Copyright © 2004 the Brewery History Society

Burge and Company limited formed in 1920; the predecessor company was that of R.B. Shipley. From 1928 until 1931, the Chairman was Col. Vernon H.F. Dickens. At the 8th Ordinary General Meeting, Mr J.F. Crisp was introduced and elected as a director, he also remained until 1931. The other director was Mr. D. H. Ashby who stayed with the company until his resignation in June 1929. At this meeting in 1928 the death of Sir A.E. Shipley at Cambridge in September 1927 was reported – he was a Brother to our Old Chairman, and although not actually attached to the Brewery, he took a great deal of interest in it.

Family tree:

The minutes of the director's meetings up to November 1931 record the everyday running and business of the company. At the Brewery the Head Brewer was G.H. Glover. In 1929 following the resignation of Mr. Ashby, Mr. Glover was given sole direction of the brewing (his salary in 1928 was increased to £400 p.a.). Mr Glover's assistant brewer was B. Machen appointed in July 1929 on a three-month trial with a salary of £150 p.a. (increased to £175 p.a. in April 1930). In October 1930 Mr Machen went to Whitbread's for a month's trial and while he was away Mr Glover received his salary. It seems that Mr Machen didn't remain with Burge, as in March 1931, H.J. Green was the new assistant brewer with a salary of £150 p.a.

The company's sales manager of the Wine & Spirit department was Mr D.H. Smith, in 1928 he was being paid a salary of £800 p.a. plus a 2 ½% commission on all sales. Following the resignation of Mr Ashby in 1929, Mr D.H. Smith was appointed Manager of the business with the exception of the brewing. In April 1930, Mr Smith was given a 5-year service agreement as Manager of Business on a salary of £1,200 plus travel expenses. He was then resident at “Godacon”, Winkfield Place, Windsor.

Burge & Co. Ltd. had a small subsidiary Motor Services business at Datchet. In April 1930 it was resolved to sell this business to a Private Limited Liability Company called ‘Datchet Motor Services Ltd’. The consideration was fixed at £200, consisting of 200 £1 Ordinary Shares fully paid up in satisfaction of the purchase price. Following the take-over of Burge & Co by Meux in 1931, the Datchet Motor Services Ltd was put into liquidation in December 1933. The investment of £100 and the indebtedness of £464-16s-10d to the company were written off against the reserve account.

In its comparatively short existence this subsidiary company had its registered office at the “Royal Stag” Hotel, Datchet. Its directors were Col. V. H. F. Dickins, Mr D. H. Ashby, Mr J.F. Crisp and Mr D.H. Smith with H.J. Harding as secretary. The capital was set at £500 and the business carried out motor repairs, as first described in March 1929. Motor vehicles it seems were somewhat unreliable in the 1920s. Burge & Co usually received large quantities of Ale Malt at Windsor Railway Station. Their main suppliers were Messrs W. J. Robinson & Co, Messrs Sanders & Co, J. Crisp & Son. The types of malt purchased were

The company's wages bill in 1928 was about £90 a week and by 1931 had increased to about £124 a week. In 1928 the company introduced a pension scheme for long serving employees. Those eligible to receive a pension needed to have completed at least 20 years service and be 60 years or over. For each year of service over 20 years an employee would receive 1 shilling, i.e.

This was covered by a Pension Fund invested in £2,000 War Loan stock in 1927, but in 1929 it was decided to bring this money back into the company. Messrs Collins, Tootell & Co of London audited the accounts each year. They resigned as auditors to the company in February 1932 following the take-over by Meux.

In 1928 at the General Meeting of 21 March, following the vote of thanks the staff were rewarded for their loyalty with a bonus of one week's wages. This bonus was absent from the vote of thanks at the General Meetings of 1929 and 1930. Also the declared dividends were reduced. In 1928 the dividend was 10%, but in 1929 it was 5% and 6 ½% in 1930. This is presumably due to the ‘Crash’ in 1929 followed by the ‘Great Depression’ of the 1930s. It seems Burge and Co ran into financial difficulties, the meeting of 27th March 1931 records that the directors had negotiated an overdraft of £6,000 at 4 ½% day to day balances with the Westminster Bank using the deeds of the “Wheatsheaf” Old Windsor as security.

The builder W. Hartley had recently rebuilt the “Wheatsheaf” at a cost of £5,429-13s-5d. This was following an agreement between Berks. County Council and Burge for the acquisition of the “Wheatsheaf” and land at Old Windsor by the Council at a cost of £850 and the conveyance by them of a site for the erection of a new building for the purpose of a public house. The building on the old site was broken up by the company at their own expense who then retained the materials.

Burge Properties, 1928 – 1930, as described in Minutes: -

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Appendix 1

Victoria Brewery, Windsor, conveyance of 30th March 1897

Freeholds: -

1. VICTORIA BREWERY, with messuage or dwelling houses, yard & buildings, Victoria Street, Windsor
2. QUEEN's ARMS beerhouse, Alexandra Road, Windsor
3. Dwelling house, No. 46 Victoria Street, New Windsor
4. Offices & stores, Victoria Brewery, No. 47 Victoria Street, Windsor
5. Dwelling house, No. 48 Victoria Street, Windsor
6. Wall behind Nos. 46, 47 & 48 Victoria Street, Windsor
7. Land or garden, formerly belonging to No. 49 Victoria Street, Windsor
8. Stabling, Alexandra Road, Windsor
9. WELLINGTON pH No. 65 Peascod Street, Windsor
10. PRINCE CHRISTIAN HOTEL & stabling, Kings Road, Windsor
11. ROYAL ALBERT beerhouse, Peascod Street, Windsor
12. WHY NOT beerhouse & stables, Oxford Road, Windsor
13. BRITTANIA beerhouse & cottage, Keppel Street, New Windsor
14. LORD RAGLAN pH & stable, Clewer, Windsor
15. ROYAL STANDARD beerhouse, Spital, Windsor
16. FAWN beerhouse & stabling, Spital, Windsor
17. PRINCE OF WALES beerhouse, forge & garden, Fifield, Windsor
18. RED LION beerhouse & cottage, Oakley Green, Bray
19. BLACK HORSE beerhouse garden & pond, Dedworth Green, New Windsor
20. BRICKMAKERS ARMS pH & stabling, Stoke Poges, Bucks
21. PRINCE OF WALES pH & stables, Slough Road, Windsor
22. CROWN pH & stables, Colnbrook, Iver, Bucks
23. SEVEN STARS beerhouse stables & 3 cottages, Blacknest, Sunninghill
24. THREE HORSE SHOES beerhouse & stables, Stanwell Moor
25. VICTORIA off-licence beerhouse, Sunninghill
26. THE PERSERVERANCE beerhouse & stabling, Clewer, New Windsor
27. QUEEN's STAG HOUNDS pH stabling & cottage, Ascot
28. QUEEN's ARMS beerhouse, Winkfield
29. WHEATSHEAF pH Albert Road, Old Windsor
30. PRINCE ALFRED beerhouse, Thorpe Lea, Egham, Surrey
31. OXFORD BLUE beerhouse & cottage, Old Windsor
32. DUMB BELL pH stabling & land (4 acres) Taplow, Bucks
33. THEATRE DINING ROOMS beerhouse, No. 32 Thames Street, New Windsor
34. THE GRAPES beerhouse, Eton Wick
35. STAG beerhouse & stabling, Ascot
36. THE RISE off-licence beerhouse, Sunninghill, Old Windsor
37. TURLY HALL pH & stabling, Clewer, Windsor

Copyholds:-

1. GREYHOUND pH & stabling, Upton cum Chalvery, Buck. Manor of Upton cum Chalvery, Alex Shipley admitted tenant 12th July 1884
2. ROSE & CROWN beerhouse, Regents Place, High Street, Slough. Manor of Upton cum Chalvery, Alex Shipley admitted tenant 13 August 1891

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Note:

Norman Barber “Where have all the breweries gone?” pub. CAMRA states Burge & Co. Ltd, Victoria Brewery, Victoria St., founded by 1840. Private Company registered in 1920. Taken over by Meux's Brewery Co. Ltd. In October 1931.