South Canterbury New Zealand
1864-1985
Part 2
JOHN BROWN BINLEY was South Canterbury’s second "Bottler". He established his first plant in Church St, Timaru in 1864. In 1867 he was Publican at the Point Hotel, but in 1870 Binley moved to Temuka to set up the town’s first aerated water factory. In 1888 John passed the business on to his son William. It is thought that William Binley may have sold his plant to J. Lee at the turn of Century. J.B. Binley died, and was buried in Temuka in 1893.
SIMPSON BROTHERS were listed as Aerated Water and Cordial Manufacturers between 1877 and 1880. They may have operated for longer than three years, but no precise address in Temuka can be found. It is assumed that they were independent of buy-outs and takeovers as these dates (1877 - 1880) don’t correspond with any other Temuka plants at the time.
HENRY LEEwas actually a Brewer who operated a Cordial Factory at his "Temuka Brewery and Aerated Waters", from 1900 to 1906. It is thought that Henry Lee was a brother of John Lee, a noted "Bottler" of Temuka. The Temuka Brewery was burnt down in 1907, however, the soft drink factory was saved and continued. In 1906 Lee sold the plant to BRYANT AND DINEEN. Bryan and Dineen continued the brewery for a year until the 1907 fire. H.J. MILSOM who had earlier owned aerated water plants in Ashburton and Lyttleton, operated the soft drink plant from 1906 until 1908 when he sold it to FREDERICK JOHNS.Johns probably worked at the brewery or the fizz plant at an earlier date because he was noted as living in the "Brewery Cottage". Frederick Johns’ name disappeared from the directories in 1910. The old brewery and cordial factory became a bacon curing factory in 1911. The semi-demolished remains were flattened in 1980 to make way for the "Export Packers" shed just east of the southern Temuka by-pass.
| HENRY LEE | |||
| H.J. MILSOM | |||
| FREDERICK JOHNS |
JOHN LEE established what was to become Temuka’s longest living Aerated Water Factory. Lee may have taken over William Binley’s Factory in about 1900 for they were in the same area of Temuka, (on the corner of King St and Frasers St). John Lee didn’t appear in the directories until 1905. However, this cannot be taken as being accurate. In 1919 Lee became "J. LEE & COMPANY". The firm by now was the only one left in Temuka manufacturing soft drinks.
In 1929 D.C. CLARK purchased J. Lee & Co. Clark’s products became well known around Northern South Canterbury and enjoyed success in Mid-Canterbury. However, as transport improved many small town businesses such as Clark’s, faced increasing pressure and competition from larger centres such as Timaru. In 1954 D.C. Clark was bought by F. Chittock & Son of Timaru, and closed.
| JOHN LEE | King Street, Temuka | |
| J. LEE & CO. | King Street, Temuka | |
| D.C. CLARK | King Street, Temuka |
R.S. COOKE & COMPANY were the first Waimate aerated water manufacturers, being established in 1877. It isn’t known where their plant was, but it appeared to have disappeared in about 1880, although it is possible that JACOB LEVIEN of Timaru bought the plant in 1878 or 1879. Levien was the province’s first "Bottler" and appears in the Waimate listings from 1878 until 1883. Levien then continued with his Timaru business. It is unlikely that Jacob Levien actually ran the Waimate plant himself. Perhaps Cooke continued to do this under Levien’s financial directorship.
RUSSELL & MILSOM were brewers and aerated water manufacturers on the corner of Eaton & High Streets, Waimate. Charles Russell bought the Waimate Brewery from William Forsbrook in 1894. In 1896 he entered into a partnership with James Boyton Milsom. This arrangement bought about the building of an aerated water plan next to the brewery. In 1899 Russell left and J.B. MILSOM was in charge and later joined by his brother Richard Milsom, to form "MILSOM BROTHERS".
Richard ran the soft drink plant and James the brewery. The name Milsom was seen all over Canterbury in connection with Aerated Waters. The family can be traced back to J. Milsom and Co in St Asaph Street, Christchurch in 1878. He also had a factory in Dunsandel. In the 1880’s he took over Richard’s factory in Lyttleton, and in turn sold it to a Mr Schumacher before moving to Ashburton, then to Waimate. Richard Joined his father George Milsom in a plant in Kaiapoi before joining James in Waimate. Another brother H.J. had been in Ashburton before running H. Lee’s old plant in Temuka. In about 1903 Richard left the business leaving James to run both operations. J.B. MILSOM sold the "Hayward & Taylor" Aerated Water machinery in 1910 to Douglas Foster. Milsom continued his brewery business until about 1920. The Milsom’s used the "Huntsman" symbol on their bottles and demi johns.
| RUSSELL & MILSOM | Waimate Brewery & Aerated Waters | Eaton St | 1896 - 1899 |
| MILSOM BROTHERS | Waimate Brewery & Aerated Waters | Eaton St | 1899 - 1903 |
| JAMES B. MILSOM | Waimate Brewery & Aerated Waters | Eaton St | 1903 - 1910 |
DOUGLAS FOSTER having purchased Milsom’s machinery in 1910, set up his factory in Leonard Street, Waimate in that same year. Foster was born in Henley on Thames, Oxford, England in 1876. In 1933 the business became "FOSTER AND COMPANY". Foster was the last, and the strongest of the Waimate Companies. His product was well supported in the Waimate County. His Leonard Street plant was up to date but like his counterpart in Temuka (D.C. Clark) eventually fell to the larger Timaru and Oamaru businesses. Foster’s closed in 1944. Doug Foster himself died in Timaru in 1950.
W.R. COLLETT & BROS were a Wine & Spirit Company who also manufactured aerated waters and cordials. Situated in High Street Waimate and were established in 1897. The business was run by Sam Collett, a native of Glouchestershire. Collett was a builder when he arrived in Waimate. Colletts ceased manufacturing soft drink in about 1903.
SAMUEL P. KERR was another early Waimate Bottler. Again, unfortunately, their address in Waimate is unknown, but it is known that the firm became "KERR & COMPANY" in 1896 after the original establishment date of 1893. The "Kerr & Co" factory disappeared in 1899. It is possible they sold to Walter Osborn.
WALTER OSBORN was established as a soft drink maker in High Street
Waimate in 1898. Osborn must have had a reasonably well-established business,
as he had his own soda syphon bottles and "Embossed" soft drink
bottles. Many smaller operators used paper labels on plain bottles, gathered
from wherever they could get them. Like Colletts, Osborn left the soft drink
scene in 1903.
DONALD BROCK was yet another "Bottler" in Waimate. Brock left little evidence of his operation, although it has been suggested that Brock bought Osborn’s High Street Plant, even though Brock doesn’t appear on record until 1906 and vanished in 1908.
JAMES TURNER operated a small aerated water business in Geraldine from 1888. It isn’t known exactly where the factory was but it was apparently on the old brewery site in Talbot St. Turner left his mark on the industry with the now rare "Embossed" "CODD" bottle (with glass ball stopper). In about 1908 James Turner’s son David took over the business. DAVID TURNER continued the business until its closure in 1925.
EDWARD FISHER was the only competing business for the Turners
in Geraldine. It is thought that Fisher used paper labels on his bottles
to identify his product. Edward Fisher’s soft drinks were only on the
market from 1903 until 1906.
GORRAM LAMBERT was an early Pleasant Point Chemist who had operated on the site of the old Post Office. In 1907 he moved to the corner of Main Road and Halstead Road. Behind the chemist shop was a large tin shed in which Gorram’s son Arthur, operated an aerated water business, in the style of "G. LAMBERT & SON".
Arthur Lambert used to catch the "Fairlie Flyer" once a week to sell his goods to the publicans and storekeepers on the line to Fairlie. The example of one of his cordial labels on display was found in the Railway Hotel, Albury. Lambert’s business is thought to have closed in about 1920. The chemist shop became a corner shop, demolished in about 1972.
ERNEST A. CRAWFORD operated a soft drink plant in Pleasant Point from about 1935 until 1946. Some local folk think Crawford may have taken over Lamberts plant and he operated in the old Lambert factory, but no-one is sure of this.
JOSEPH H. DOYLE established a flourmill at Eversley, just a mile north west of Fairlie in 1882. Not long after he experienced problems with water supply because of the new railway and in about 1885 he built a small cordial factory on the south side of the "Eversley Mills and Bakery". The aerated water plant produced what was known for 95 years as "Mount Cook Cordials". In 1912 Joseph’s son DAVID H. DOYLE took over the business. During David’s time at the helm the mill was closed and demolished and a new factory built to manufacture soft drinks.
In 1934 T.W. WATKINS bought the old Doyle business and continued it for nearly twenty years. In 1953 A.E. (SAM) MARSDEN purchased Mt Cook Cordials. Sam Marsden resisted many takeover offers through the 1950’s and 60’s in particular. His old truck painted many different colours is still remembered in Fairlie. Sam ran very close to the wind on several occasions when using "larger companies" bottles. His larger competitions gave up their attempts to knock him out of the industry in the 1970’s when they no longer saw him as a threat. Mt Cook Cordials was the last private cordial company in South Canterbury to close, only Coca Cola in Timaru outlasted them. The business only closed in 1980 when Sam Marsden died. His machinery ended up in the Fairlie Museum and his bottles in the Chatham Islands!