The James Watt

The James Watt is a pub in Greenock, Inverclyde, Scotland, operated by the British pub company J D Wetherspoon plc. It occupies an ornate building at 80–92 Cathcart Street that was designed as the town's general post office by WW Robertson and the Office of Works, built at a cost of £20,000 and first opened in 1899. The premises take their name from James Watt, the inventor and mechanical engineer born in Greenock in 1736, whose improvements to the steam engine powered the Industrial Revolution and who introduced the word horsepower. As a Wetherspoon pub, The James Watt follows the chain's familiar format: a large, value-focused, food-and-drink-led house open from morning until late, with an all-day menu, real ales, and a strong emphasis on order-and-pay convenience through the Wetherspoon app. The pub's listed facilities include Wi-Fi, TV screens, a licensed outside area and step-free access. It participates in Wetherspoon's twice-yearly real-ale festivals and seasonal menus, such as the autumn beer festival and the Christmas menu, and offers guest ales and craft cans with published tasting notes. The James Watt is one of many individually named Wetherspoon houses across the United Kingdom, each typically sited in a distinctive building and given a name with local resonance. Its parent, J D Wetherspoon plc, opened its first pub in Muswell Hill, north London, in 1979 and was floated on the Stock Exchange in 1992. The James Watt itself is a local pub brand rather than a standalone company, and its identity is bound up with both the Wetherspoon chain and the history of Greenock's post office and its most famous son.

The building that now houses The James Watt was designed as Greenock's general post office by WW Robertson and the Office of Works. It was built at a cost of £20,000 and first opened its doors in 1899. Before this, Greenock's post office had been housed in five buildings dating back to 1753, when it shared a shed in William Street with a fire engine. The town has a particular connection with the Royal Mail through its first MP, Richard Wallace, who held the seat from 1833 until his death in 1845; Wallace chaired the Parliamentary committee considering postal reform, and his evening vote in 1839 decided the issue in favour of the Penny Post. The premises are now a pub named after James Watt, the inventor and mechanical engineer born in Greenock in 1736. His improvements to the steam engine powered the Industrial Revolution, and he introduced the word horsepower to indicate an engine's power. The pub is operated by J D Wetherspoon plc, the British pub company whose first pub opened in Colney Hatch Lane, Muswell Hill, north London, on 9 December 1979. For its first month that pub was called Martin's Free House before being renamed Wetherspoons in early 1980. Wetherspoon's early pubs were all in north London, with the head office above The Dog in Archway. The company hosted its first real-ale festival in 1990, opened its first non-smoking bar at The Tally Ho in North Finchley in 1991, launched its CBS (cleanliness, beer, service) scheme and Wetherspoon News in 1991, opened Hamilton Hall at Liverpool Street station as its first central London and train-station pub, opened its first airport pubs at Heathrow Terminal 4 in 1992, and was floated on the Stock Exchange in 1992 as J D Wetherspoon plc, with shares issued at £1.60. As part of the Wetherspoon estate, The James Watt carries the chain's standard operating model into a distinctive local building. The pub's own history is therefore twofold: the architectural and postal history of the 1899 Greenock general post office, and the commercial history of the Wetherspoon chain that converted and now runs it. The pub's official page lists its address as 80–92 Cathcart Street, Greenock, Inverclyde, PA15 1DD, and its facilities as Wi-Fi, TV screens, a licensed outside area and step-free access. It takes part in Wetherspoon's seasonal programmes, including the autumn beer festival and the Christmas menu, and offers guest ales and craft cans with tasting notes.

• 1992

  J D Wetherspoon is floated on the Stock Exchange as J D Wetherspoon plc, with shares issued at £1.60.

• 1990

  Wetherspoon's pubs host their first real-ale festival.

• 1979

  J D Wetherspoon opens its first pub in Colney Hatch Lane, Muswell Hill, north London, on 9 December.

• 1899

  Greenock's general post office building, designed by WW Robertson and the Office of Works at a cost of £20,000, first opens.

A value-focused, all-day Wetherspoon pub in a historic former post office building, named after Greenock-born engineer James Watt.

• Real ale and guest ales

• Craft cans

• Pub food menu

• Spritz cocktails

• Christmas menu

1. 1The James Watt - J D Wetherspoonjdwetherspoon.com
2. 2History - J D Wetherspoonjdwetherspoon.com
3. 3The James Watt - J D Wetherspoonjdwetherspoon.com
4. 4About us - J D Wetherspoonjdwetherspoon.com
5. 5The James Wattwikidata.org