The Little John was situated in Ashburner Street and
was a short-lived beerhouse in the middle of the 19th century.
The 1848 directory shows James Nuttall as the licensee
of an un-named pub in Ashburner Street. By the time the licensing magistrates
compiled their list of Bolton beerhouses in 1849 it had a name – the Little
John.
Quite why it was named the Little John isn’t given,
but a clue can be gleaned further down Ashburner Street where the
Robin Hood was situated. Two pubs in Lever Street later pulled the same trick
with a Robin Hood and a Little John just yards away from each other.
By 1851 James Nuttall had moved on to a pub on Crook
Street. The Little John on Ashburner Street either changed its name or had
closed down.
