Ginger Beer Manufacturers From Bexhill-On-Sea???
posted by Susan Holley on 29 May 2007 at 4:01 pm
I have an old Stone Ginger Beer stoneware beer bottle that says Hilder and Son, Bexhill-On-Sea. Was there a Hilder family there that were ginger beer makers? I think this was brought back from a vacation by my mother-in-law who collected various types of stoneware. We live in Bastrop, Louisiana, USA. Can anyone tell me if there is a connection from this bottle and Bexhill-On-Sea?
thank you,
Susan Holley
holleyfarms@suddenlink.net
Follow up messages
Hilders
posted by Keith Holdsworth on 09 Oct 2007 at 8:58 pm
I lived in Bexhill on Sea in 1956 and my uncle, John Brown used to drive a delivery lorry for Hilder and Sons soft drinks. I think the bottling plant was in Victoria Road. It was a family business and I remember three generations of Hilders working there. Keith Holdsworth.
Disused Railway At Bexhill
posted by Chris Bedford on 02 Mar 2009 at 12:52 pm
Hi there,
I make films about disused railways and while working my way down the disused trackbed between Sidley and Bexhill West recently (March 2009) I found a glass bottle with Hilder and Son embossed on it. It is the old style lemonade bottle with a screw in plug, probably made of bakelite and is in perfect condition. Even the little rubber seal on the screw in plug is still intact. I would love to know how old it is.
Cheers
Chris (Dumpman Films)
http://www.dumpman.co.uk
Old Bottles
posted by dave on 07 Mar 2009 at 2:42 pm
The old railway track has many hidden treasures in the form of old bottles etc if you know where to look,many years ago there was a klondike gold rush of bottle diggers exploring the old victorian bottle dumps,only 1 was really well dug over the others were never touched.as to tha age of yours,afriend of mine sugested around the war years with the screw in rubber cap seal.i might be wrong but i hope this helps, I would love to see any films you have of the old railway,i have played there most of my life and know every square inch of it.
bye for now dave. joebloggs115(at)hotmail.com
Hilders
posted by Bryan Earl on 15 Mar 2009 at 1:37 am
Yes, Hilder and Sons were soft drink manufacturers in Victoria Road, on the left as coming from London Road nearly to the junction with Reginald Road.The last time I knew, the factory was in use as a garage for limousine hire. Their ginger beer in the old stone bottles described was the best! The bottles soon changed to glass ones still with the hard rubber screw stoppers. My memory of Hilders dates from the mid 1940's as a small boy and I believe they closed in the late 1950's or early 1960's. They also used to supply the old fashioned syphons of soda water which had a returnable deposit of 5/- (25p)on them. You were rich if you were fortunate enough to be able to acquire one and return it to a local shop! Suffice it to say that the acquisition was not always strictly legal as some establishments were careless with their storage of empties. The ordinary bottles had if I remember correctly a 6d (2.5p) deposit on them which was still worthwhile and ensured the empties were returned for re-use.
Bottles
posted by dave on 18 Mar 2009 at 12:34 am
yes deposits i remember them well. 2/- or 10p for corona bottles,thoes were the days eh.
Hilder And Sons Soft Drink Manufacturers
posted by nick buswell on 27 Dec 2010 at 4:42 pm
Hilders also produced a soft drink called Bex-a-Cola which I always preferred to the real thing. Reminds me of the chap who produced 5Up but went broke. Started up again and developed 6Up but went broke. Gave up trying after that, poor chap.
Bex-a-cola
posted by John Bainbridge on 21 Aug 2012 at 6:46 pm
I was at school in Bexhill, 1951 to 1955. We could buy Bex -a -cola in the Caretaker's tuck shop,and I quickley became "addicted".I knew no other source.
At that time my parents had a shop in Hailsham, about 11 miles from Bexhill, and obtained their soft drink supplies from Fryco at Portlsade.Fryco?s did not stock Cola.
It was several year's before I experienced the 'Real Thing'
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