View of the Castlemaine Perkins Brewery in Milton, ca. 1929. The brewery, located in Milton Road, was established in 1878 by Fitzgerald, Quinlan and Co. and called the Castlemaine Brewery. The brewery merged with Perkins and Company in 1928. — State Library of Queensland.
Long before XXXX became Queensland’s best-known beer, an Irish family helped lay the foundations of one of the state’s greatest brewing empires. Their name was Perkins.
Few names are more closely associated with Queensland’s brewing history than Perkins.
For generations, the name was synonymous with quality ale and stout, and after the merger of two brewing giants in 1928 it became immortalised in the company name Castlemaine Perkins, the brewer behind Queensland’s iconic XXXX beer.
Yet what is less well known is that the Perkins family who helped build this brewing empire had strong Irish roots.
From Ireland to the Goldfields
The story begins with the Perkins brothers, Patrick Perkins and Thomas Perkins, who were born in County Waterford, Ireland, in the early nineteenth century.
Like thousands of Irish people seeking opportunity during the turbulent decades surrounding the Great Famine, the brothers left Ireland for Australia. Rather than settling immediately in Queensland, they were drawn to the Victorian goldfields during the great rushes of the 1850s.
While many chased fortunes with a pick and shovel, Patrick recognised that supplying miners with food and drink could be a more reliable business than searching for gold itself.
The brothers established brewing interests in Victoria before looking north to the rapidly growing colony of Queensland.
Building a Brewing Empire
In 1863, Patrick Perkins purchased an interest in a brewery at Toowoomba before expanding into Brisbane.
His defining move came in 1872, when he acquired Brisbane’s City Brewery in Mary Street. Under his leadership the business expanded rapidly and became known as Perkins & Co.
As Brisbane grew, so did demand for locally brewed beer. The brewery became one of the city’s largest industrial enterprises, employing hundreds of workers and supplying hotels across Queensland.
Its towering malt kilns and brick buildings dominated the southern end of the city and became a familiar landmark for generations of Brisbane residents.
An Irish Marriage Strengthens the Business
The Perkins story became closely intertwined with another prominent Irish family through the marriage of Mary Teresa Perkins to William Grene Power.
Power had been born in Clonmel, County Tipperary, and emigrated after the Great Famine. After arriving in Australia via New York and the Victorian goldfields, he married into the Perkins family and became Managing Partner of Perkins & Co.
Under Power’s management the brewery continued to prosper. He later became a director of the Queensland Deposit Bank and served in the Queensland Legislative Council from 1893 until his death in 1903.
The marriage united two successful Irish immigrant families whose influence extended far beyond brewing.
A Family of Achievement
William and Mary Teresa Power’s eldest son, George Washington Power, became one of Queensland’s most brilliant scholars.
A barrister, legal author and educational reformer, he was instrumental in the campaign to establish the University of Queensland and was appointed to its first Senate in 1910. Tragically, he died just weeks after attending its inaugural meeting, before the University admitted its first students.
His story demonstrates how quickly Irish immigrant families became leaders in Queensland’s professional and public life.
The Birth of Castlemaine Perkins
By the early twentieth century, Queensland’s brewing industry was changing.
In 1928, Perkins & Co. merged with the Castlemaine Brewery Company to form Castlemaine Perkins Ltd, bringing together two of Queensland’s oldest and most successful breweries.
The new company would later become famous for XXXX, first brewed in 1924 and destined to become Queensland’s best-known beer.
Although the Perkins family no longer controlled the business, their name lived on for generations in one of Australia’s most recognisable brewing companies.
An Irish Legacy in Queensland
The Perkins family’s story is about much more than beer.
It is the story of Irish migrants who arrived in Australia with little more than ambition and determination and helped build one of Queensland’s great commercial enterprises.
Their success also illustrates the broader contribution made by Irish immigrants during the nineteenth century. They became brewers, politicians, lawyers, pastoralists and community leaders, helping shape the economic and social fabric of the young colony.
Today, while the giant brewery at Milton has changed ownership and the brewing industry has evolved, the Perkins name remains woven into Queensland history.
For Irish Queenslanders, it is another reminder that behind many of the state’s best-known institutions and businesses are families whose journey began in Ireland.
Irish Queenslander 
