James Watney (18 December 1800 16 March 1884) was an English

brewer Brewing is the production of beer by steeping a starch source (commonly cereal grains, the most popular of which is barley) in water and fermenting the resulting sweet liquid with yeast. It may be done in a brewery by a commercial brewer, ...

and landowner who resided at Haling Park,

Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...

, and

Beddington Beddington is a suburban settlement in the London Borough of Sutton on the boundary with the London Borough of Croydon. Beddington is formed from a village of the same name which until early the 20th century still included land which became ...

, Surrey. He was born to Daniel Watney (1771–1831) of

Mitcham Mitcham is an area within the London Borough of Merton in South London, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross. Originally a village in the county of Surrey, today it is mainly a residential suburb, and includes Mitcham Common. It ...

, Surrey and Mary Galpin (1771–1830), daughter of James Galpin (died 1789) of

, Surrey. He was the grandson of John Watney (1747–1814) and great-grandson of Daniel Watney (1705–1780) of

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * W ...

, Surrey who was an

ale conner An ale-conner (sometimes aleconner or ale-kenner) was an officer appointed yearly at the court-leet of ancient English communities to ensure the quality of bread, ale, and beer, as well as regulating the measures in which they were sold and thei ...

Professional life

The

Watney family The Watney family is an English family known for its association with the brewing firm Watney Combe & Reid,Janes, H. ''The Red Barrel: A History of Watney Mann'' (1963). as well as for its political activities, philanthropy and missionary work. Mem ...

were the main partners in the Stag Brewery of

Pimlico Pimlico () is a district in Central London, in the City of Westminster, built as a southern extension to neighbouring Belgravia. It is known for its garden squares and distinctive Regency architecture. Pimlico is demarcated to the north by Lon ...

for much of the 19th century.British History on-line
/ref> In 1837, James Watney became a partner in the brewery with John Lettsom Elliot and Charles Lambert, as later did his sons James and Norman in 1856. The brewery was known as Elliot, Watney & Co from about 1849. John L Elliot withdrew from the business in 1850, and for 8 years remained a partner in name only. He finally retired in 1858 and the firm became known as James Watney & Co. James Watney then kept the management almost entirely to himself until his death, at well over eighty years, in 1884. After his death in 1884, Watney & Co Ltd became a

private limited company A private limited company is any type of business entity in Privately held company, "private" ownership used in many jurisdictions, in contrast to a Public company, publicly listed company, with some differences from country to country. Example ...

in 1885. In 1898, it acquired Messrs.

Combe Delafield and Co. Combe Delafield and Co. was among the major brewers in London during the nineteenth century, before being acquired by Watney in 1898, thus forming Watney Combe & Reid. The Woodyard Brewery, of Castle Street, Long Acre, situated midway between the ...

and Messrs. Reid and Co., and was thereafter known as Messrs.

Watney Combe & Reid Watney Combe & Reid was a leading brewery in London. At its peak in the 1930s it was a constituent of the FT 30 index of leading companies on the London Stock Exchange. It produced Watney's Red Barrel. History The Watney family were the m ...

. James Watney was Master of the

Mercers' Company The Mercers' Company, or the Worshipful Company of Mercers, is a livery company of the City of London in the Great Twelve City Livery Companies, and ranks first in the order of precedence of the Companies. Mercer comes from the Latin for merch ...

in 1846, but had few other interests outside business. James Watney contributed several thousands of pounds towards building a new church just as his father had done at

Family life

On 15 October 1829, at St. Saviour's Church, Southwark (now

Southwark Cathedral Southwark Cathedral ( ), formally the Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Saviour and St Mary Overie, is a Church of England cathedral in Southwark, London, near the south bank of the River Thames and close to London Bridge. It is the mother c ...

), James Watney married Rebecca

Spurrell Spurrell is a surname found in Norfolk, Wales and other parts of the United Kingdom, as well as in various countries around the world. Origins It has been suggested that the name of the Norfolk family is derived from the village of Sporle, nea ...

, elder daughter of the brewer and hop merchant James

, of Park Street,

Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...

, who was employed by Barclay & Perkins's

Anchor Brewery, Southwark The Anchor Brewery was a brewery in Park Street, Southwark, London, England. Established in 1616, by the early nineteenth century it was the largest brewery in the world. From 1781 it was operated by Barclay Perkins & Co, who in 1955 merged wi ...

. They had nine children. All five daughters remained unmarried. Of the four sons, one (Frederick) died young, aged 8 in 1846. The other three were: *

James Watney James Watney (18 December 1800 16 March 1884) was an English brewing, brewer and landowner who resided at Haling Park, Croydon, and Beddington, Surrey. He was born to Daniel Watney (1771–1831) of Mitcham, Surrey and Mary Galpin (1771–1830 ...

(1832–1886General Register Office. England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes. London, England: General Register Office) of Beddington, Surrey, and Thorney House, Palace Gate,

Kensington Kensington is an area of London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, around west of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up by Kensingt ...

, was

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

MP for

East Surrey East Surrey is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Claire Coutinho, a Conservative who formerly served as Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero. The seat covers an affluent area in t ...

from 1871–1885 and

Master of the Mercers' Company The Master Mercers of the Worshipful Company of Mercers have been, by reign: Richard II of England :1390 John Lovey :1391 John Organ :1392 John Organ :1393 John Organ :1394 William Parker :1395 Sir Richard Whittington (1st term) :1396 John Shadwor ...

in 1879. He also played cricket for

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

(1851) and

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

(1851–1852). Married Blanche Maria Georgiana Burrell in 1856.Church of England Parish Registers, 1754–1921. London Metropolitan Archives, London. *Norman Watney

(1834–1911) of Valance,

Westerham Westerham is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England. It is located 3.4 miles east of Oxted and 6 miles west of Sevenoaks, adjacent to the Kent border with both Greater London and Surrey. I ...

, Kent, was educated at

Harrow Harrow may refer to: Places * Harrow, Victoria, Australia * Harrow, Ontario, Canada * The Harrow, County Wexford, a village in Ireland * London Borough of Harrow, England * Harrow, London, a town in London * Harrow (UK Parliament constituency) * ...

. He was a Justice of the Peace and a Deputy Lieutenant for Kent, and also served as

in 1880. He married Matilda Jane Robinson on 26 April 1866 at

Clitheroe Clitheroe () is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Ribble Valley, Borough of Ribble Valley, Lancashire, England; it is located north-west of Manchester. It is near the Forest of Bowland and is often used as a base for to ...

, Lancashire. He built Valence, Westerham (now a school) in 1885 and was the father of the missionaries

Kate Kate may refer to: People and fictional characters * Kate (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or nickname * Gyula Káté (born 1982), Hungarian amateur boxer * Lauren Kate (born 1981), American author o ...

and Constance Watney. *

Herbert Watney Herbert Watney (1843–1932) of Buckhold, Pangbourne, Berkshire (now St Andrew's School, Pangbourne, St. Andrew's School) was a nineteenth century London physician, landowner and Philanthropy, philanthropist, and a strong supporter of Christian mi ...

(1843–1932) of Buckhold,

Pangbourne Pangbourne is a village and civil parish on the River Thames in the West Berkshire unitary area of the county of Berkshire, England. Pangbourne has shops, churches, schools and a village hall. Outside its nucleated village, grouped developed are ...

, Berkshire (now St. Andrew's School), was educated at

Rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby union: 15 players per side *** American flag rugby *** Beach rugby *** Mini rugby *** Rugby sevens, 7 players per side *** Rugby tens, 10 players per side *** Snow rugby *** Tou ...

and St. John's College, Cambridge.Venn, J. A., comp.. Alumni Cantabrigienses. London, England: Cambridge University Press, 1922–1954. He was Senior Assistant Physician at

St George's Hospital St George's Hospital is a large teaching hospital in Tooting, London. Founded in 1733, it is one of the UK's largest teaching hospitals. It is run by the St George's University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. It shares its main hospital site i ...

, London and

in 1915. He married Sarah Louisa Rainsford on 22 January 1872 at All Saints Church, Wandsworth, Surrey. The east window in Emmanuel Church,

was given by his son Norman in 1899 to the Glory of God and in loving memory of his parents James and Rebecca Watney. It was destroyed by enemy action in 1944 and replaced in 1954. One of his daughters, also called Rebecca, founded a mission chapel in Croydon and another at

Horsell Horsell is a village in the borough of Borough of Woking, Woking in Surrey, England, less than a mile north-west of Woking town centre. In November 2012, its population was 9,384. Horsell is integral to H. G. Wells' classic science fiction novel ...

in Surrey after moving to nearby Woking in 1893. The Horsell chapel, opened in 1900, became Horsell Evangelical Church. He was also uncle to

John Watney Sir John Watney (27 January 1834 – 25 March 1923), a member of the Watney family, was Honorary Secretary of the City and Guilds of London Institute for the Advancement of Technical Education from 1878 to 1920 and Chairman of Council of the Cit ...

who was secretary to the Mercers Company for many years.

Professional life

Family life

References

See also