BUILT in 1909 as the home of textile manufacturer William Haworth and his sister Anne, the Haworth Art Gallery was bequeathed to the people of Accrington in 1920.
Described as the finest gift ever handed over to Accrington, the gallery and park were first thrown open to the public in September 1921. Today it is the home of the finest collection of Tiffany Favrile Glass in public hands outside the USA.
The Tiffany Glass collection consists of 146 items from the studios of Louis Comfort Tiffany (1848-1933), the foremost exponent of Art Nouveau in America and given to his home town by Joseph Briggs (1873-1936).
Briggs, an apprentice engraver at Steiner's Calico Printing Works in Church, went to America in 1890 for three months' holiday but stayed for 40 years. After a chance meeting with Louis Comfort he worked for him in various capacities, notably as manager of the Favrile glass studios from 1892.
On Tiffany's death Briggs had the task of disposing of hundreds of unfashionable pieces of glass and in 1932 began shipping his personal collection to Accrington.
The importance of the collection was recognised by former curator Norman Potter and was put on permanent display in 1977. The gallery has never looked back, attracting people from all over the world.
