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Back in 1951, soda water had been made in Derby for over a century. In 1850, a burgess of the borough, Christopher Pritchard, had decided to add the manufacture of soda water to his business of gardener and from this small beginning the firm of Burrows & Sturgess Ltd. had emerged. Pritchard`s business was acquired by William Sturgess in the 1870`s and, shortly after his death in 1899, was amalgamated with W.E. Burrows Ltd., a business of similar nature, with his second son, Harry Sturgess as managing director.

Over forty years of progress under this management saw the sphere of activities constantly widening and it was a great loss to the company when Mr. Harry Sturgess died in 1943, for he, more than anyone else, was the architect of its fortunes.

In its establishment many other businesses were absorbed in Derby and neighbouring cities and towns including, in 1921, that of W. Severn & Co. Ltd. This extended the firm`s field of activity to the bottling of beer and stout and dealing in wines and spirits.

Progress in the inter-war years was uninterrupted but the second world war bought many problems and restrictions, notably the concentration scheme for the soft drinks industry, which operated from February 1st ,1943, to January 31st, 1948. During the whole of that time deliveries were restricted and production regulated by the Soft Drinks Industry (War-Time) Association Ltd., on the Executive Committee of which the managing director of the company, Mr. John Sturgess, served as the representative of Composite Manufacturers, ie., those whose businesses included the bottling of beer, etc., as well as the manufacture of soft drinks.

With the advent of peace the problem of re-equipment was tackled immediately, and the whole of the soft drinks and beer bottling plant, sadly overworked during the war, has been replaced with up-to-date, fully automatic plant, including what was perhaps the most modern soft drinks installation in the world. Its design was in advance of anything that had yet appeared in America and was of British manufacture throughout.

The transport fleet, units of which were a familiar sight all over the Midlands, was modernised and consisted of some 60 vehicles with a total carrying capacity of 300 tons, enabling regular deliveries to be maintained throughout the area served.

Production was concentrated in the bottling stores and soft drinks factory on Ashbourne Road in Derby and a branch factory at Lichfield. Distribution was from the Derby and Lichfield factories and trading depots at Sheffield, Leicester, Mansfield, and the Potteries, a network that covered practically the whole of the Midlands. Wines and spirits were distributed through subsidiary organisations – two in Derby, Severn`s of Curzon Street and the Osmaston Wine and Spirit stores ; Powell`s, Clumber Street, Mansfield ; Marshall`s, Gregory Street, Ilkeston ; and Beck`s Stores, Sheffield. The demand for the company`s products continued to increase and its speciality “Spartona” became a household name for a non-alcoholic beverage that appealed to all. “Spa” table waters were a synonym for quality, as was the blue and gold neck label that appeared on all bottles of beer and stout bottled by Burrows & Sturgess Ltd. – “Bottlers of the Best.”

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Submitted by Paul Morrell.

1. REDIRECT Burrows & Sturgess - "Bottlers of the Best"