The Torbay Paint Company

This book will be of interest to anyone who wishes to understand more about the industrial and commercial development of Dartmouth and Torbay. The story begins in Brixham in the mid 19th century, where John Rendall, one of the earliest homeopathic chemists in the south west, realised that paint containing an element of ochre would protect cast iron from rusting. This discovery provided the basis for a burgeoning paint manufacturing business in the town.
In 1874 George Parker Bidder, a prominent Dartmothian, became involved with the enterprise and a second paint factory was set up on the North Embankment at Coombe. In spite of a disastrous fire in 1906, the production of paint continued in Dartmouth until the 1920s. Thereafter the Torbay Paint Company operated exclusively from Brixham, where it had started, until it was eventually taken over and closed down in 1961.