Readers, Andrea and her nephew Luke (9) sent in this great photo of an interesting historical find from a trip to Portobello Beach in Edinburgh.
Andrea told me, “The items were actually discovered by my 9-year-old nephew during our beach adventure.. He spotted a beautifully preserved, vintage black vulcanite screw-top bottle stopper.”
“The stamping on the top is completely crisp and clear, reading “ROBERTSON BLANTYRE” around the edge, and features the winged thrush trade mark centred in the middle. Incredibly, the thick orange rubber seal is still completely intact on the threads.”
“Right alongside it, he also found the top and neck fragment of a two-tone stoneware ginger beer bottle.”
“When researching the history of A. Robertson & Co.’s Springwells factory, we thought your community archive would be interested to see evidence of a Blantyre bottle making its way all the way over to the Edinburgh coast, likely over a century ago.”
“My nephew is absolutely chuffed to bits with his discovery, and we would love for these photos to be included in your records. Best regards, Andrea and Luke (age 9)”
Well done Luke! That’s an absolutely brilliant find and an early example of the kind of bottles Robertson’s produced. I have good evidence of organisations in Blantyre taking local people to Portobello and Edinburgh on excursions especially during the 1890’s after the Forth Rail Bridge was built. Perhaps they packed a lunch and some refreshments for their trip!
Robertson’s Aerated Water Company was one of Blantyre’s longest-running and best remembered local businesses. Based at Springwells on Glasgow Road, the company produced aerated mineral waters and later a wide range of flavoured drinks — locally remembered simply as “ginger”.
The origins are generally dated to around 1870, although surviving evidence suggests founder Andrew Robertson established or developed the aerated-water business after returning from America during the 1880s. By the early 1890s it was already a successful and well-known local concern. Andrew died in 1894, aged only 39, after which his younger brother Peter Robertson continued the family business.
Robertson’s grew into a significant Blantyre employer, producing lemonade, cream soda, ginger beer and other bottled soft drinks. Its distinctive bottles and Robertson’s winged emblem are now collectable pieces of local history. The Springwells factory remained in operation for more than a century, and photographs show it still operating during the 1980s; there are also recollections of people working there into the early 1990s. The former Robertson’s site is now occupied by Dunns Food and Drinks.
