Joseph Davenport (1825-1878) was born in Sheffield, the son of George Davenport, a die sinker, and his wife Margaret.  In 1841, the family lived in Upper St Philip’s Road.  Joseph was trained as a silversmith and by 1849 was running a silver plate business at Electric Works, Lee Croft.   In 1853, he registered a silver mark from Rockingham Street with John Waterhouse Sansom.  The latter had been born on 25 December 1830 and baptised at Queen Street (Congregational) Chapel.  His father was John Sansom, who had married Ann, the daughter of Joseph Waterhouse (see Waterhouse Hatfield).  Sansom & Davenport had an agent in Paris.  However, the partnership ended in 1856.  Sansom then registered a silver mark with Thomas J. Creswick (but this partnership was dissolved in 1857).  Meanwhile, Davenport borrowed £200 from Sansom to start his own business, but by 1857 had failed with debts of £1,129 against assets of £280.  Davenport decided to pursue his career in London, but died there on 27 April 1878.  

In 1858, John Waterhouse Sansom had married at Le Havre Marie Céline, the youngest daughter of Marc Gaspard Chabanais.  They settled in Le Havre, where Sansom was a wine merchant.  By 1891, he had returned to Sheffield, where he was enumerated in the Census as a wine merchant.   He lived at Brunswick Street, but his French wife was not with him.  His death is untraced and he may have returned to France.