Mr. W.R.Wilkinson opened his first business in 1884. The original factory was started in a malt kiln in Southgate. When these premises became too small, a new factory was built in Skinner Lane, and called Britannia Works. In 1894, Walter Marshall, originally from Somerset, and William Haddock, who later became Pontefract’s town clerk, bought out W.R. Wilkinson. Marshall had begun his career in Wilkinson’s as a junior clerk. Under his sole ownership from 1901, the business continued to expand. He bought new premises at Monkhill, previously a brush factory. This factory was rebuilt in 1925 by local architects Tennant and Smith, as a “garden factory” with tennis courts, allotments, and housing for some of the workers in the grounds.