Gun Brewery

Folkestone Observer Advertisement 24-2-1870

Folkestone Observer Advertisement 7-4-1870

Gun Brewery c1890

 

Gun Brewery c1890. Credit Alan Taylor

 

Maidstone Gazette 4-11-1851

Petty Sessions, Friday; Before R. Hart Esq., Mayor, W. Major, and S. Mackie Esqs.

Ham Tite, brewer and maltster, appeared to answer an information charging him with refusing to pay his pavement rate. The summons was dismissed, the rate not having been legally demanded.

Dover Telegraph 8-11-1851

Petty Sessions: Ham Tite, brewer and maltster, appeared to answer a summons for non-payment of the pavement rate. Case dismissed, the rate not having been legally demanded.

Dover Telegraph 27-12-1851

An important decision was given last week in a case brought before the Magistrates. It was a summons against Mr. Ham Tite, for refusing to pay a paving rate. Mr. Tite is the owner of several houses which abut on the highway, repaired by the parish, the pathway before his houses being his private property. He refused on the ground that the Pavement Act did not empower the Magistrates to levy a rate for such property. The Magistrates decided that the rate must be paid, and ordered it accordingly. 

Folkestone Observer 23-10-1869

Notice

GUN BREWERY, FOLKESTONE

GEORGE HAM TITE

In returning thanks to his numerous friends for the liberal manner in which they have supported him during the time he has conducted the above business, begs to inform them that in future it will be carried on by his son, William Tite, for whom he solicits a continuance of their patronage.

WILLIAM TITE

Respectfully announces that the business of the Gun Brewery, so successfully carried on by his Grandfather (Mr. Ham Tite), and his Father (Mr. George Ham Tite), for a period of Fifty years is now transferred to him. While acknowledging with thankfulness the kind support so liberally bestowed on them, he trusts, by strict attention, combined with moderate charges, to merit a continuance of public support and patronage.

Southeastern Gazette 7-2-1870

Meeting of the Town Council.

The council met at the Town-hall on Wednesday evening, when the Mayor presided, and the other members present were Alderman Gambrill, and Councillors Wightwick, Banks, Court, Holden, Pope, Harrison, Hoad, Sherwood Fitness, Tolputt, and Davidson.

The Clerk read the minutes of the General Purposes Committee upon the subject of the Bayle Pond, but with respect to the diversions they were not yet in a position to report on them.

Mr. Wightwick moved that the minutes should be adopted, and Mr. Fitness seconded the motion.

Mr Banks thought it was a serious matter that the public should be placed in the nosition they were with the Town Dyke. The working part of the present corporation paid a visit to the Town Dyke last week, and they were utterly astonished with the diversions made by the people of the public water, and what he meant by the public water, it belonged to the Town Dyke, and to nobody else. They were surprised on that visit to find the water carried across to a brickfield belonging to Alderman Gambrill. There was a pipe connected with the dyke by which the aldermen could draw the pond dry. But worse than all was the brewery of Alderman Tite. In it was a large reservoir supplied from the dyke, and the sooner they stopped these diversions the better. The committee went on further, and in Shellons Lane they found they had got the water there, so that the water was actually taken by certain parties in the town for their own purposes. He moved that the Town Clerk should be ordered to give the parties notice to cut the water off.

The Clerk stated that the General Purposes Committee had already ordered the -surveyor to bring up a report upon the diversions, and they had better wait for that before they proceeded farther.

Mr. Wightwick thought it unnecessary that they should go into the matter so far that night. If Alderman Tite had transgressed, he must suffer for it.

 

Folkestone Express Advertisement 29-7-1876

Folkestone Express Advertisement 2-2-1878

 

Folkestone Express 27-7-1878

Notice

To the Overseers of the Poor of the township of Folkestone, in the Borough of Folkestone, and to the Superintendent of Police of the said Borough

I, John Tite, Brewer, now residing at No. 41, Guildhall Street, in the Township of Folkestone, in the Borough of Folkestone, hereby give you notice that it is my intention to apply at the General Annual Licensing Meeting for the Borough of Folkestone, to be holden at the Town Hall in the said Borough, on the twenty first day of August next ensuing for a License to hold an additional Excise License to sell by retail at a Brewery, situated at Cheriton Road in the Borough aforesaid,  Beer, to be consumed off the premises, of which I am the owner, and it is my intention to apply to the Justices to insert in such License a condition that I shall keep the said premises closed during the whole of Sunday.

Given under my hand this Twentieth day of July, One Thousand Eight Hundred and Seventy Eight

JOHN TITE

Folkestone Herald 25-3-1899

Felix

The death of George Ham Tite

This typical old Folkestonian passed peacefully away at his residence, 6, Victoria Road, on Tuesday last, at the ripe age of 83 years. Thus one more link that bound Folkestone of the past with the present is snapped asunder. Deceased, who was born in the neighbourhood, was for many years the proprietor of the Gun Brewery, but he retired from business some 20 years ago. He was the worthy son of that worthy gentleman, the late Alderman Ham Tite, who, too, lived beyond four score years. Unlike his parent, the deceased did not identify himself with the public life of the community. After he had laid aside the anxieties of business, he devoted his leisure to gardening, in the pursuit of which pastime he derived the highest form of pleasure. Accompanied by his dog, and smoking his beloved pipe, deceased was often a familiar figure walking along the Cheriton Road, and it was only when the speculating builder swallowed up his trim little garden hereabouts that we missed him. The loss of that little patch of ground was the loss of everything that had made life worth living for. Perhaps the younger blooded amongst us can hardly realise what a bond of affection there often is between the old and their garden – “that friend of life`s decay”. Quiet, unassuming man that he was, Mr. Tite was one of nature`s best, and he will be remembered as such far beyond the family circle. He leaves behind five grown up children and a surviving brother to mourn his loss. Amongst the many messages of condolence the family have during the past few days received is one from Mr. Leopold Rothschild. It will be remembered that the late Mr. Arthur Tite (brother of deceased) held a high position in this famous financial house, and that his worthy son Arthur also holds a post of trust in the same great firm.

Up to the very last the late gentleman clung with affection to his pipe, always a solace to him throughout his life. It is known to myself that when the sands of life were fast ebbing away, our old friend feebly remarked that he would like a whiff of tobacco. One of his sons standing near at once gratified his request. Deceased blew three or four whiffs from the bowl, and then laid it aside, remarking “The last pipe”. And so it was, for soon after his weary eyes peacefully closed for ever on this mortal scene.

“We sail the sea of life a calm one finds

And one a tempest – and the voyage is o`er –

Death is the quiet haven of us all.”

  

George Ham Tite`s Headstone in Cheriton Road Cemetery, Folkestone

Folkestone Herald 27-12-1930

Felix

Here is a tribute to Folkestone water, and incidentally, beer. The present generation can hardly realise that there were three breweries in Folkestone, namely the Gun Brewery (adjoining Mr. Walter`s upholstery establishment in Cheriton Road, and the Shakespeare Hotel), also the Burton Brewery in Tontine Street, in close proximity to one of Messrs. Gosnold and Co.`s drapery establishment, and another near High Street steps (long since disappeared) in Tontine Street was once in the possession of Messrs. C. and A. Dickenson. It is quite evident this firm believed in Folkestone water for the purposes of brewing. Here is an extract from a circular the firm issued three score years and ten ago: “We beg to inform the public that Folkestone water, as analysed by Professor Taylor, of Guy`s Hospital, is devoid of all deleterious matter, possessing qualities beneficial to general health; thus confirming the well known fact that Folkestone is one of the most healthy places in England. Its water contains every requisite for brewing Ales and Stouts. Thus they have entered into arrangements with Mr. Watson Martin, son of the eminent manager and brewer of Messrs. Ind, Coope & Co., brewers, Burton on Trent, who was for some time Brewer at Messrs. Bass & Co.”. The firm further declare that “they will use their utmost endeavour to supply the Folkestone public with Ales and Stout not to be surpassed by any brewers in the county”. And the pre-war prices! These are remarkable reading in the light of the present day, namely “Mild beer, 1s. per gallon, ditto ale, 1s. 6d., strong ale, 1s. 6d., pale ale, 1s., porter 1s., double brown stout 1s.”. The only relic of the Burton Brewery, Tontine Street, is the name it bequeathed to the Brewery Tap, over whose destinies another Professor Taylor presides. The premises of the old Cheriton Road brewery and its site, are, I notice, to be disposed of. These once belonged to the late Mr. Alderman Ham Tite, who passed away in his 90^th year.

Note: Dickenson`s was not the small brewery mentioned at the bottom of the High Street steps, but the Burton Brewery, Tontine Street.

Folkestone Herald 30-11-1957

 

Guildhall Street by “L.R.J.”

It was a quiet little lane, about 12ft. wide, with few buildings along its length and wide open spaces either side of it. Almost a country lane. Shellons Lane was that part of the Guildhall Street of today from the Town Hall to the Cheriton Road turning, and it is so shown on a street map of 1782 in the possession of Folkestone Public Library. The present Shellons Street was then Griggs Lane, and the part of Guildhall Street from the Cheriton turning onwards was called Broad Mead, Bottom Lane.

Why “Shellons” Lane? Shellons was the name of a large field on the west side of the lane, and the thoroughfare, such as it was, took its name from it, just as Copthall Gardens derived from the field called Copt Hall, to the north of Shellons Lane.

Both these fields belonged to the King`s Arms Farm, which in all consisted of about 171 acres. An old map of 1698 lists the various fields that formed the farm. There were only one or two old buildings on the west side of Guildhall Street a century and a half ago, and very few on the east side. Shellons Lane was ..... just a lane.

On the site where the Town Hall now stands was the King’s Arms inn, with next to it two or three small buildings. Behind it was the town gaol, with stocks in which malefactors were placed. Lord Radnor was the hereditary gaoler. Some time after 1782 the King`s Arms was moved across the road to part of the site on which now stands the Queen`s Hotel. It was the corner building of Cow Street (now Sandgate Road) and Shellons Lane. The old King`s Arms buildings were demolished, and a building known as “The Cistern House” was erected on the site. This too was pulled down in 1859, to make way for the present Town Hall, opened in 1861. The Town Hall had no portico until 18 years later.

The first houses on the eastern side of Guildhall Street were erected in 1844, approximately where the Guild­hall Hotel and the shop next door now stand. The hotel itself was opened probably about 30 years later, for the first reference to it is in 1870, when the proud land­lord, named Andrews, an­nounced “Mine is the only house in Folkestone where there is a stand-up bar like the London style.”

By 1844 Guildhall Street - still Shellons Lane - was built up on the east side to about the present premises of Messrs.  Halfords. Development went on until by 1870 there were houses and shops up to the corner of Griggs Lane (Shellons Street), though Messrs. Vickery`s  premises were built a little later. For nearly a century the comer building now occupied by Messrs. Olby was a baker's shop. The premises were built in 1856. It is interesting to note that a very old boundary wall still exists between the premises of Richmond’s dairy and Halfords, a wall more than 150 years old. Towards the end of the nine­teenth century Guildhall Street developed with the expansion of the town and undoubtedly became a popular shopping centre, but it was still far removed from the Street of today.

The west side of the Street, as has already been stated, had very few buildings in 1782. The removal of the King’s Arms from the present Town Hall site to the comer opposite may have been one of the first developments on this side of Guildhall Street. The exact date is uncertain, but it was probably after 1782. The road junction at that time was small, the meeting place of four narrow lanes, and the building stood well out into what is now the roadway. It was not until 1882, and after protracted litigation between the owners and the Corporation that the junction was widened to its present pro­portions. The Kings Arms was a small hostelry by modern standards, with a billiards room at the back and a skittle alley. One wall ran a short distance along Guildhall Street and appears to have been a popular place for posting notices of auction sales, meetings and so on. Later the hostelry was ex­tended and improved. When all the litigation was ended (there is a sizeable volume of the proceedings in the Reference Library) the King’s Arms was pulled down, and on May 30^th, 1885, the Queen’s Hotel was opened.

A large garden occupied most of the length of Guildhall Street from the King’s Arms, nearly to what is now Messrs. Andrews’ shop. It is possible that this gar­den, quite extensive in length and depth, may have belonged to a Mr. Solomon, who built Alexander Gardens.

On the site of Stace’s stood two small cottages, known as Pay’s cottages, and where Mr. Lummus’s cycle shop is now situated stood another building, called Gun cottage. In the course of years the open spaces were built over. On the site of the Playhouse cinema once stood a substantial property known as Ivy House, and behind it, approached by the alley-way which still exists, were stables. A little further along was Marlborough House, the resi­dence of a veterinary surgeon.

Part of the Guildhall Street of days gone by was the Gun barn, shown on the 1782 map. About 1840 the Gun brewery occupied the site of Messrs. Walter’s furnishing store. There is reason to believe that a brewery originally stood on the site of Messrs. Plummer Roddis in Rendezvous Street and was transferred to the new site rather more than a century ago.

The Gun Tavern takes its name from an old gun of the Tudor period, upended, that had long been in position at the comer of Guildhall Street

and Cheriton Road. It was removed to the western end of the Leas prior to the 1914-18 war, and about that period it disappeared. What became of it is a mystery to this day.

The Gun brewery - and breweries were small and many in those days - was owned by a man named Ham Tite. His beer may not always have been up to standard, for in a County Cunt case in 1871 a witness said the beer was so bad that his customers couldn’t drink it. The brewery continued until about 1880, but by 1882 part of it had become, of all things, a Chapel and coffee house. It was known as the Emanuel Mission Church, conducted by a Mr. Toke. The tinted windows of the church remain and there is still an “atmosphere” about the building, though it has long ceased to serve any religious purpose.

The Gun smithy is certainly a piece of old Folkestone, for the building itself has changed, there has been a smithy on this site for at least a century.

The Shakespeare Hotel at the comer of Guildhall Street and Cheriton Road is more than a century old, for all its up-to-date facade. It was refronted in 1897, when it belonged to the Army and Navy Brewery Company. In 1848 it was the Shakes­peare Tavern, and a directory of a later date announces that tea and quoits were available. For some obscure reason it was stated to be “near the Viaduct”.

So the transformation of Guildhall Street from the vir­tually open fields of Shellons Lane into a modern, progres­sive and popularshopping centre has taken place in less than 150 years. The unpaved, narrow lane is no more, gone are some of the ”landmarks” of over 80 years ago, many of the old names have been lost. Changes and development have given to Folkestone a street of which the town can be proud, a street of many trades, a progressive street, a street of good and efficient service to the public, a street of shops where the customer is always right. Guildhall Street.

Folkestone Herald 29-7-1972

Local News

The recent discovery of a 52-foot deep well near the site of the Shakespeare Hotel on the corner of Guildhall Street and Cheriton Road was a reminder of the days when Folke­stone was almost self-supporting, even to the extent of having several breweries to slake the thirst of locals. The public house and surrounding buildings have been flattened to make way for the northern distributor road.

The site where the well was discovered was developed as a brewery in 1849 on land occupied by the Gun Barn. It is doubtful whether the brewery used the well water because the town dyke wound its way along Guildhall Street to the Bayle Pond. Mains water was introduced to Folkestone in 1851. In the early days of the supply, water was only available at certain hours during the day. Many houses had slate cis­terns in which to store water. The well could have been used by the occupiers of the premises when the water supply was off.

The Gun Brewery took its name from the Tudor cannon sited on the corner of Cheriton Road and Guildhall Street for many years. The cannon probably came from the battery on The Bayle. It is believed to have gone for salvage during the last world war. The brewery owed its origin to Mr. Ham Tite. In the very early 19th century members of the family were ¡n business in Faversham as maltsters. Mr. Tite started in business in Folkestone after his marriage to an Elham girl. He set himself up in business in Folkestone in an old brewery in Rendezvous Street, which formed part of the old Plummer Roddis building. Old records show Mr. Tite occupied the premises in July, 1842. Two years later Mr. Ebenezer Searle or Tearle, occupied the building, although Mr. Tite was still rated in respect of land. It appears that brewing and malting was tempor­arily àbandoned. In 1847 Mr. Ham Tite re­appears as a maltster, and George Ham Tite is listed for the first time. His occupa­tion is given as a brewer, and he set up business in the Gun Brewery. Brewing was going on in 1884 at the Gun Brewery. The twin cones of the malt house were in existence until a short time ago when they were demolished. They were hidden by a more recent building. Ham Tite continued his business until he was about 60 years old. He died in 1882 at the age of 93. The brewing business was carried on by his son and grandson, and other members of his family. They continued until about 1880, when the brewing was taken over by Clement J. Cowell. Malting seems to have ceased about the time of Ham Tite’s death. In 1882, Mr. Martin Henry, a Folkestone dentist, secured a lease of part of the pre­mises in connection with the Y.M.C.A. The same year he allowed the Emmanuel Mission Church to use part of the premises leased to him by Mr. Tite.

Three years later Mr. Cowell was succeeded by Nicholl and Turner. In November of the next year George Belgrave adver­tised his Folkestone Ales, and he continued at the Gun Brewery until September 1895 when the premises were sold. They were again sold in 1899 to A. Leney and Co. of Dover. Brewing ceased some time around those dates, although Leney’s advertised their Dover Pale Ale, bottled at the Gun Brewery, Folke­stone, as late as 1899. The Gun was possibly the last brewery to function in Folkestone. Between the years 1912-14, the malt house was occupied by Robert Henry Goodall’s School of Physical Culture and later by engineering and furnishing companies.