Our
Story
122 years of crafstmanship.
In 1931, work began on ‘Our Lady’ Catholic Church in Lealholm (Pictured).
The foundation stone for the church was laid by Bishop Shrine in September that year and the building is still in regular use today.
It was during the year of Queen Victoria's diamond jubilee that Robert Harrison opened his workshop doors to the public.
Electricity wasn't introduced to such rural locations as Glaisdale until the early 20th Century, so it is hard to imagine Robert's workshop compared to the modern workshop we have in Glaisdale today.
In those days, being a Joiner was synonymous with being an Undertaker, and Robert Harrison & Sons is one of only a handful of companies carrying on this tradition today. (See www.robertharrisons.co.uk for more information)
Later enlisting the help of his three sons, George, Bill & Robert, the Harrison family clubbed together to help keep the family firm above water through two World Wars, building many properties that are still in use today.
Pictured above is Ashley House, built in the late 1800’s next to the old workshop.
Robert and his family lived here for generations, and the property is now owned by Sara (Robert’s great x4 granddaughter), her husband (Marc, who works as a Carpenter for the company) and their children.
John, Robert II & Bill Harrison II took the firm over in 1979.
Having served their time under Robert Harrison II, both Bill and John went
on to work for Egton Estate’s and SB Woodworking, where John rose to the
position of 'works Foreman' and Bill 'works Manager', respectively.
Bill eventually took over the running of the firm, before enlisting the help of his nephew, Chris (Who still runs the firm today).
Both Bill & Chris oversaw the 100 year anniversary of the firm in 1997, celebrating with the building of a new state of the art
joinery workshop only a stones throw from the old one at Ashley House
Chris Harrison (Pictured,circa 1997)
became the sole owner of Harrison's at the beginning of the millenium, after Bill sadly passed away.
Robert Harrison & Sons
