INDUSTRIES 



tion of spirits has for long been stringently 

 regulated, the two operations are not per- 

 mitted to be carried on in the same premises, 

 or indeed, as at present, within a quarter of a 

 mile of each other.* Thus in considering the 

 question of the production of distilled spirits 

 in Surrey we have to deal with two distinct 

 classes of manufacturers, the distiller and the 

 rectifier. 



Of the history of distilling in Surrey the 

 evidences for the earlier period are exceed- 

 ingly meagre, whilst for the later period we 

 are mainly concerned with a few important 

 firms, some of which are still in existence. 

 So far as the returns of aliens dwelling in the 

 city and suburbs of London have as yet been 

 printed by the Huguenot Society, they do 

 not show the presence of a single foreign 

 distiller on the south side of the river. The 

 number indeed that appear in the whole of 

 London itself during this period (1523-97) 

 could be counted on less than the fingers of 

 one hand, and it is probable that here was an 

 industry for the development of which in the 

 sixteenth century we were little if at all 

 indebted to foreign influence. Yet the name 

 of the first Surrey distiller whom we have 

 been able to trace suggests a foreign origin. 

 This was John alias Haunce (Hans) Sturme 

 of Southwark, ' aquavite-maker,' who made 

 his will on 21 September 1603, and must 

 have died some time before 30 September 

 following, when the will was proved.^ In 

 the returns of strangers dwelling in London 

 and its liberties made in compliance with the 

 order of the Privy Council of 6 September 

 1 61 8, three distillers appear to have been 

 then established in the parish of St. Olave, 

 Southwark. These were Nychols Ryce, who 

 had been a joiner, but was then a stiller of 

 aquavitx ; born a subject of the Duke of 

 Cleves, he had been in England sixty years ; 

 Roger Addoney, an ' aquevetty ' stiller, born 

 in Julich, and in England fifty years ; and 

 Christian Welsehm (or Wyhelhames) who 

 combined the making of gallipots with the 

 distilling of aquavits, and had been born in 

 the land of the Palgrave.' During the first 

 half of the seventeenth century the distilling 

 industry was protected by monopolies, the 



1 The principal Act now regulating the manu- 

 facture of distilled spirits is the Spirit Act (1880) 

 43 & 44 Vict. c. 24. 



2 P.C.C. Bolein, 70 ; see Surr. Arch. Coll, xi. 

 119. A John Sturrome took out Letters of Deni- 

 zation in 1550 {Huguenot Soc. Pub. viii. 227). He 

 may be the same as John Sturme here referred to. 



» S. P. Dom. Jas. I. xcix. 43, printed in Foreigners 

 'Resident in England, 1618-88 (ed. Camden Soc. 

 O.S. 82), 95, 96. 



best known patent being that to Sir Theodore 

 de Mayerne and Thomas Cademan on 25 

 March 1635.* Later in the century a few 

 token coins of Southwark traders point to the 

 existence of distilleries in the Borough, Thus 

 there is the token of Wil. Rogers, Swan & 

 Stil, Southwark Distiller, whilst on the 

 token of James Pitman in Southwarke, 

 1665, a still is represented, and on that of 

 Nehemiah Drought in S. Toules Streete, 

 the arms of the Distillers' Company are 

 seen." 



But the seat of the most famous Surrey 

 distilleries has been the adjoining parish of 

 Lambeth. Here on the site of the house 

 called Vaux Hall or Copt Hall in Kenning- 

 ton we are told that Mr. Kent, distiller, had 

 a large distillery by lease in 1725 from the 

 Duchy of Cornwall.' He failed, and the 

 ground was subsequently held under two 

 leases by the names of 'the Manor' and 

 ' Vaux Hall Wharf.' Both leases were at 

 some time after Kent's failure held by Mr. 

 Pratt, who continued the business of the dis- 

 tillery. In this business he was succeeded 

 by his son-in-law, Sir Joseph Mawbey, bart., 

 who was for many years member of Parlia- 

 ment for the borough of Southwark, and 

 afterwards a knight of the shire for Surrey.^ 

 He died in 1798, shortly after which event 

 Pennant, in his description of Lambeth, says: 

 * In this parish are the vast distilleries till of 

 late the property of Sir Joseph Mawbey ; 

 there are seldom less than 2,000 hogs con- 

 stantly grunting at this place, which are kept 

 entirely on the grains.'* Pennant proceeds 

 to moralise on the large sums added to the 

 revenue of the coimtry by the produce of the 

 duty on * this Stygian liquor,' but does not 

 say whether the business of the single dis- 

 tiller, who he says had in one year (1785-6) 

 contributed as much as ;^54>ooo to the 

 revenue, was carried on in Surrey or not. 

 After Mawbey's death his distillery was 

 carried on by Cuthbert Johnson & Co., the 

 under-tenants of Sir Charles Blicke, who held 

 the lease.' In 1814 the lease was the pro- 

 perty of Mr. Snaith, a London banker, and 

 the distilling business was being continued 

 under the style of Snaith 's Distillery." 



Adjoining this distillery on the north side 



* Pat. II Chas. I. pt. 39, No. 13. 



5 Mrs. Boger, Bygone Southwark, 243, quoting 

 the late Mr. Syer Cuming. 



« Lysons, Environs of London (ed. 2), i. 232. 



' Allen, Hist, of Lambeth, 368. 



8 Pennant, Some account of London, Westminster 

 and Southwark (n.d.), i. 33. 



» Allen, loc. cit. 

 " Manning and Bray, Hist, of Surr. iii. 489. 



395 



