Calendar of Patent Records

Abstract

July 28, 1758.—The production of zinc on a commercial scale was first undertaken by William and John Champion, who erected works at Bristol about 1 740. John Champions patent for extracting zinc from blende, a method of manufacture which did not become general until the middle of the nineteenth century, was granted on July 28, 1758. The Bristol works were later transferred to Swansea, which became the centre of the British trade.