Thomson, Marshall & Co. Ltd Round Copper

Thomson, Marshall & Co. Ltd copper tray dating from the 1890s. Thomson, Marshall & Co. acquired the Old Town Brewery from the partnership of Smith, Irvine & Co. in 1863, which had brewed there since about 1790. As a direct result of supplying beer to the Royal Family at Balmoral, the Company was granted a Royal Warrant in 1866 by which it was appointed brewers to Queen Victoria and her son Albert Edward, the Prince of Wales. The Company's trademark was a red thistle which included details of its Royal Warrant. The Old Town Brewery was largely rebuilt and extended in the 1880s and the reputation for its ales grew from strength to strength. In 1886 the firm received the highest award for its Scotch ales, and a prize medal for its stout, at the Edinburgh International Exhibition. In 1889 two of the partners decided to retire from the firm leaving George Thomson as the sole owner. Thomson registered the business as Thomson, Marshall & Co. Ltd. in 1890 and changed the name from the Old Town Brewery to the Aulton Brewery. By 1901 the business was experiencing financial difficulties, and in 1904 it entered into voluntary liquidation. The Aulton Brewery was offered for sale and the Company was wound up in 1907. By 1913 much of the site was demolished in order to provide space for a New King's Building at the University of Aberdeen, although a small part of the brewery complex still survives on the campus. The manufacturer's mark states - W M Brownlie Bridgeton x Glasgow