James Pimm was the fifth son of Susannah Pimm. He moved away from home in his twenties to live and work in London as a shellfish monger.In 1823 he opened his first restaurant - the Pimm's Oyster Bar, in the City,supplying food, drink, oysters and lobsters. Within 10 years, he had a chain of five Pimm's restaurants serving clientele from the Bank of England, Lloyds of London and the Stock Exchange. His special product, of course, was the Pimm's Cup, invented by him. It was made with gin, quinine and a secret mixture of herbs and fruit. The recipe is allegedly known only to six top people in the company to this day. He sold it as a health tonic ("an aid to digestion") and served it in pewter cups to patrons from all over the city. By 1851 (when he is shown on the national Census as a 'Confectioner and Fish Factor')he had expanded his range to include No. 2 (based on Scotch) and No. 3 (based on brandy). With the popularity of the drink growing, he began large-scale production, providing the drink to other bars. He set up a production line where the drink was mixed by perforated paddles in wooden barrels, then distributed to bars and clubs across London by hawkers on bicycles. This method of production and distribution was, remarkably, only abandoned in 1946, when the traditional cork seal was also replaced with a screwcap. It is not known precisely which house in Newnham was his birthplace and childhood home but there are indications that the family was neither very rich nor poor.He was married to Mary who bore him 5 children. He died aged 67.When young James was drinking his pint of beer in The George Inn or when he set off to open an oyster bar in faraway London, he could hardly have foreseen that a couple of hundred years later his name would be known across the world and adorning the pub so close to the family home.Pimm's is most popular in Britain, particularly southern England. It is one of the two staple drinks at Wimbledon, the Henley Royal Regatta, and the Glyndebourne opera festival, the other being Champagne. A Pimm's is also the standard cocktail at British and American polo matches.
Deaths Sep 1866 Pimm James 67 Malling 2a 249

Abode (1866): Bush Farm, East Peckham, Kent, England.