Pattison’s Cyclist’s Road Map of East Central Counties

Folding bicycle map of English counties produced by Pattinsons Limited distilling company.

This fold out cycling map shows the roads available to cyclists in the East Central counties of England. The routes are highlighted in red and presented alongside the locations of towns, rivers, railroads and forests. Along each side of the map are images related to Pattinson’s whiskey business, including a view of the headquarters in Leith, the customs warehouses and grounds, and the shield of Clan Gordon in Scotland.

Pattison’s produced whiskey for only two years at the end of the 19th century, riding a wave of industry growth resulting from failed grape harvests in France. Financial mismanagement and accounting fraud, including an advertising budget equaling nearly 5 million pounds by today’s standards, led to bankruptcy and imprisonment of the Pattinson brothers in 1901. Part of their marketing strategy, in addition to creating cycling maps, was to give away parrots trained to say “Buy Pattinson’s Whiskey!”