Joe Day, blacksmith and publican of the Britannia outside Mackay’s Engineering Works in the early 1900s

84, 85, 85a East Road, Britannia Works

History of 84-85 East Road

1881

Alsop family are at Britannia Place

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1891 Alsop family not listed in census

By 1895 the business was being called The Britannia Works after the pub opposite. In Britannia Place beside the Inn was Alsop’s shoeing forge.

Cambridge Iron Founders, 1996, p.51 : Alsop’s seem to have been “Jack of all Trades.” Directories over the years have described  them as wheelwrights, blacksmiths, art iron workers and fence makers. They also made carts and caravans. They made horse drawn preachers caravans which used to travel around the district, decorated with biblical texts. Arthur Alsop was the artistic son and he did the signwriting on these caravans. John Alsop himself was a lay preacher and a member of the Plymouth Brethren sect. They made the first cart, free of charge goes the story, for a George Hawkins who had just started up his business as a baker. Hawkins became one of the largest bakers in the area, and established the Dorothy ballroom. John Alsop was described by one of his grandsons as “a great dandy and always very well turned out, a good tradesman but not such as efficient businessman.”

There is no clear evidence of the smelting or casting or iron on the site, but there are still many posts, especially gate posts, with their name on.

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1901

John Alsop, 61, general smith, Chatteris
Ann, 61, b Suffolk
Lucy, 30, dressmaker, b Cambridge
Edith, 26, b Cambridge
Mary, 20, milliner, b Cambridge
Joseph, 20, blacksmith’s worker, b Cambridge
Daisy, 18, shop assistant, b Cambridge

In 1905 Anne died.

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1911

John Alsop, 74, general smith, b Chatteris
Lydia Ann, wife, 57, b Harston
Daisy Alsop, 28, daughter, draper’s assistant, b Cambridge
Daisy Eaton, 27, daughter, hairdresser, b Cambridge

(85a)

Samuel Gentle, 52, haulage contractor, b Harlton
Maria Scott, 55, b Trumpington
Herbert, 23, haulage contractor, b Cambridge
Gertrude, 21, drapery assistant, b Cambridge
Constance, 20, b Cambridge
Martha, 18, costumier assistant, b Cambridge
Kate, 17, milliner assistant, b Cambridge
Owen Beaumont, 15, assisting as haulage contractor, b Cambridge
Marion Frisby, 9, b Cambridge

In 1913 the Gentle family were living at 95 East Road.

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1912

John Alsop sold his business. He died in 1926 and was buried with his first wife in the Newmarket Road cemetery. The grave used to have a surround of ornamental iron railings.

Donald Mackay in partnership with his son Duncan bought the business of J Alsop in 1912.

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Mackays was designed by the architect Banyard who also designed part of the University Arms Hotel.

1913 84, 85, 85a

D Mackay, engineer and ironmonger, Britannia Works

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20 August 1959

Mackays of East Road has donated a Blackstone horizontal diesel engine to Freetown, Sierra Leone. The engine was first installed in 1930 and gave them complete independence to power cuts. It ran throughout the war with virtually no maintenance. They have completed the electrification of their plant and John Mellanby, the well-known Cambridge electrician, suggested it be offered to the Technical Institute over there. Similar engines have been working at Heffers printing works and Coulson’s wood mill.

Credit: Mike Petty Archive, Cambridge East Road Scrapbook 1897 to 1990, reference 59 08 20.

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14 January 1970

Simon community derelict pub on East Road taken over as place of refuge is to close

Credit: Mike Petty Archive, Cambridge East Road Scrapbook 1897 to 1990, reference 70 01 14.

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23 November 1972

Billy the Kid, fresh from his latest brush with the law, stood in a makeshift office in the derelict, boarded-up pub in East Road that is the Cyrenian’s haven for dossers in Cambridge and threw down a challenge. “I’ll bet you”, he said in the most confidential of tones, “that I can pick up in Cambridge as much in one week as ever you can earn”. Now Billy the Kid’s reputation among the “touchers” of Cambridge stands high. Billy the Kid is the city’s uncrowned king and no sane man would ever doubt his begging ability. “Well”, I queried, playing safe, “I might be interested”. “You’ve got to beat 75-quid and most of that is from the students”

Credit: Mike Petty Archive, Cambridge East Road Scrapbook 1897 to 1990, reference 72 11 23.

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2025

After selling the East Road site in 2023 it finally closed in 2025 as Mackays moved to new premises at Unit 10 Nuffield Road which opened on 5 January 2026.

The site is expected to be redeveloped and become part of the Anglia Ruskin University campus.

On 4 January 2026 Lewis Herbert talked to Neil and Andrew Mackay about the history of Mackays in a podcast for Cambridge Radio.

On 19 February 2026 Neil Mackay did a final walk around of the premises.