Morrell's Brewing Company, also known as the Lion Brewery, was the only major
brewery
A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of be ...
in
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
, England. It operated between 1782 and 1998.
Early history
![The Swan Inn, Rose Island, River Thames, Oxfordshire](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8f/The_Swan_Inn%2C_Rose_Island%2C_River_Thames%2C_Oxfordshire.jpg)
Morrell's was founded by Richard Tawney in 1743 as the Lion Brewery. In 1782 he formed a partnership with Mark and James Morrell, who eventually became the owners. 1863 and 1864 saw the deaths of James Morrell and his wife Alicia leaving the brewery to their ten year old daughter
Emily Morrell. Her inheritance was put under the control of three trustees who tried to deal with Emily's crush on a distant cousin by sending her away to an aunt and forbidding any communication between the pair.
Morrell's brewed its beers at the Lion Brewery in
St Thomas Street. In the 19th century Morrell's redeveloped and extended the Lion Brewery a number of times. A large brewing shed was added in 1879, a blacksmith's shop and engine house in 1880, a further shed and new yard in 1882, stables in 1889, new offices in 1892, a tun room in 1895, further offices in 1897 and a tall octagonal chimney in 1901.
All these developments were designed by the local architect
Harry Drinkwater
Harry George Walter Drinkwater (1844–1895) was an English architect who practised in and around Oxford. His work included several churches and public houses.
Life
Drinkwater was born in Warwick on 17 March 1844, the son of George Drinkwater, a ...
,
[ who also designed a number of the company's ]pub
A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...
s.
The Lion Brewery was powered by a waterwheel on Castle Mill Stream
Castle Mill Stream is a backwater of the River Thames in the west of Oxford, England. It is 5.5 km long.
Course
The stream leaves the main course of the River Thames at the south end of Port Meadow, immediately upstream of Medley Foo ...
, a branch of the River Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...
. This was supplemented by steam engines for which the engine house was built.[ One ]rotative beam engine
A beam engine is a type of steam engine where a pivoted overhead beam is used to apply the force from a vertical piston to a vertical connecting rod. This configuration, with the engine directly driving a pump, was first used by Thomas Newc ...
that was built for the Lion Brewery in about 1826 remained in service until 1964 and is now preserved at the Abbey Pumping Station
The Abbey Pumping Station is a museum of science and technology in Leicester, England, on Corporation Road, next to the National Space Centre. With four working steam-powered beam engines from its time as a sewage pumping station, it also houses ...
, Leicester
Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city l ...
.
The Morrell family lived at Headington Hill Hall
Headington Hill Hall stands on Headington Hill in the east of Oxford, England. It was built in 1824
for the Morrell family, who remained in residence for 114 years. It became the home to Pergamon Press and to media tycoon Robert Maxwell. It cur ...
and their estate included South Park
''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boys Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand th ...
. The family included Philip Morrell
Philip Edward Morrell (4 June 1870 – 5 January 1943) was a British Liberal politician.
Background
Morrell was the son of Frederic Morrell, a solicitor of Black Hall, Oxford, by his wife Harriette Anne, daughter of the President of St John's ...
(1870–1943), who was a Liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
MP 1906–18 and was married to Lady Ottoline Morrell
Lady Ottoline Violet Anne Morrell (16 June 1873 – 21 April 1938) was an English aristocrat and society hostess. Her patronage was influential in artistic and intellectual circles, where she befriended writers including Aldous Huxley, Sieg ...
. In 1929–31 Morrell Avenue was built along the south side of South Park. The family also owned the village of Streatley and one side of the family lived there, until Emily Morrell died in 1938, when the estate was sold.
After an acrimonious family dispute the brewery was closed in 1998. Refresh UK bought the beer brands and for a time Thomas Hardy Burtonwood was contracted to brew them. Marston's
Marston's plc is a British pub and hotel operator. Founded by John Marston in 1834, it is listed on the London Stock Exchange. Marston's disposed of its brewing operations in 2020, selling the assets to a newly formed joint venture with the Ca ...
acquired Refresh UK in 2008 and now brew Morrells beers.
Post-brewing operations
In 1998 Michael Cannon, owner of the US hamburger chain Fuddruckers
Fuddruckers (sometimes abbreviated Fudds) is an American fast casual, franchised restaurant chain that specializes in hamburgers. The Fuddruckers concept is to offer large hamburgers in which the meat is ground on-site and buns are baked on the ...
, bought Morrell's 132 tied pubs for £48 million through a new company, Morrells of Oxford.[ In 2002 Cannon sold 107 of the pubs to ]Greene King
Greene King is a large pub retailer and brewer. It is based in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England. The company owns pubs, restaurants and hotels. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange until it was acquired by CK Assets in October 2019.
...
for £67 million.
Development of the Lion Brewery site
The Lion Brewery site was redeveloped for luxury apartments in 2002. The waterwheel and yellow brick chimney were retained but only the façades were retained of the other buildings.[
]
References
Sources and further reading
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External links
{{commons category, Morrell's Brewery, position=left
1743 establishments in England
1998 disestablishments in England
British companies established in 1782
British companies disestablished in 1998
Companies based in Oxford
Defunct breweries of the United Kingdom
History of Oxford
1782 establishments in England
Food and drink companies established in 1782