Yorkshire Relish was the highest-selling bottled sauce in the Victorian era. It was advertised as “the most delicious sauce in the world”.

Robert Goodall

Robert Goodall (1831-1870) was born in Market Weighton, Yorkshire. He served an apprenticeship to a chemist, and established a small chemist’s shop on Wade Lane, Leeds from 1853.

Many chemists of the era branched out into consumer goods products, and Goodall began to manufacture “Yorkshire Relish” from a family recipe. It was thin, like Worcestershire sauce, but was fruitier and did not contain anchovies.

The base of Yorkshire Relish consisted of shallots, soy sauce, garlic and malt vinegar. It was flavoured with 27 “Eastern spices” including black pepper. The sauce was matured in wooden vats for at least 14 months and up to three years.

William Powell enters the business

Robert Goodall entered into partnership with two chemists, Henry Backhouse (1829 – 1876), and William Powell (1836-1900), his brother-in-law and former apprentice, to acquire the business of Bell & Brooke, Leeds wholesale chemists, from Thomas Bell (1801 – 1878), who was retiring, in 1858.

The firm, now known as Goodall, Backhouse & Co, moved to Bell & Brooke’s larger premises at 46 Boar Lane. Goodall held 50 percent of the equity in the firm, and Backhouse and Powell held 25 percent each.

Robert Goodall died in 1870, and his stake in the business was inherited by William Powell. The firm relocated from Boar Lane to White Horse Street in 1873, and retail activities were discontinued. The firm developed as pharmaceutical wholesalers and sauce manufacturers. William Powell became sole proprietor of the business from 1876, following the death of Henry Backhouse.

Goodall Backhouse operated the largest sauce factory in the world by 1874. The steam-powered factory was largely mechanised, and occupied a six-floor building.

Every bottle of Yorkshire Relish was embossed with a willow tree logo to confer authenticity by 1870. Over 670,000 bottles of Yorkshire Relish were sold in August 1872. Yorkshire Relish holds trademark no. 3,101; it was among the first names to be registered when trademarks were introduced in 1876.

William Powell Bowman (1862 – 1955), the nephew of William Powell, entered the business from 1877.

Eight million bottles of Yorkshire Relish were sold in 1885. Yorkshire Relish even received a recommendation from Charles Perrins (1864 – 1958) of Lea & Perrins, manufacturers of the original Worcestershire sauce.

The White Horse Street factory was doubled in size in 1886. The business employed a workforce of 400, including 100 people directly involved in Yorkshire Relish production and bottling.

When asked to account for the popularity of Yorkshire Relish, W P Bowman responded; “it is good and cheap, never varies in its quality, and its uniform excellence is now thoroughly established”.

Goodall Backhouse advertised heavily, and had an annual marketing spend of £40,000 to £50,000 per annum by 1888.

Goodall Backhouse was involved in a landmark House of Lords legal case against the Birmingham Vinegar Brewery, who had begun to manufacture an imitation product which they branded as “Yorkshire Relish”, in the 1890s. The case ruled that only Goodall Backhouse could use the name. Powell spent £25,000 in legal fees to defend his trademark rights against other businesses between 1892 and 1900.

Under the astute leadership of William Powell the business became one of the largest sauce manufacturers in the world. There were around 500 employees at the firm by 1900.

William Powell Bowman takes control of the business

William Powell died a lifelong bachelor in 1900, and left the firm to two nephews. William Powell Bowman gained a two thirds stake, and Frank Boyce received one third.

The factories occupied some ten acres of floor space by 1907, and the wage bill ran to over £80,000 (£8.5 million in 2015). Thirteen million bottles of Yorkshire Relish were sold each year. It remained the highest selling sauce in the world as late as 1911.

Bowman bought the remaining third of the company from Boyce for £36,000 (around £2.7 million in 2015) in 1916. Bowman was joined by his eldest son, George Edward Bowman (1901 – 1979), from 1921.

Following the introduction of import tariffs in Ireland in 1933, Charles Ernest Hogg established Goodall’s of Ireland, which produced the sauce for that market under licence.

Goodall Backhouse became a limited company with a capital of £125,000 (£8 million in 2015) from 1934.

A thick version of Yorkshire Relish was introduced from 1935, under the initiative of George Edward Bowman. It was made from apples, tomatoes, dates, tamarinds and spices. It allegedly had a more subtle, and fruitier taste than rivals such as HP and Daddies.

Goodall Backhouse was awarded a royal warrant from George V.

The company’s drugs business and properties on White Horse Street in Leeds were spun off as a separate company called “Goodalls (Leeds), Ltd” in 1937. George Edward Bowman remained as a director of the drugs business. The remnant foods business, mostly employed in the manufacture of Yorkshire Relish, had a staff of over 300 people and a works located on Sovereign Street.

George Edward Bowman had taken over as managing director of Goodall Backhouse by 1947, with William Powell Bowman serving as governing chairman.

Death of W P Bowman and sale of the business

William Powell Bowman died in 1955. A reserved man, he was said to have never suffered a day of illness in his life.

Goodall Backhouse struggled in the wake of the death of W P Bowman. His successor, George Edward Bowman, was an excellent salesman, but not a natural business manager.

Goodall Backhouse was sold to Hammonds Sauce Co of Shipley, Yorkshire in 1959. Hammonds (then, as now) was a largely regional brand, whereas Yorkshire Relish had a national presence and a large export market.

Hammonds was acquired by Pillsbury in 1982. Pillsbury closed the Leeds factory in 1985 and relocated all Hammonds production to a new £1 million factory in Bradford.

Pillsbury was acquired by Grand Metropolitan in 1988 who sold Pillsbury UK to Dalgety in 1991. Dalgety sold Hammonds to Albert Fisher for £12 million later that year.

Yorkshire Relish was available in thin, thick, spicy and fruity varieties by 1994.

Hammonds relaunched Yorkshire Relish in 1996, however by this time only the thick version was available. Production had been discontinued due to low sales by 2001.

Hammonds was acquired by Unigate in 1999. The Bradford factory was closed in 2002 and production of Hammonds sauces was relocated to a former vinegar brewery in Lancashire.

During the demolition of the Bradford factory, a collection of papers relating to Goodall Backhouse were found hidden in the roof wall. Included was a handwritten recipe for Yorkshire Relish and the will of William Powell. The archive was sold at auction and purchased by a member of the Bowman family.

Hammonds is currently owned by McCormick, the American herbs and spices company. McCormick also own the rights to the Yorkshire Relish trademark.

Thin Yorkshire Relish is still produced by Robert Roberts in Ireland. The product has a base of vinegar, sugar and soy sauce. The thick version is also produced, under the name “YR Sauce”.