An eighteenth or nineteenth century Fire Insurance Plaque in Walton Green.
The most well-known insurance company using a sun emblem was the Sun Fire Office, established in 1710 in London. It was one of the earliest fire insurance companies and operated for many years before becoming part of the modern Royal & Sun Alliance. The presence of a unique number (539022) suggests it was an official policy number for this property.
It is documented in the Walton Green Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Plan, as follows:
“One row of cottages may once have been a barn or warehouse and this building has a firemark of the Sun Insurance Company. Every holder of the fire insurance policy from the Sun Insurance Company was issued with a plate bearing the policy number.
In the event of fire the firemen, who were retained by the company, would try and put out the blaze having first checked that the victim possessed a plate bearing the sun device and policy number.”
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Sun Fire Office, Sun Insurance Company, and Royal & Sun Alliance are all connected through a series of mergers and name changes over time. Here’s how they evolved:
- Sun Fire Office (1710)
- Founded in London in 1710, the Sun Fire Office was one of the earliest fire insurance companies in Britain.
- It issued fire marks (plaques) to policyholders, which private fire brigades used to identify insured properties.
- Sun Insurance Company
- Over time, the company expanded and began offering broader insurance services beyond fire insurance.
- It eventually became known as Sun Insurance Company, though “Sun Fire Office” remained in use for some time.
- Royal & Sun Alliance (1996)
- In 1959, Sun Insurance merged with Alliance Assurance to form Sun Alliance & London Insurance.
- In 1996, this company merged with Royal Insurance to create Royal & Sun Alliance (RSA), a major international insurance group.
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A History of the Village (Walton le Dale)
The following is an excerpt from a book entitled, ‘A History of the Village’ (Walton le Dale) by Frank Coupe. It has a publication date of 1954, and the publisher was Guardian Press.
On the south side of Darwen bridge running in a westerly direction, is Walton Green; several of these houses, dating from the early seventeenth century, are still tenanted, and through the passing of centuries are still in a wonderful state of preservation.
A very interesting relic of former days is the embossed leaden Fire Plate over the doorway of the house numbered 11 Walton Green, On this site there originally stood a warehouse for the storing of wool
and cotton during the period of hand-loom weaving. Every holder of a fire policy from the Sun Company were issued with a designating plate similar in design, bearing the policy-holder’s number. In the
event of fire the firemen, who were retained by the Company would, if possible, endeavour to extinguish the conflagration. There is an element of doubt as to whether the retainers would approach the fire unless the victim was in possession of the all-important plate.
In the 1954 text.
The book can be viewed on the Internet Archive website for free, but it does require a sign-in.
https://archive.org/details/historyofvillage0000fran/page/210/mode/2up