The Tennent family have been associated with brewing in Glasgow since the mid-sixteenth century. In 1740 , Hugh and Robert Tennent founded H & R Tennent at Drygate Bridge (also known as The Drygate, Drygate Foot and or Drygate Wellpark), Drygate, Glasgow, Scotland. The family business was continued by Hugh Tennent 's sons, John and Robert, who traded as J & R Tennent from at least 1769 . The business expanded in the 1790s , absorbing the adjacent brewhouse of William McLehose , until the Drygate Brewery, renamed Wellpark Brewery, covered 5 acres. Wellpark was named after "Ladywell" well found in the area, and is commemorated today by a monument outside the brewery. On the deaths of Robert Tennent in 1826 and John Tennent in 1827 , Hugh Tennent , the eldest son of Robert, assumed control of the business. Hugh Tennent acquired a reputation as a philanthropist, holding titles such as Town Councillor, Justice of Peace and Poor Law Commissioner. He retired in 1855 and his fifth son, Charles Stewart Parker Tennent , took control. Under his leadership the company became the biggest beer exporters in the world, selling to markets as far apart as Melbourne, San Francisco, Mauritius and Calcutta. Charles died in 1864 , some months before his father, and the business was operated by trustees on behalf of his sons Archibald and Hugh. .
In 1884 Hugh Tennent acquired his brother's share in the business and assumed sole control. He started brewing Tennent's lager for export in 1885 after a tour of Bavaria in 1881/2 , commencing a new purpose-built German Lager Brewery at Wellpark between 1889 and 1891 . On Hugh Tennent 's death in 1890 , the capital was left in shares to his five half brothers and sisters, the Campbells of Craigie in Ayr, to his sister Annie, to his uncle James Archibald Hay and to his physician Dr Wyllie Clark . Dr Clark was one of two trustees who were in control of the company until, in 1901 , J & R Tennent Ltd was registered as a limited liability company to acquire the business. The company was one of the first businesses in the United Kingdom to can beer. It became a public company in 1953 and formed a subsidiary company, West of Scotland Taverns Ltd , to acquire and operate its licensed premises. In 1960 it acquired Maclachlans Ltd , Castle Brewery, Craigmillar, Edinburgh, Scotland, and over 100 tied houses; Turner's (Ayr) Ltd , bottlers and distributors; and Westcon Ltd , caterers of Ayr, Scotland. J & R Tennent , along with 240 licensed houses, was taken over by Charrington United Breweries Ltd , London, England, in 1963 . In 1966 , it formally merged with United Caledonian Breweries Ltd , Charrington United Breweries Ltd 's other Scottish holding, to form Tennent Caledonian Breweries Ltd . The new company's brewing was concentrated at Wellpark Brewery, Glasgow, and Heriot Brewery, Edinburgh
Wellpark Brewery was redeveloped between 1965 and 1968 while Heriot Brewery was demolished in the 1990s. In 1967, Charringtons merged with Bass to form the Bass Charrington Group , which continued ownership of Tennent Caledonian Breweries Ltd . Bass Charrington was acquired by the Belgian brewer Interbrew in June 2000 . In 2004 , Interbrew and AmBev merged to create the company InBev. InBev acquired Anheuser-Bush in 2009 , becoming known as AB InBev. In the same year, AB InBev sold Tennent Caledonian Breweries Ltd to C Group who retain ownership of the company in 2012 . The company continues to brew at Wellpark Brewery and claims to be the market leader in Scotland. In 2010 , the company celebrated the 125th anniversary of Tennent's Lager.
Richmond, Lesley and Turton, Alison (eds). The Brewing Industry. A Guide to Historical Records ( Manchester and New York: Manchester University Press, 1990 ); The Brewer , Vol.71, September 1985, No.851; and information from Family at Wellpark Brewery To Celebrate 100 years of Tennent's Lager Sunday, 12th May 1985, Souvenir Programme.
From the guide to the Records of Tennent Caledonian Breweries Ltd, brewers, Glasgow, Scotland, 1550-1990s, (Glasgow University Archive Services)
