Percey Cooper
"Never build a barrel-making factory on a hill"
If you happened to be in the UK, in 1896 to be exact, you could ask anyone in the small market town of Solihull, Birmingham, who the 'Coopers' were. And they would tell you without a moment's hesitation. The Coopers family had the largest factory, the largest estate, and the most extensive collection of wine in the entire area.
Percey Cooper made his money from inheriting a small barrel-making shop in east Solihull. His father, Tommy, bequeathed the business to him in 1882. Tommy's father and his father's father were also barrel makers.
For a while, Percy simply kept the business of making barrels run as it had always had for previous generations. This was until he met his future wife, Joyce Wesdale. She happened to be the recent inheritor of Wesdale Wineries, a prominent Yorkshire vintners. Their union was a match made in heaven. Percey Cooper had the barrels, and Joyce Wesdale had the wine to put in them. They soon combined businesses by building a new factory at the top of a large hill overlooking Solihull.
The main challenge to their burgeoning business was to convince the locals to change their habits and switch from drinking a nice, frothy beer to enjoying a smooth glass of Wesdale wine. So a plan was implemented to introduce the skeptical townsfolk to their wine. The best opportunity, they thought, would be at the upcoming winter 'snowball fight.' This was an annual fun event held every winter between Solihull and its neighboring town and rivel, Bickenhill. Everyone looked forward to it and bustled about the town in preparation. But there was an undercurrent of rivalry between the towns. Bickenhill always won the fight.......always.
As the evening progressed and anticipation for the 'fight' reached a very high level, Percey traveled up the snowy hill to bring down a barrel of his wine. Unfortunately, the delivery cart was out on its daily rounds, so he rather foolishly took it upon himself to roll the barrel down the winding lane. Yes, you can probably guess what happened next: his grip loosened, the barrel gained momentum, hit a rock on the road, and veered to a new course down the bank and directly at the festivities.
He ran after it, shouting and waving his short little arms, but barrels are not known to respond to shouting or anything else for that matter. It bounced and tumbled along, picking up snow from the white blanketed hill as it traveled. It gathered and grew and soon took on immense proportions—a behemoth of white compressed powder hurtling to the town square.
Hitting a small wall at the bottom of the hill, the barrel launched as though from a catapult. It eventually landed with a colossal thud right on the front line of the shocked Bickenhill participants. It bowelled several of them over, flattened the Mayor of Solihull, and as for the rival town? Seeing the size of the monster snowball, it sent the entirety of the rival town scurrying as fast as they could back to Bickenhill.
"Oh, what a calamity," thought Percey and Joyce. They began to pull out the embedded figures from the shattered snowball. They dusted off the Mayor and sat him on the barrel of wine newly revealed from within the snowball. "I humbly beg your extreme pardon, your honor," said Percy shakingly and with cap in their hands.
The Mayor looked at Percy, then surveyed the devastation. The Bickenhill rivals disappearing on the horizon. All eyes were on him. All ears, too. He looked around, and his stern face cracked into a broad smile. "Well, p'on my soul......P'on my soul. That certainly sent them packing. They'll think twice before challenging us again, that's for sure." he burst into a deep, bellowed laugh. This, in turn, sent the surrounding crowd into one too.
Let's leave them now. They are enjoying their victory over their snowball rivals. The town square has a warm glow as extinguished fires are rekindled. And there is also the sharp thud, thud, thud as a lovely barrel of Wesdale wine is tapped and introduced to the curious townsfolk of Solihull, Birmingham, England.
Paper print (Matte finish - Signed): 8.5" X 11" - $30.00
Paper print (Matte finish - Signed): 10W" x 14H" - $49.00
ORIGINAL: Pencil illustration on paper. Image size: 10.75"W x 15.75"H. Frame size: 17W" x 22H"
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Illustrated in the style of a vintage Edwardian or Victorian photograph. This image is part of my 'Anicurio®' collection. Each original illustration is carefully hand drawn in pencil. Once finished, I hand age and treat them with various dye methods, to resemble an old dusty antique photograph. I want this series to suggest something that was rediscovered by you. An inherited artifact from a mysterious benefactor? Or perhaps revealed in a long abandoned attic, lying at the bottom of a chest. Buried beneath old dusty clothes and fading hand written notes.