The Rise and Fall of Whittle Springs Brewery
A brief history of the rise and fall of the Spa and Brewery at Whittle Springs.
by J. Jackson.

WHITTLE   SPRINGS

The story of Whittle Springs, for it was at Whittle that the spring was discovered, has its own fascination and begins in the year 1836

Continued success of Whittle Springs Brewery.

As the Spa gently declined, the brewery became ever larger and more successful. The coming-of-age of the eldest son of James Thomson was held at the "Howard Arms" in March 1889. It was attended by at least a hundred people who enjoyed lunch and afternoon tea at the hotel. A photograph of this occasion, taken in the grounds of the "Howard Arms" clearly shows a handsome stone lion on the banking behind the assembled guests. I mention it because the lion has been a great attraction at the Springs over many years. Where he originally came from, nobody seems to know, but countless children have clamoured to ride on his back and no doubt he has figured in many a photograph since that day over a hundred years ago.

In that same year (1889) Thomas Gardner died and the three man partnership was dissolved. The brewery, still called the Whittle Springs Brewery, carried on business throughout the Boer War, when a tax was imposed on ale. By 1909, when further additions were made to the brewery, it owned most of the property in the vicinity. Two villas opposite Moss Lane bridge were occupied by Mr. Holland, the Secretary, and Mr. Collins who was on of the chief brewers. Two coopers and a joined, Mr. Irving, in Spring Terrace. "Geenfield" a large residence on Town Lane belonged to Mr. Hugh Thwaites, a manager.
The brewery now had its own Mailings. Sacks of grain were hoisted from the boats, up the chute, to the top of the building where the mailing process began, A tunnel was built under Lower Lane so that the barrels could be rolled down to the waiting barges. Because the brewery was so close to the canal, the joke locally was that Whittle Ales, known to be the strongest in Lancashire, were brewed "straight out t'cut." In the sense that the ingredients for the beer, with the exception of course of the pure spring water, all arrived by means of the canal, there was some truth in the saying.
For many years , Whittle Springs was busy with the constant traffic of drays, and later waggons, loaded with ale. Monday was the busiest day because the local farmers came to buy "the grains", the brewery's waste product. These came down a chute and straight in to the waiting carts. They were driven away, still steaming, and the contents were later fed to the livestock. Horse drawn carts, laden with sand from the sand quarries behind Gorse Hall, also came to the sand wharf so that sand could be transported to Wigan Iron Works.