The Shire Horses at Work in the Brewery

The shire horse drawn dray at Hook Norton Brewery ceased deliveries in 1950, but was revitalised in 1985, mainly for public relation purposes. The shire horses now only deliver locally within 5 miles of the brewery, but attend many public functions such as fetes, pub openings and on the odd occasion, weddings and the Royal Windsor Horse Show. It should be noted that out of all of the breweries that own horse drawn drays, only two still actually deliver their products by dray and shire horse. At present the Brewery has three shire horses (Consul, Major and Nelson), who are looked after by their two draymen Roger Hughes and Philip White.

History of the Brewery Shire Horse

Some measure of how businesses like the brewery once relied on these wonderful horses can be illustrated by the difference in the number of shire horses on the brewery's books at the turn of the century.

As mentioned above, the Brewery accommodates three shire horses today, but in the in the late 1800's when horsepower was the only available form of transportation for the beers, within a limited radius of the brewery, you could have seen up to 8 shire horses stabled on the brewery site.

There would have also been additional horses stabled elsewhere. In Banbury, Shipston, Stratford, Witney and Stow, these would be used by outriders when making their rounds. Each outrider would be supplied with a horse and trap, supplied and paid for by the brewery. Equipping each shire horse was a costly business, and from various records we can see that in 1910 the total for this would have been £1,330 per dray. Not an inconsiderable sum at the time.

Due to the nature of the work from time to time, horses would be sold by the brewery. They were taken to the well-known Stow Fair, and would sell for prices between £15 and £20. Any replacements horses would be bought from local farmers. It was extremely rare for a shire horse to die in the brewery’s possession, but long serving faithful horses would be put out to grass to see out their days.

Old Hook Norton Shire Horse Names

The shire horse is a powerful yet majestic creature and the names within our records seem to reflect this. Prince, Captain and Lion are to name but just a few. It should be said though we have had a Dumpling, Jumbo and Spot, which do not have the same air of grandeur about them!

shire horses driving down country lane A days work for a dray horse

At 8.00am the Dray is loaded and the horses are fed, watered and groomed. At 9.30 -9.45am the horses are tacked up and attached to dray. At About 10 - 10.30am they leave the brewery to carry out deliveries.

The sight of the two shire horses leaving the brewery is extremely impressive, and one that forms the perfect picture of a rural idyll. Many tourists are in awe of this sight, and will spend a considerable amount of time admiring these handsome creatures.


Important notice

We would advise you to contact the brewery if you are planning a visit and would like to see the drays on their regular delivery rounds.

Tel: 01608 737210

Email: enquiries@hook-norton-brewery.co.uk

The dray delivery schedule:
Day of the week Public house
Monday Day off
Tuesday The Sun Inn, Hook Norton
Wednesday The White swan, wigginton
Thursday The pear Tree, Hook Norton
Friday The Gate Hangs High, Hook Norton

The Drayman

picture of Roger Hughes The Hook Norton Drayman

A profile of Roger Hughes, drayman at Hook Norton Brewery. Roger has not always been involved with horses, and is actually a printer by trade.

He was born in 1945 and lived in Deddington, where his father had a small farm. In 1984, Roger moved to Hook Norton and became a driver’s mate on one of the brewery lorries and soon moved on to be in charge of the fermentation room.

Roger's association with the Shire horses gradually grew as he was acting as groom when they attended events and shows. Roger became the permanent full time horseman at Hook Norton Brewery in 2003, taking on the big commitment of looking after these magnificent animals.

The Shire horses take up a large part of Roger's life but he still finds time for his other interests such as reading, history, visiting stately homes and frequenting his favorite pub, The Pear Tree, Hook Norton.

Profiles of the Hook Norton Shire Horses
Consul our shire horse Shire Name Consul
Consul is getting rather aged now but still does his job.
Keeping sound and healthy over the years, Consul has been a wonderful servant for the 10 years he has been with the brewery.
Colour Dark Bay
Nick name None
Height 17.2 hands
Weight 2,200 LBS
Age 17 years
Birthday 1st January exact day & month not known
Favourite food Adores Polo mints
Unusual habits Will nip you for attention
Character Never let you down and loves to eat
Temperament Very relaxed, you can't hurry him

Major our shire horse Shire Name Major
Major has been with the brewery for 18 months now and is a wonderful worker. Major relishes the Dray work and never has to be asked for any effort. He has a wonderful heart and demeanour.
Colour Bay
Nick name None
Height 17.1 Hands
Weight 2,000 LBS
Age 7 years
Birthday 1st January exact day & month not known
Favourite food Brewers grains and oats
Unusual habits He really does love beer
Character Dominant over other two shires
Temperament Lovely nature

Nelson shire horse Shire Name Nelson
Nelson has settled in well with Consul and Major. Horses bond very quickly so they are almost inseparable now. Nelson gets very upset when Consul and Major are out delivering which is only natural and he will not eat until they return.
Colour Light Bay
Nick name Nel
Height 16.3 Hands
Weight 1700 LBS
Age 4 and a half years
Birthday 1st January exact day & month not known
Favourite food Apples and Carrots
Unusual habits Very protective of food bucket
Character  
Temperament Quite nervous but gaining confidence

 

two shire horses standing together

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image of brewery visitors with shire horses and post in note

The brewery tours can begin or culminate with a visit to these wonderful shire horses.

You can watch as they are tacked up ready for their days work or visit after their return from their days deliveries.

Every six weeks the horses are re-shod by mobile farriers. The farriers visit can also be included in your tour but you would be advised to arrange this with the brewery first before you book.

Phone us to pre-book your Brewery tour on:

Booking 01608 730384

 

 

old delivery wagon standing in yard without horses

The end of the shire horse for delivering beer came in 1950 when the work was taken over by lorries. The brewery first used Bedford in 1960 and stopped in 1090 Later the brewery used Albion "Chieftain" "Claymoe" adn Volvo vehicles with specially built bodywork.

With an increase in trade and a greater volume of deliveries the number of vehicles was expanded and now the fleet consists of five lorries and two vans delivering over a radius of 80 miles around the brewery. This includes deliveries to depots which then carry Hook Norton beer to a wider area.

By rail

Before 1887 the brewery was sending beer by rail from Chipping Norton to it's more distant customers. After this date it was made easier by the construction of a station in Hook Norton.

Steam Wagon

The most exciting development in the brewery's transport arrangements in the early twentieth century was the purchase of a steam wagon in 1904 at a cost of £525.

Motor Lorries

In 1927 the directors did not seem to have greeted the idea of using motor transport for the first time with any great eagerness. But at the end of 1928 the brewery purchased it's first motor lorry. A 30cwt. Morris from Country Garages in Banbury at a cost of £331 13s. 4d plus a further £25 road fund licence.

After 4 years it was traded in for £60 against a new Bedford for £250 and in it's turn was replaced by another Bedford in 1937.

The War years placed many restrictions on non-essential motor transport and probably extended the working life of the shire horse if only locally until the complete transfer to motor transport in the 1950's.