Wakefield, Yorkshire

[janeeliza999]

Hi. My Mother was born in Wakefield, Yorkshire in 1923.
 Her father was stated as a "malster" on a baptism record.
The address given was Portabella (maybe Portobello) Rd, Wakefield.
I'm thinking that a malster is someone who works in a brewery and I'm trying to find out what breweries there were at that time.
Hope I'm on the right track regards the occupation and someone may have knowledge about this.

Thanks
Jane

[Swampduck]

Hi Jane

You're right - a malster brews beer.  Here are a couple of sites covering West Yorkshire, including Wakefield.  Hope these are some help.

http://www.quaffale.org.uk/php/county/559

http://www.myweb.tiscali.co.uk/bob.wallis/lost_brewers.html

Jean

[Nevthedigger]

The maltster didn't actually brew beer, he just made the malt from barley, and supplied this raw ingredient to the breweries. The largest brewery in Wakefield would have been Beverley Brothers, who I think were in Harrison Street if I remember rightly. They address you have would be Portobello Road, not Portobella. Here is an aerial view of the estate. http://www.twixtaireandcalder.org.uk/WakefieldCMS/Pages/TAandC/ImageView.aspx?source=l05946&thumbnail=False

[MalcolmH]

Certainly until the 1950s there was a BYB (Beverleys Yorkshire Brewery) in Thornhill St Wakefield.  I attended the school next door until that date.  There were a number of Maltsters in Wakefield eg on Ingwell St just off Kirkgate. An excellent site for help with Wakefield is "Wakefield Family History SHARING"-- note sharing and not Society.