Strong & Co. of Romsey Ltd Square Tin

Strong & Co. of Romsey Ltd tin tray dating from the 1960s.

Strong's Early Acquisitions

The brewery was founded in 1778.
The Horsefair Brewery with 23 tied houses was leased to Thomas Strong in 1858 who purchased the business in 1883.
Thomas Strong died in 1886 and the firm was sold to David Faber who retained the Strong's name.
After 1886 the Company pursued an agressive acquistions strategy.
Before it was registered Strong & Co. purchased 5 competitors; the Hundred Brewery of Jesser & Cressey in Romford in 1886, George Gibbons Weyhill Brewery with 27 public houses in 1888, John King's Christchurch with 20 public houses in 1890, and the Wareham Brewery of Henry John Panton & Co. with 46 public houses in 1892.
The Adelaide Brewery of Ellen Curtis was the last acquisition in 1893 before the firm became a limited company.

Strong & Co. of Romsey Ltd Accelerates its Acquisitions

The Company was registered as Strong & Co. of Romsey Ltd in 1894.
The pace of takeovers increased when Strong & Co. of Romsey Ltd acquired A & H Scovell of Southampton in 1896, Hine Brothers of Southampton in 1898, and Stephen White Bennett of Wareham in 1906 with 11 tied houses.
After the disruption of the First World War, the Company continued the same strategy.
During the 1920s it purchased 6 breweries. In 1920 it acquired Asby's Eling Brewery Co. Ltd of Southampton with 20 public houses, Johnson & Tozer of Bere Regis in 1921, Carter & Co. of Ringwood in 1923 with 19 public houses, Mrs Hilda Ogden's Brewery of Bournemouth in 1925, Marston's Dolphin Brewery of Poole with 58 tied houses in 1926. and Scrase's Brewery Ltd of Southampton with 97 tied houses in 1927.
Before the Second World War it acquired the Lion Brewery (Winchester) Ltd with 52 public houses and 2 off-licenses in 1931, and the College Street Brewery of W & R Luker of Petersfield with 7 public houses in 1934.

Post Second World War Trading

After the Second World War had ended the Company acquired Strange & Sons of Aldermaston with 42 public houses in 1945.
By far the largest purchase Strong & Co. of Romsey Ltd was the acquisition of Wethered & Sons Ltd of Marlow with 236 tied house in 1949. The Marlow Brewery continued to brew until 1988. It was then used as a depot until 1992.
The Company's final acquisition was Mew, Langton & Co. Ltd of Newport on the Isle of Wight with 144 tied houses in 1965.
Brewing continued in the Isle of Wight until 1969 when Strong & Co. Ltd was acquired by Whitbread & Co. Ltd with 940 public houses.
Brewing ceased at the Horsefair Brewery in 1981.
Most of the brewery buildings were demolished in the early 1990s, however the 1899 malthouse survived.