The Market Drayton
Gingerbread Story
Once upon a time …
A long time ago, Ginger was a very expensive Spice. It was grown in India and before lorries were invented, merchants bringing it to Britain had to travel overland all the way with it on the backs of pack–horses or in carts, through many different countries. This took a lot of the Merchants’ time and each country asked them for money to allow them to pass through their country (duty). So by the time the Merchants had made it back to Britain, it had cost them lots and lots of money.
This meant that when they sold the ginger to Bakers in Britain, they had to charge them lots of money to make a profit.
The Home of Gingerbread
Market Drayton’s reputation as the ‘Home of Gingerbread’ is said to be linked to Clive of India’s connection to the town. Robert Clive set up the Spice Trade Route from India to Britain by sea.
This enabled Merchants to bring the ginger direct into Britain and avoid paying the high costs of using the overland route, making it much more affordable for Bakers to buy.
Drayton businesses were quick to take advantage and from at least 1793 the first recorded Gingerbread Baker, Roland Lateward, was making gingerbread at 75 Shropshire Street – but it had probably been made from much earlier.
At different times from the beginning of the 19th century up to the mid-1960’s, Market Drayton had four gingerbread bakers: Billingtons; Chesters; Boughey & Cox; Griffiths & Masters. All guarding their own precious secret recipes. Town businesses exported their produce far and wide – to many countries across the globe and received many accolades.
The History
Billington’s Gingerbread was established in 1817 and was baked in the basement at 12 High Street by Mr Thomas. It is now the premises of Field’s Kitchen, where you can still buy Billington’s Gingerbread today.
By 1850, Chesters had arrived and set up a bakery in what is now the ‘William Chesters’ pub. In 1937, after Chesters had ceased trading, William Cox and Reginald Boughey purchased the recipe and began making gingerbread up until 1964.
Up to the 1940’s, the Central Café sold Billington’s Gingerbread in what was once the Cheshire Cheese Inn. Situated by the Buttercross, farmer’s wives used to meet at the café on market day and apparently, so some say, it is where the tradition of dunking the spicy biscuit in port was supposed to have originated.
Billington’s Gingerbread is still made to a ‘carefully guarded recipe of exotic spices and spirits’ based on Mr Thomas’ traditional recipe from 1817. In 1829 Mr Thomas passed the recipe down to his nephew, W Harper, and in 1864 Mr EH Harper passed the recipe to his cousin, Richard Billington, and the famous ‘Billington’s Gingerbread’ brand was born!
In 1995, the recipe was sold to the McCarthy family, and since 1987 it has been made under license by the Hopcrofts at their Market Drayton business ‘Image on Food’. They continue the tradition of baking award-winning heritage gingerbread, supplying the likes of Seridges, Harvey Nichols, John Lewis and Waitrose, and distributing their gingerbread products worldwide.
So Market Drayton continues to supply the world with Gingerbread…
…and everyone lived
Happily Ever After!
