Hand and Banner, Deansgate

The Hand and Banner Inn stood at 113-115 Deansgate and dated back to the eighteenth century. It was built on the site of the substantial dwelling house belonging to John Okey, a puritan and prominent Boltonian who died in 1684 and is best remembered for his gravestone on south wall of Parish Church. [1]

In 1797 it was the first meeting place of the Corinthian 221 masonic lodge which met there for three years until it moved to the Lord Nelson on Derby Street (the lodge still exists today). [2]

In 1803 it was left in the will of William Markland of Heaton to his son Thomas [3] and in 1809 it was the venue for the inauguration of the Friendly Ironmongers Society. [1]

Census records for 1891 show William Barlow as landlord and he lived on the premises along with his wife, four children and two servants aged 18 and 13. [4]

The Hand and Banner closed in 1911. [5] It demolished that same year and a bank was built on the site. That building still stands. It served for many years as a branch of Lloyds Bank (later Lloyds TSB) and was recently converted into student accommodation.

The former Lloyds TSB building on the corner of Howell Croft North and Deansgate. The building was previously the site of the Hand and Banner.

[1] Bolton Town Centre, A Modern History. Part One: Deansgate, Victoria Square, Churchgate and Surrounding Areas, 1900-1998.

[2] Lane’s Masonic records.  Retrieved 14 April 2014.

[3] Tonge family. Retrieved 14 April 2014.

[4] Barlow genealogy.  Retrieved 14 April 2014.

[5] Pubs Of Bolton 1800-2000, by Gordon Readyhough. Published by Neil Richardson (2000).