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Burton upon Trent
Burton upon Trent, also known as Burton-on-Trent or simply Burton, is a town on the River Trent where residents are affectionately known as "Burtonians”.
Burton became a nucleus for the early brewing industry due in part to the quality of the local water, which contains a high proportion of dissolved salts, predominantly caused by the gypsum in the surrounding hills. This allowed a greater proportion of hops, a natural preservative, to be included in the beer, thereby allowing the beer to be shipped further afield. Much of the open land within and around the town is protected from chemical treatment in order to help preserve this water quality.
The town is currently home to eight breweries: Coors Brewers Ltd (formerly Bass Brewers Ltd), Molson Coors Brewing Company (which produces Carling and Worthington Bitter), Marston, Thompson and Evershed plc (bought by Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries and renamed Marstons plc). The Marston's Brewery produces its own brands, draught Marston's Pedigree, draught Hobgoblin and also draught Bass. The town's proud connection with the brewing industry is celebrated by a bronze sculpture commissioned in 1977 by James Walter Butler and depicts a local craftsman making a barrel. It originally stood opposite the market and despite opposition from many townspeople was moved to its present location inside the Cooper's Square Shopping Centre in 1994.
The National Brewery Centre celebrates the town's brewing heritage and is its biggest tourist attraction, aside from Claymills Pumping Station, which is a restored Victorian sewage pumping station.