J. C. E. Berg, Bradfield

The Bradfield brewer, J. C. E. Berg & Son was in fact a mineral water manufacturer named Thomas Stevens.  It was certainly the intention that his bottles and ginger beer were embossed and printed with the initials I. C. E. Berg as in the word "iceberg" but unfortunately this did not happen correctly for his ginger beer bottles.  It appears that all of his other bottles were embossed properly with I. C. E. Berg & Son but not his ginger beer bottles.  I. C. E. Berg & Son is mentioned in the Kelly's Berkshire directory of 1887 as a mineral water manufacturer but has no mention at all in the 1899 one.

Thomas Stevens was Lord of the Manor of Bradfield and Rector of St. Andrews church in Bradfield.  Because of his connection with the church he was unable to use his name on his products and so he used I. C. E. Berg instead.

The Stevens family's first connection with Bradfield was in 1740 when the Reverend John Stevens became rector of the parish.  For four generations this "job" was passed down through the family line until eventually Thomas Stevens became rector after his father died in 1842.  It appears that the manor of Bradfield was purchased by the family in 1751.  The family's wealth appears to have been made by connections with the East India Company.

Soon after his father's death, Thomas Stevens engaged Sir Gilbert Scott (a renowned Victorian architect) initially to enlarge his village church and this was completed in 1848.  Whilst the community could sing he decided that they were not good enough and so he started a Choir School.  The manor house became home to the new College for ‘the careful education of boys as loving children of the Church of England’.  So then in 1850 Thomas Stevens founded St. Andrew's College, Bradfield or more simply known as Bradfield College. Unfortunately all of his expenditure on these two projects appear to have impoverished him to the point where he was declared bankrupt in 1881.  See below entries in the London Gazette from 13th September 1881 and 20th February 1888.

Thomas Stevens, trade mark was two sprigs of roses in a circle which was patented on 15th September 1874.  It appears though that this was never used on any of his bottles.

Pictured below (courtesy of Jo Parsons) is St. Andrew's well at Bradfield.  This is the well from which Thomas Stevens extracted water to produce all of his mineral water products to sell in his bottles.  The well has been capped for many years due to health and safety.

So although I have the ginger beer bottle for J. C. E. Berg & Son, I would be very interested to see if there is a correct version with I. C. E. Berg & Son transfer printed on it.  The picture below comes courtesy of the Ian Treacher collection and all relate to this company.  There is the 6oz codd, ginger beer, a narrow neck codd hamilton hybrid a narrow neck codd (broken) and a dumpy narrow neck codd (broken).  All are I. C. E. Berg & Son except the ginger beer which of course is J. C. E Berg & Son as usual:

In 2020 Ian added this magnificent early narrow neck codd to his collection also.