Archibald Arrol & Sons Ltd (Owned by Ind Coope & Allsopp Ltd) Round Tin

Archibald Arrol & Sons Ltd tin tray dating from the 1950s. The Alloa Brewery Company and its brewery, the Alloa Brewery, were established in 1810. By 1825 Andrew Roy had purchased the Alloa Brewery and was trading under the name of Andrew Roy & Co. On the death of Andrew Roy in 1855, the business was run by trustees until 1860 eventually passing into the hands of Archibald T Arrol in 1866. After Archibald Arrol's death in 1888, the business was run by his two sons Walter and Archibald. The Company was registered as Archibald Arrol & Sons Ltd in 1895 to amalgamate the business of Walter & Archibald Arrol, with the businesses of J.Meikle amd William Turnbull, both based in Newcastle-on-Tyne. When John Joseph Calder, a director of Archibald Arrol & Sons Ltd, was appointed by receivers acting for Samuel Allsopp & Sons Ltd in 1912, a link with lager brewing in Burton-on-Trent, was formed. In 1899, Allsopp's had converted an existing brewery on High Street, Burton-on-Trent, into a lager brewery. Lager sales were well below expectations, when, in 1916, a fire destroyed part of the brewery. Allsopp's Lager had gained a terrible reputation both by drinkers and shareholders alike. John Calder decided not to repair the brewery but to use his connections to negotiate an agreement to brew Allsopp's Lager at Archibald Arroll & Sons Ltd Alloa Brewery in 1921. At first Allsopp's Lager was renamed Arrol's Lager and Calder's Lager although Allsopp's Bottled Lager continued to be used for the export market where its reputation was better. Indeed the Red Hand trademark continued to be used by a separately created subsidiary export Company named The Alloa Bottling Co. Ltd until the 1950s. In 1927 the lager was renamed Graham's Golden Lager. Archibald Arrol & Sons Ltd brewed for Samuel Allsopp & Sons Ltd until 1930 when Allsopp's gained a controlling interest in the Company. Samuel Samuel Allsopp & Sons Ltd merged with Ind Coope & Co. Ltd becoming Ind Coope & Allsopp Ltd in 1934. In 1951 the business entered voluntary liquidation and the Company, its brewery, and 29 public houses were acquired by Ind Coope & Allsopp Ltd. The Alloa Brewery brewed Graham's Golden Lager until it was rebranded Skol Pilsner Lager in 1959 and later simply Skol. By the mid 1960s Skol was the best selling British brewed lager. The Scottish Company traded as Ind Coope Alloa Brewery Ltd later renamed the Alloa Brewery Co. Ltd. After several further mergers, the Alloa Brewery was closed by its last owners, Carlsberg-Tetley plc in 1998 and the site was demolished in 2001.