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 bee ...

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

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 River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

. 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. The Morrell family lived at Headington Hill Hall and their estate included South Park. 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, Siegfr ...

. 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 C ...

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. H ...

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