Business: Maclay and Co Ltd
Location: Alloa
Type: Brewery
The Thistle Brewery was built by James Maclay in anticipation of the ending of his lease on the Mills Brewery. He moved into the brewery in November 1875 but died suddenly a month later.
The brewery was then taken on by his sons James and John, trading as J. & J. Maclay.
The brewery and associated maltings were put up for sale in 1881, following the dissolution of the partnership, when it was promoted as being "very compact, the working expenses are consequently small".
The brewery was acquired in around 1882 by Robert and John Ramsay, two brothers who ran a bottling business in Dunfermline. They traded as Maclay & Co, and then converted the business into a limited company in 1896 - Maclay & Co Ltd.
Brewing ceased in 1999 as a consequence of a strategy to focus on the company's pub group. Most of the site has been redeveloped as a retail and housing complex, but a small part still stands, now in use as a pub.
Active: 1875 - 1999
Address: Mill Road
Status: Part survives
Current Use: Pub
Web resources
Canmore has a number of records relating to the Thistle Brewery. Last accessed 19th July 2016.
Books and periodicals
Hume, J. R. The industrial archaeology of Scotland, 1: The Lowlands and Borders. London: B. T. Batsford, 1976.
McMaster, C. Alloa Ale: a history of the brewing industry in Alloa. Edinburgh: Alloa Brewery Company, 1985.
