The firm Doyle & Son (c.1832-c.1970) was founded by John Doyle (1797-1872), who has been active as an scalemaker since 1825.¹ John Doyle worked at Steelyard, St. Thomas', Borough (1825/7) and later at 24/26 King Street, Southwark (1840-1865).¹ Different sources give different dates as when the firm took over the business of Nicholl and Fowler, who had premises in the Borough High Street, and renamed it ‘Doyle & Son’.^2,3 It is either given as around 1830-1832² or in 1886¹. Given the 1835 indenture number in combination with the Doyle & Son name plate makes the former more likely.

Doyle & Son was a true family firm. The 'Son' first referred to probably was either John Joseph Doyle (1825-1866) or George Alfred Doyle (1829-1864) who both died before their father’s death in 1872.² Their younger brother Joseph Morten Doyle (1845-1898, see adjacent picture) also was a scalemaker and ran the business by the time their lease on Borough High Street ran out in 1887.² In that year Joseph Morton Doyle leased some land from Guy’s Hospital for 90 years to build 17-19 Newcomen Street, just off the Borough High Street and adjoining Guy’s Hospital.²

The family lived in a large townhouse at 39 Trinity Square in Southwark within ten minutes' walk of the shop and factory on Newcomen Street.² He and his sons, and later his grandsons, carried on the business until it was sold in December 1970 to W.T. Avery & Company.²

In an old catalogue, circa 1890, they described themselves as 'Manufacturers of Standard Scales, Weights, Measures, Balances, etc. to almost every County and Corporation in the United Kingdom.² They were a business of some stature, and expanded by buying and operating other firms under their own various and different names, in and around London.²