In 1953 on the death of Chairman Eric Simonds, the estate consisted of;
- 3 breweries; Bridge Street, Reading; Tamar Brewery, Devonport and Jacob Street, Bristol, which closed in 1953 after 107 years brewing.
- Shares in 2 overseas breweries: 50% of Simonds Farsons Cisk, Malta & The East African Brewery, Nairobi.
- 1132 pubs
- 36 hotels
- 30 Off Licences, under the Charles Kinloch brand
- Over 200 vehicles in the Transport Department
The scale and an emerging understanding of the value of this extensive property portfolio was one of the key driving factors behind the merger with Courage Barclay.
You can find many old images of the Reading Brewery from about 1895 in the ‘Timeline’ under the ‘History’ tab HERE;
This is the Tamar Brewery in Devonport, in 1959.
