Tollemache & Cobbold Breweries Ltd Square Tin

Tollemache & Cobbold Breweries Ltd tin tray dating from 1959.

Tollemache's Brewery History

The Steam Brewery on Upper Brook Street in Ipswich was founded in 1855 by Charles Cullingham & Co.
It was sold to the Tollemache brothers, Douglas, Stanhope, and Mortimer, in 1880.
Tollemache's first acquistion was H.G. & W.Ridley of Ipswich with 15 public houses in 1890.
The Company was registered as Tollemache's Ipswich Brewery Ltd, with its Brook Street Brewery as it was now named, in 1896.
After its registration two more breweries were acquired; Ranson & Sons of Stowmarket with 18 public houses in 1896, and Taylor, Sons & Dowson of Diss in 1897, which was resold to E.Lacon & Co. Ltd in 1898.
In 1919 the famous 'Lady with the Grapes and Baby' trade mark was introduced.
When Tollemache's purchased Collier Brothers Essex Brewery of Walthamstow in 1920 it operated two breweries and changed its name to Tollemache's Breweries Ltd to reflect this.
In 1921 the Company acquired the Wine & Spirit Merchants of Barwell & Sons in Norwich.
The Company continued to expand and purchased three breweries before the Second World War.
The Unicorn Brewery Co. Ltd of Ipswich was wound up in 1923 and the 56 public houses were divided equally between Tollemache's Breweries Ltd and Cobbold & Co. Ltd. In 1926 Tollemache's acquired Robert Brassey Jones of Cambridge, and in 1934 it purchased the much larger business of the Star Brewery (Cambridge) Ltd with 119 tied houses. The Company contiuned to operate the Star Brewery.
After the war the Company purchased Stone & Sons of Tollesbury in 1950, and Ashby & Sons of Long Melford in 1952.

Cobbold's Brewery History

The first Cobbold Brewery was founded by maltster Thomas Cobbold, in Harwich, in 1723. A second brewery, the Cobbold Cliff Brewery, on Cliff Lane in Ipswich, was founded in 1746.
By 1790 the partnership of Cobbold & Cox was running the Harwich operations, whilst John Cobbold was managing the main brewery in Ipswich.
John Cobbold died in 1835 leaving his son, Thomas, in control, and when he retired in 1840 the original Harwich brewery was closed.
A second Harwich brewery was purchased by John Cavalier Cobbold in 1863, and this brewed for thirteen years until it was closed, leaving the Cliff Brewery as the only remaining operation.
Between 1894 to 1896 the Cliff Brewery was completely rebuilt resulting in an impressive modern tower building.
In 1898 the famous 'Wolsey's Gate', with the word 'Cardinal', became a Cobbold's registered trade mark.
In 1904 the Cliff Brewery was extended.
The Company traded as Cobbold & Co., with an estate of 236 public houses until its registration in 1924, when it became Cobbold & Co. Ltd.

Tollemache's Breweries Ltd Merger with Cobbold & Co. Ltd

In 1957 the two remaining Ipswich breweries of Tollemache's Breweries Ltd, and Cobbold & Co. Ltd, merged to become Tollemache & Cobbold Breweries Ltd, with a total estate of 451 public houses.
Brewing was concentrated at Cobbold's Cliff Brewery and the Brook Street Brewery was closed in 1961. The buildings are still standing.
Tollemache & Cobbold Breweries Ltd brewed at the Essex Brewery in Walthamstow until 1971, although bottling continued there until 1974.
The Star Brewery in Cambridge ceased brewing in 1972 and it was demolished in 1981.
A new bottling plant was installed at the Cliff Brewery in 1973.

Tollemache & Cobbold Breweries Ltd - A Series of Takeovers

Tollemache & Cobbold Breweries Ltd was the subject of a number of takeovers after 1970.
The Company was acquired by Ellerman Shipping Lines in 1977 and subsequently by the Barclay Brothers in 1983.
In 1987 Tolly Cobbold Ltd acquired the John Bull Brewery of James Paine Brewery Ltd with 24 public houses. The brewery was closed.
The Cliff Brewery was sold to the Brent Walker Group, and this resulted in its closure in 1989, when it was decided to contract brew Tolly Cobbold beers at J.W.Cameron & Co. Ltd in Hartlepool.
The Cliff Brewery was reopened after a management buy-out in 1991.
It was purchased and closed permanently by T.D.Ridley & Co. Ltd in 2003.
The Cliff Brewery became a listed building.

The manufacturer's mark states - Reginald Corfield Ltd Lombard Road. London. S.W.19. 592