Watney, Combe, Reid & Co. Ltd Round Tin

Watney, Combe, Reid & Co. Ltd tin tray dating from the late 1950s.

The Original Stag Brewery

The Stag Brewery was founded in Victoria, London, by William Greene in 1641.
In 1837 James Watney became a partner in the business, and by 1858 he was in complete control.
He was joined by his sons, James and Norman, in 1856.
The Company was registered as Watney & Co. Ltd in 1885.
Watney's acquired the Mortlake Brewery of Phillips, More & Co. Ltd in 1889, Carter, Wood & Co.'s Artillery Brewery in 1890, and the Saffron Walden brewery of William Day & Co. in 1895.

Amalgamation of Watney & Co. Ltd, Combe & Co. Ltd and Reid's Brewery Ltd

In 1898 Watney & Co. Ltd amalgamated with Combe & Co. Ltd, and Reid's Brewery Co. Ltd to form Watney, Combe, Reid & Co. Ltd, becoming the largest brewing business in London.
All brewing was concentrated at Watney's Stag Brewery and production ceased at Reid & Co. Ltd's Griifin Brewery in 1899 and at Combe & Co. Ltd's Woodyard Brewery in 1905.
Before the First World War the Company purchased Woodbridge & Co.'s Yorkshire Stingo Brewery of London W1 with 125 public houses in 1907, and J.E.Dawes & Co. of Thames Ditton and John Samuel Bligh's Holmesdale Brewery of Sevenoaks with 27 public houses in 1911.
Watney's significantly expanded its empire in the 1920s when it acquired five large breweries. Purchases included the Chelsea Brewery Co. with 60 public houses in 1920, Ashby's Cobham Brewery with 56 public houses in 1922, the Isleworth Brewery Ltd with 228 public houses in 1924, Huggins & Co. Ltd's Lion Brewery in 1928, and the London & Burton Brewery Co. Ltd of Stepney in 1929.

Further Acquistions & Keg Beer

In 1931 the Company introduced Britain's first keg beer which had the ability to remain saleable for a longer period than draught beers and to travel longer distances for the export market. This was the forerunner to Watney's infamous Red Barrel keg beer which dominated the British market in the 1960s and 1970s.
In 1943 Watney's acquired William Cooper & Co. Ltd of Southampton with 125 public houses which it continued to operate until 1950.
Crowley & Co. of Alton was acquired in 1947 and it remained brewing until 1970.
When the Stockwell Brewery of Charles Hammerton & Co. Ltd was acquired in 1951 it was renamed Watney's Bottling Stores and the Hammerton brand name was retained until the beginning of the 1960s.
Tamplin & Sons Ltd of Brighton with 400 public houses was taken over in 1953, Henty & Constable Ltd of Chichester with 247 public houses was purchased in 1953, and Venning & Sons Ltd of Liskeard was acquired in 1955. Watney's vast British empire was not yet complete.

Watney, Combe, Reid & Co. Ltd Merger with Mann, Crossman & Paulin Ltd

Watney, Combe, Reid & Co. Ltd merged with Mann, Crossman & Paulin Ltd in 1958 to form Watney Mann Ltd.
Watney's Stag Brewery based in Victoria was closed in 1959 and brewing was concentrated at Mann's Albion Brewery and Watney's other brewery based in Mortlake.
In 1959 the Stag Brewery name was transferred to the Mortlake brewery which had originally been purchased in 1889.
Between 1960 and 1969, when the business was trading as Watney Mann Ltd, it continued expanding and acquired a further ten British breweries with a staggering 4,000 to 5,000 public houses. It also acquired the Maes and Grimbergen breweries in Belgium.

Grand Metropolitan Hotels Ltd Takeover

Watney Mann Ltd was acquired by Grand Metropolitan Hotels Ltd in 1972 and merged with Truman, Hanbury, Buxton & Co. Ltd in 1974 to form Watney Truman Ltd.
Mann's Albion Brewery closed in 1979.
In 1995 Anheuser-Busch became the owners of the Stag Brewery in Mortlake.
The brewery was earmarked for closure in 2009 by AB InBev, but this did not happen until the end of 2015.
Since 2022 the site has been part of an ambitious redvelopment project, which is in a consultation phase, led by Reselton Properties Ltd, a Singaporean backed company.

The manufacturer's mark states - Hancock, Corfield & Waller Ltd. Mitcham. London. Printed in England.
It is highly likely that this tray is unique due to the fact that on the back of the tray are the words "Reference Only"
I believe this tray was produced just before the merger with Mann, Crossman & Paulin Ltd.