Watney Combe Reid & Co Ltd records

Watney and Co Ltd

Combe and Co

Reid's Brewery Co Ltd

Watney, Combe, Reid and Co Ltd and Watney Mann

Deeds of Brewery Premises

Deeds of Public Houses

Brewing Trade

Other Brewery Companies

<span class="wrapper"><p>There are several related accessions of archives at COWAC:</p> <p>Acc 200 Reid public house deeds: please ask at enquiry desk for draft list</p> <p>Acc 276 Stag Brewery plans mid-1920's - c 1960</p> <p>Acc 323 Stag Brewery plan 1871</p> <p>Acc 793 Deeds of public houses in Marylebone (all companies): please ask at enquiry desk for draft list</p> <p>Acc 1230 Wigram-Solly deeds regarding Reid's Brewery 1867-1919</p> <p>Acc 1572 Stag Brewery deeds 1696-1970, Lion Brewhouse deeds 1768-1902 (taken over by Watney Combe Reid in 1929), Welch Ale Brewery deeds (taken over by Watney Combe Reid in 1920), also microfilms of some public house deeds: please ask at enquiry desk for draft list</p> <p>London Metropolitan Archives hold most of Reid's records, also a few Watney and some Combe records as well as a large number of Watney Combe Reid and Watney Mann records - see Richmond and Turton guide (details above) for details. Other county and borough record offices often have deeds of public houses in their area.</p> <p>Watney photo albums of pubs &amp; Stag Brewery held by National Monuments Record</p></span>

• <corpname>Watney Combe Reid and Company Limited</corpname>
• <corpname>Watney and Company Limited</corpname>
• <corpname>Combe and Company Limited</corpname>
• <corpname>Reid's Brewery Company Limited</corpname>
• <corpname>Watney Mann</corpname>

Records were deposited on indefinite loan by A E Berry, Recorder of Deeds, Grand Metropolitan Ltd, Watney House, Palace Street, London SW1 on 10 December 1975

Until 1898 Watney, Combe and Reid all operated separately. Watney's were at the Stag Brewery near Victoria, which had originally belonged to the Greene family from 1641 to 1787 and was then run by Moore, Elliot & Co until 1843 when the Watney family became involved. Combe's were at the Wood Yard Brewery in Castle Street (later Shelton Street) near Long Acre, which had belonged to the Gyfford family from 1739 until 1787 when it was bought by Combe, Shum and Delafield. Reid's were at the Griffin Brewery, Liquorpond Street (now Clerkenwell Road), which had belonged to the Meux family from 1763; in 1793 Reid joined them and the Wigram family also became involved from 1809.

In 1898 Watney, Combe and Reid all merged, having already taken over some additional breweries, notably the Mortlake Brewery owned by Phillips More & Co taken over by Watney's in 1889. Further companies were taken over. When the Stag Brewery was demolished, they took over the Albion Brewery in Whitechapel belonging to Mann, Crossman & Paulin in 1958 and changed their name to Watney Mann. In 1972 they were taken over by Grand Metropolitan and merged with Truman, Hanbury, Buxton & Co in 1974. The brewing interests later passed to Scottish and Newcastle, but Grand Metropolitan retained the public houses.