Truman's Beer
Encyclopedia
Truman's Beer was once East London's most famous brewery and one of the largest brewers in the world at the end of the 19th Century.
Founded around 1666, the original brew house
was established on a plot of land next to what is now Brick Lane in London, E1.
It grew steadily until the 18th century when, under the management of Benjamin Truman
, and driven by the demand for Porter
, it expanded rapidly and became one of the largest brewers in London. Its growth continued into and through the 19th century with the expansion of its brewery and pub estate. In 1873, it purchased Philips Brewery in Burton and became the largest brewery in the world.
The situation changed for Truman’s in the 20th Century as it had to come to terms with the rise of lager, cheaper competition from imports and the consolidation of the biggest names in British brewing through mergers. Attempts to comes to terms with these changes through management restructures and rebranding did not succeed and in 1989 the brewery was closed.
What is clear is that the name came from Joseph Truman, who having previously worked in the brew house, took control of it in the 1680s. Truman’s grew under his stewardship, leading to the purchase of more land around the original site and Truman’s becoming a fully-fledged brewery.
When he died in 1719, his eldest son, also called Joseph, initially succeeded Joseph Truman. However, within a few years control of Truman’s passed to the younger son Benjamin Truman.
“When the Duchess of Brunswick was born in 1737, the Prince of Wales ordered four loads of faggots and a number of tar barrels to be burned before Carlton House to celebrate the event, and directed the Brewery to his household to place four barrels of beer near it for the use of those who chose to partake in the beverage, which certain individuals had no sooner done than they pronounced the liquid of inferior quality.
This declaration caused a revolt: the mob threw the beer in each other’s faces and the barrels into the fire. The Prince had the good nature to order a second bonfire on the succeeding night and procured four barrels of beer from Truman ‘with which the populace was pleased and satisfied’”.<
Up to this point, breweries had always been relatively small operations. That changed with the invention of Porter, a heavily hopped beer produced from dark brown malts. Porter was first known as ‘Three Threads’, because it was originally created by mixing three types of beer together. It reputedly gained its present name when the landlord of the Old Blue Last in Shoreditch, London (a former Truman’s pub) requested that his brewer Harwood, supply the beer ready mixed. The landlord then named the beer after his customers, who were mainly market porters.
Porter was the first beer that could be mass produced, leading to the rapid expansion of many London breweries. Benjamin Truman invested heavily to increase brewing capacity and by 1760 Truman’s was the third largest brewer of Porter in London.
When he died in 1780, Benjamin Truman left no male heir. He left most of the brewery to his grandsons, with the rest going to his head clerk James Grant, who took over the running of the brewery. After Grant’s death in 1788, his share was purchased by Sampson Hanbury, who went on to run Truman’s for the next 46 years.
Hanbury was one of the most important figures in Truman’s history, responsible for bringing in new levels of professionalism and efficiency. He purchased the brewery’s first steam engine in 1805, greatly increasing Truman’s ability to supply the rest of the country. Renowned for demanding high quality raw materials, under his control Truman’s expansion continued apace – Porter production doubled between 1800 to 1820 from 100,000 to 200,000 brewers barrels a year.
In 1808, Hanbury’s nephew Thomas Fowell Buxton
joined the firm and went on to play a big role in Truman’s future, as well as leaving his mark on national history. Fresh from a brilliant career at Trinity College, Dublin, the young Buxton was handed control of the ledgers, later taking on responsibility for reorganising the brewery to improve efficiency, which he achieved with great success.
Truman’s also proved to be a platform for his work as a social reformer:
“He gave much attention to improving the working conditions of his employees. This he did by the simple expedient of employing a school master to teach them and telling his men: ‘This day six weeks I shall discharge every man who cannot read and write’. Not a single man was dismissed”.
Buxton became an MP
in 1818, actively working for social reform in many areas of society, most notably working closely with William Wilberforce
as one of the chief campaigners for the abolition of slavery.
Buxton was also responsible for one of the most famous events in Truman’s history, hosting the Cabinet Dinner of 1831, when 23 members of the cabinet including the Lord Chancellor Brougham and the Prime Minister Grey
had dinner at the brewery.
“T.F.Buxton had provided a banquet to do justice to such guests, but the Lord Brougham who was always something of an innovator, suggested that the occasion demanded rather steaks and porter. He had his way, and so the meal consisted largely of beef steaks cooked on the furnace of the brewery boiler house.”
This was also a time when Truman’s was doing a lot of exporting, primarily to Holland, Denmark and Sweden. It was also supplying the East India Company
and the British Army. Export beers were usually specifically made, some of which were later deemed suitable for the domestic market, such as the ‘Export Imperial Stout’ a beer originally brewed for the Russian Court in St. Petersburg.
The opening of the railway in 1839, connected Burton (the source of the best Pale Ale) to the rest of the country. During the second half of the 19th Century, Pale Ale
became more popular than Porter.
Unable to brew Pale Ale to the same standard (due to the difference in water properties), Truman’s looked to strike an agency agreement with one of the Burton brewers. When these approaches were rejected, Truman’s bought Phillips brewery outright in 1873. They hired the nation’s most renowned brewery architects and engineers to entirely reconstruct the Burton plan, the acquisition of which had made Truman’s the world’s largest brewer.
The Burton brewery struggled in its first years, but by 1880 it had begun to turn a profit. However, the tide was already starting to turn against Truman's. Though sales and assets continued to grow, financing the business was proving increasingly difficult due to the huge sums of money they had tied up in public houses, as well as the restrictive licensing laws of Gladstone
. The need to modernise the brewery created further financial strain as the old Porter vats had to be dismantled and replaced equipment more suitable for running pale ales.
In 1888, as part of a bid to raise finance, Truman’s became a plc
.
However, as the century progressed, Truman’s began to struggle in the face of competition from imported lagers, as well as from the trend for mergers amongst British breweries. The 1960s proved to be very turbulent years for the British brewing industry, but Truman's took decisive steps that meant by the end of the decade they were the last major independent brewery left in London. During the 1960s they restructured the entire business, which included closing their Burton brewery, rationalised their pub estate and invested heavily in improving their Brick Lane brewery. The measures had the desired effect as profits grew by a third in the last four years of the decade.
However, in 1971 Truman's became the centre of a bidding war between Grand Metropolitan
and Watney Mann. Eventually, Grand Metropolitan won and then immediately turned its attention to Watney Mann. Upon taking over Watney Mann, Grand Metropolitan then merged it with Truman's.
Grand Metropolitan made many changes to the company, including changing the name to Truman, creating a new brand, switching to kegs and changing the beer - all decisions that that proved to the detriment of the company. These mistakes were realised in the 1980s when casks were brought back along with the traditional Truman’s eagle, but the damage had been done and the brewery was shut in 1989.
Founded around 1666, the original brew house
Old Truman Brewery
The Old Truman Brewery is the former Black Eagle brewery complex located around Brick Lane in the Spitalfields area, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It was established by the brewers Truman's which subsequently became Truman, Hanbury and Buxton...
was established on a plot of land next to what is now Brick Lane in London, E1.
It grew steadily until the 18th century when, under the management of Benjamin Truman
Benjamin Truman
Sir Benjamin Truman was a notable English entrepreneur and brewer during the 18th century. He is notable for the expansion of the Truman Brewery in the Spitalfields area of east London.-Biography:...
, and driven by the demand for Porter
Porter (beer)
Porter is a dark-coloured style of beer. The history and development of stout and porter are intertwined. The name was first used in the 18th century from its popularity with the street and river porters of London. It is generally brewed with dark malts...
, it expanded rapidly and became one of the largest brewers in London. Its growth continued into and through the 19th century with the expansion of its brewery and pub estate. In 1873, it purchased Philips Brewery in Burton and became the largest brewery in the world.
The situation changed for Truman’s in the 20th Century as it had to come to terms with the rise of lager, cheaper competition from imports and the consolidation of the biggest names in British brewing through mergers. Attempts to comes to terms with these changes through management restructures and rebranding did not succeed and in 1989 the brewery was closed.
Early years
The original Truman’s brew house is generally claimed to have been founded in 1666. However, the historical evidence is not conclusive, with dates ranging from 1663 to 1669.What is clear is that the name came from Joseph Truman, who having previously worked in the brew house, took control of it in the 1680s. Truman’s grew under his stewardship, leading to the purchase of more land around the original site and Truman’s becoming a fully-fledged brewery.
When he died in 1719, his eldest son, also called Joseph, initially succeeded Joseph Truman. However, within a few years control of Truman’s passed to the younger son Benjamin Truman.
Growth years
Truman’s flourished under Benjamin Truman, a shrewd businessmen blessed with good luck. The latter led to Truman’s becoming the drink of the Royal Family.“When the Duchess of Brunswick was born in 1737, the Prince of Wales ordered four loads of faggots and a number of tar barrels to be burned before Carlton House to celebrate the event, and directed the Brewery to his household to place four barrels of beer near it for the use of those who chose to partake in the beverage, which certain individuals had no sooner done than they pronounced the liquid of inferior quality.
This declaration caused a revolt: the mob threw the beer in each other’s faces and the barrels into the fire. The Prince had the good nature to order a second bonfire on the succeeding night and procured four barrels of beer from Truman ‘with which the populace was pleased and satisfied’”.<
Up to this point, breweries had always been relatively small operations. That changed with the invention of Porter, a heavily hopped beer produced from dark brown malts. Porter was first known as ‘Three Threads’, because it was originally created by mixing three types of beer together. It reputedly gained its present name when the landlord of the Old Blue Last in Shoreditch, London (a former Truman’s pub) requested that his brewer Harwood, supply the beer ready mixed. The landlord then named the beer after his customers, who were mainly market porters.
Porter was the first beer that could be mass produced, leading to the rapid expansion of many London breweries. Benjamin Truman invested heavily to increase brewing capacity and by 1760 Truman’s was the third largest brewer of Porter in London.
When he died in 1780, Benjamin Truman left no male heir. He left most of the brewery to his grandsons, with the rest going to his head clerk James Grant, who took over the running of the brewery. After Grant’s death in 1788, his share was purchased by Sampson Hanbury, who went on to run Truman’s for the next 46 years.
Hanbury was one of the most important figures in Truman’s history, responsible for bringing in new levels of professionalism and efficiency. He purchased the brewery’s first steam engine in 1805, greatly increasing Truman’s ability to supply the rest of the country. Renowned for demanding high quality raw materials, under his control Truman’s expansion continued apace – Porter production doubled between 1800 to 1820 from 100,000 to 200,000 brewers barrels a year.
In 1808, Hanbury’s nephew Thomas Fowell Buxton
Thomas Fowell Buxton
Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton, 1st Baronet was an English Member of Parliament, brewer, abolitionist and social reformer....
joined the firm and went on to play a big role in Truman’s future, as well as leaving his mark on national history. Fresh from a brilliant career at Trinity College, Dublin, the young Buxton was handed control of the ledgers, later taking on responsibility for reorganising the brewery to improve efficiency, which he achieved with great success.
Truman’s also proved to be a platform for his work as a social reformer:
“He gave much attention to improving the working conditions of his employees. This he did by the simple expedient of employing a school master to teach them and telling his men: ‘This day six weeks I shall discharge every man who cannot read and write’. Not a single man was dismissed”.
Buxton became an MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
in 1818, actively working for social reform in many areas of society, most notably working closely with William Wilberforce
William Wilberforce
William Wilberforce was a British politician, a philanthropist and a leader of the movement to abolish the slave trade. A native of Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, he began his political career in 1780, eventually becoming the independent Member of Parliament for Yorkshire...
as one of the chief campaigners for the abolition of slavery.
Buxton was also responsible for one of the most famous events in Truman’s history, hosting the Cabinet Dinner of 1831, when 23 members of the cabinet including the Lord Chancellor Brougham and the Prime Minister Grey
Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey
Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, KG, PC , known as Viscount Howick between 1806 and 1807, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 22 November 1830 to 16 July 1834. A member of the Whig Party, he backed significant reform of the British government and was among the...
had dinner at the brewery.
“T.F.Buxton had provided a banquet to do justice to such guests, but the Lord Brougham who was always something of an innovator, suggested that the occasion demanded rather steaks and porter. He had his way, and so the meal consisted largely of beef steaks cooked on the furnace of the brewery boiler house.”
This was also a time when Truman’s was doing a lot of exporting, primarily to Holland, Denmark and Sweden. It was also supplying the East India Company
East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
and the British Army. Export beers were usually specifically made, some of which were later deemed suitable for the domestic market, such as the ‘Export Imperial Stout’ a beer originally brewed for the Russian Court in St. Petersburg.
The opening of the railway in 1839, connected Burton (the source of the best Pale Ale) to the rest of the country. During the second half of the 19th Century, Pale Ale
Pale ale
Pale ale is a beer which uses a warm fermentation and predominantly pale malt. It is one of the world's major beer styles.The higher proportion of pale malts results in a lighter colour. The term "pale ale" was being applied around 1703 for beers made from malts dried with coke, which resulted in a...
became more popular than Porter.
Unable to brew Pale Ale to the same standard (due to the difference in water properties), Truman’s looked to strike an agency agreement with one of the Burton brewers. When these approaches were rejected, Truman’s bought Phillips brewery outright in 1873. They hired the nation’s most renowned brewery architects and engineers to entirely reconstruct the Burton plan, the acquisition of which had made Truman’s the world’s largest brewer.
The Burton brewery struggled in its first years, but by 1880 it had begun to turn a profit. However, the tide was already starting to turn against Truman's. Though sales and assets continued to grow, financing the business was proving increasingly difficult due to the huge sums of money they had tied up in public houses, as well as the restrictive licensing laws of Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone FRS FSS was a British Liberal statesman. In a career lasting over sixty years, he served as Prime Minister four separate times , more than any other person. Gladstone was also Britain's oldest Prime Minister, 84 years old when he resigned for the last time...
. The need to modernise the brewery created further financial strain as the old Porter vats had to be dismantled and replaced equipment more suitable for running pale ales.
In 1888, as part of a bid to raise finance, Truman’s became a plc
Public limited company
A public limited company is a limited liability company that sells shares to the public in United Kingdom company law, in the Republic of Ireland and Commonwealth jurisdictions....
.
20th century
Truman’s continued to grow during the first half of the 20th century, increasing its pub estate and buying up suppliers (especially during the war years when supply of raw materials become particularly important to control). It also invested heavily in motorized vehicles to improve distribution, a development lamented by many as it meant the end for Truman’s celebrated draymen.However, as the century progressed, Truman’s began to struggle in the face of competition from imported lagers, as well as from the trend for mergers amongst British breweries. The 1960s proved to be very turbulent years for the British brewing industry, but Truman's took decisive steps that meant by the end of the decade they were the last major independent brewery left in London. During the 1960s they restructured the entire business, which included closing their Burton brewery, rationalised their pub estate and invested heavily in improving their Brick Lane brewery. The measures had the desired effect as profits grew by a third in the last four years of the decade.
However, in 1971 Truman's became the centre of a bidding war between Grand Metropolitan
Grand Metropolitan
Grand Metropolitan plc is a former United Kingdom-based company operating hotels, holiday centres, entertainment centres, public houses and casinos...
and Watney Mann. Eventually, Grand Metropolitan won and then immediately turned its attention to Watney Mann. Upon taking over Watney Mann, Grand Metropolitan then merged it with Truman's.
Grand Metropolitan made many changes to the company, including changing the name to Truman, creating a new brand, switching to kegs and changing the beer - all decisions that that proved to the detriment of the company. These mistakes were realised in the 1980s when casks were brought back along with the traditional Truman’s eagle, but the damage had been done and the brewery was shut in 1989.