Spratt Bros. camera business was originally established in 1848 and progressively grew throughout the years. There is no information on the original business name or proprietor.

In the 1890s, Spratt Brothers were solely a wholesale photographic apparatus manufacturer, so there is not much information on what cameras they produced. The Brothers were Henry James Spratt who handled machinery and metal work, George Albert Spratt who managed wood work and Alfred Sidney Spratt who dealt with finance and orders. In 1898 the firm was recorded to be located at Tudor Works, Tudor road, Hackney, London N.E.. It was noted that the operation was state of the art with labor saving machinery that incorporated the latest American ideas, as well as their own. In 1899 an article indicated the firm to be at Mare Street, Hackney, London N.E, and in 1901 the firm expanded to a large, three building factory consisting of some 14,570 superficial feet and employed 230 workers. It was noted that many women were employed at the factory, stating that women can do some work more delicately, accurately and more economically then men. The business was connected to a employee run camera club where the workers were encouraged to become amateur photographers, so that the workmanship would of high quality due to the workers knowledge of each features importance.

In 1904 Houghtons amalgamated the firms of Spratt Bros., Holmes Bros., A.C. Jackson, and J. Levi & Co. under the motto of "Union is Strength". Spratt Brothers, along with the other firms merged with and became a branch of Houghtons Ltd.. The Tudor works hackney was relocacted to Ensign works Clifford Raod, Waltbamstow, where there telephone number was No. 61 Waltbamstow.

1901 The process engraver's monthly, Page 200-203
1899 The Photographic News, May, page 106
1908 Amatuer Photographer, page 293-294



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