Region: South East
Thomas Smith invented the famous Sussex Trug back in 1829 and started his company in the village of Herstmonceux, Sussex to make them. He gained fame when, on the first day of the Great Exhibition held in Hyde Park, London in 1851, Queen Victoria was so taken by his Trugs that she purchased some personally as gifts for members of the Royal Family. Today we still make the Thomas’ Royal Sussex Traditional Trugs in our workshops, using very much the same methods that Smith used in the old days.
Royal Sussex Trugs are made using locally coppiced Sweet Chestnut for the handles and rims, together with Cricket Bat Willow for the boards. Coppicing is an ancient form of woodland management and helps both flora and fauna. The Willow is the by-product of the English Cricket Bat Industry and comes from sustainable British sources. By buying coppiced Chestnut Thomas Smith’s Trugs is helping the local coppicing industry to survive and prosper.
Our Trugs come in many different shapes and sizes – something for every occasion, from wedding baskets for brides’ maids to many uses in the home and garden. The perfect gift for lovers of wooden craft and for gardeners.
