The flour connection
We are looking into the work of another former Trustee this week – Sir Robert McDougall. The surname may be familiar to some, McDougall flour has long been a well established name within baking circles.
What is surprising however is the lack of material available on the history of the McDougall family or the company. It appears to be one of those black holes in history where little has been written. The following however we do know;
McDougalls flour was created by the McDougall brothers. It followed their discovery of a new type of baking powder, a 'yeast substitute', in 1864 and, later, a product called 'self-raising' flour that revolutionised home baking. McDougalls flour was later incorporated into Rank Hovis McDougall in 1962 after a succession of mergers. It now trades under Premier Foods.
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| Sir Robert McDougall |
McDougalls flour was created by the McDougall brothers. It followed their discovery of a new type of baking powder, a 'yeast substitute', in 1864 and, later, a product called 'self-raising' flour that revolutionised home baking. McDougalls flour was later incorporated into Rank Hovis McDougall in 1962 after a succession of mergers. It now trades under Premier Foods.
Robert McDougall, whose wealth was built on the production
of the self-raising flour patented by his father, was a well-known major
benefactor of causes in the north-west of England
which ranged from the National Trust and the Youth Hostel Association to the
Manchester Royal Infirmary (MRI) and the University of Manchester.
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| McDougalls Flour |
He passed away on the 15th December 1938 and the charity recorded their thoughts within the annual report of that year of the loss of a ‘great-hearted friend and valued voluntary worker’. His interest in the charity started as far back as 1895 and he became an active member of the committee from 1915. As well as being a trustee of the Refuge he donated a large amount of his finances to the charity.
He also took a great interest in another charitable cause - the
Jubilee School for Girls, which was founded in
1810 to provide education and training in domestic service for girls, most of
whom were orphans. Until 1939 it was based in Manchester
and Salford, when it moved into 'Lerryn', Carr
Wood Road, Bramhall the former home of the
McDougalls. His lasting legacy to the charity was a portion of money that was
set aside to start up the Refuge’s first pension scheme in 1952.
We’d love to hear more about the McDougall family. After all
without them Paul Hollywood’s career might never have existed!
There is a small disused unit on Norton Street in Hockley, Birmingham, with the 'McDougall self Raising Flour' still there. Was that just one of the many places where they made the flour?
ReplyDeleteHello, I'm so pleased to have found your post! I'm trying to find out a little more about the famy as well. My grandmother was engaged to Kenneth McDougall, the son of Dr. William McDougall and the grandson of Isaac Shimwell McDougall, one of the brothers. Sadly, Ken was killed in WWII, before he and my grandmother had the chance to marry, but she never forgot him and stayed in close touch with his family.
ReplyDeleteDr. William McDougall was a well-known psychologist and moved his family to North Carolina, where he taught at Duke University until his death in 1938. My grandmother was a nursing student at Duke and attended to Dr. McDougall, when he was ill. That's how she met Ken. I know that Ken's mother stayed in North Carolina and his brother Angus settled out west somewhere. But I'm not sure what became of the others. And I've always wondered about the McDougall family in England and have only just learned about their history in the flour business. As you said, there doesn't seem to be much information out there. Thank you for your post!
Hello, McDougalls in Norton Street Hockey was a flour packing station receiving flour in bulk and packing it into the various size bags for the household. My father was maintenance engineer there from 1958 until the place became just a distribution centre for what had then become McDougalls Catering Foods supplying schools, factories etc. with catering supplies for their canteens.The flour was milled from the grain at various places throughout the country. I noticed Rank Hovis Solent Mills at Southampton last week for example.
ReplyDeleteRobert was Liberal candidate for High Peak in 1923, 1924 and 1929. He married Lilian Hooton in 1898. He was a member of the Council of Manchester University.
ReplyDeleteMy great grandmother was Maud Mary Mcdougall, sister of the various flour Mcdougall brothers. We have a printed family tree in a booklet called 'The Mcdougall brothers and sisters'. She married Frederick Eliot Duckham and her son Alexander founded Duckhams Oil Company. My grandfather was a Civil Engineer and his other brother Arthur founded the Institute of Chemical Engineers. He was a KCB and a GBE, which is rare.
ReplyDeleteMy name is Martin Fletcher.