CCSI Cork Crowncap Database - Brewer/Bottler
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 Brewer/bottler #6986 | | | Name | Skinner Lowes & Co. Pty. Ltd. |
| | | | State/Province | New South Wales |
| | | | | | Extra info | Also bottled in Tweed Heads
Two enterprising brothers, George and Charles Skinner, established a business in Tumbulgum in 1880 manufacturing cordials and aeriated waters. George Skinner and his brother Charles opened a cordial factory at North Tumbulgum around 1888, which was later moved to Murwillumbah. This factory eventually became a limited company known as Skinner, Lowes, and Co., Ltd. A successful business; the Skinner brothers delivered their products via rowboat to the small villages and hamlets up and down the river. In 1884, they won the contract to cart mail to and from Tweed Heads. To assist with deliveries, a small 10-ton wooden steamer, the Florrie was purchased. Each morning, it left Tumbulgum, travelled up steam to Murwillumbah then downstream to Tweed Heads transporting mail and passengers.
The arrival of the railway in NSW and QLD to both Murwillumbah (1894) and Tweed Heads (1903), saw passenger numbers between the two towns increase and over time additional steamers were added to the fleet, notably the Uki, Booyong, Mebbin, and Emma Pyers, amongst others. In 1913, the Skinners’ brother-in-law, Captain Frank Lowes joined the business and it was incorporated as Skinner, Lowes and Co Ltd. The base for their business was transferred to Murwillumbah, although steam ships left from both Tweed Heads and Murwillumbah each morning, returning to their respective depots in the afternoon. The river was well serviced by Skinner and Lowes steamers. It was sometimes referred to as the “Missing Link” between the NSW and QLD railway systems which were not joined in this era.
The entry of Coca Cola into the market and the advent of the internal combustion engine posed significant challenges to the Skinner family's businesses. These developments, along with the pressures of the Great Depression, led to the company going into receivership and eventually being dissolved in the 1970s. |
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