilled job to roll the clay into a stem, leaving a lump at one end for the bowl, and inserting a wire along the stem. For a detailed explanation of the process see HERE

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