Lord Hill, 46 - 48 Sidney Street

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The Lord Hill stood at number 48 Sidney Street, on the corner of Maxfield Street and in between Bridgeman Street and Lever Street.

The pub was founded in the middle of the 19^th century by John Winward. Originally from York Street, which was the next street along from Sidney Street, John was a weaver. In January 1840, he married Mary Partington from Nine Houses – later Ninehouse Lane – and by the time of the 1841 census the couple were living in Sidney Street.

As often happened at that time, the couple decided to pay the fee of 2 guineas (£2.10) to enable them to open their home as a beerhouse and they named the premises the Lord Hill.

John Winward remained at the Lord Hill until the early-1870s. Two events no doubt had a bearing on his decision to quit the pub. His wife, Mary, died in March 1869 at the age of 54. But in November of the following year, John Winward married again – this time to Betty Winward, his sister-in-law. Betty had married John’s brother William Winward in 1840, but she became a widow on William’s death in 1848 and hadn’t remarried in the intervening 22 years. Within a few years John, now in his sixties, had left the Lord Hill. He died in 1881.

The pub, which had by now expanded into the premises next door, was sold to Ellis Crompton of Crompton’s brewery on Derby Street. The Derby Street Brewery is perhaps Bolton’s forgotten brewery as information on it is so difficult to find. It was founded by George Pickering in the late-1820s and the front of the premises was just a few doors up from the Derby Arms. Initially a retail brewery it changed ownership on a number of occasions. William Maude was the owner by 1836, by 1853 it was in the hands of William Young and by 1876 it was owned by Ellis Crompton. But it was never a large brewery. Compare it to Magee’s, which was taking shape on a much larger scale further up Derby Street, and it gives you an idea of the battle Ellis Crompton faced. The Derby Street Brewery was tiny by comparison and when brewers began to build up their tied estates economies of scale ensured his operation was at a financial disadvantage. Magees, Atkinson’s, Sharman’s and Tong’s were large enough to snap up pubs all over Bolton. We have only ever come across the Lord Hill as a Derby Street Brewery pub (though that’s not to say there weren’t a few more). By the early-1890 the brewery had closed down and the premises were used for a number of years by Barlow Stores Ltd, an Atherton-based chain of grocery stores.

There were no fewer than four different owners of the Lord Hill in the 1890s. When Ellis Crompton wrapped up the Derby Street Brewery the pub was sold to Atkinson’s, a local concern not too far away from the Derby Street Brewery in Commission Street. But there were new owners again in 1895 when Atkinson’s sold out to Boardman United Breweries and just three years after that Boardman’s were taken over by another Manchester brewery, Cornbrook’s.

The Lord Hill lasted until 1951 and it was a Cornbrook pub when it closed. By then the writing was on the wall for much of the area between Bridgeman Street and Lever Street but the Lord Hill was one of the earliest closures. Pubs like the New Inn, the York Street Tavern and the Peel’s Arms lasted a few years longer. The General Havelock lasted until the eighties. 

The pub was demolished a few years after it closed. Sidney Street was cut in two as can be seen in the image below (copyright Google Street View 2015). Industrial premises now stand on the site of the Lord Hill which was about halfway up on the left-hand side as we look through the factory gates.

Duke Of Wellington, 26 John Street

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John Street ran from Derby Street down to Deane Road - or Blackburn Street as it was known until the 1890s.

The first recorded record of the Duke Of Wellington was in the 1871 census when Robert Holme, a 27-year-old carter, and his wife Caroline were running the pub. Robert Holme is described as a beerseller and cart owner on the census return. By 1881, the Holmes were still at the pub with Robert now a hay and coal dealer as well as a beerseller.

But it seems that Robert Holmes decided he had to choose between his two businesses: the beerhouse or the distribution of goods. He chose the latter and went to live Deane Road. By 1911, he and Caroline were  living in nearby Roundcroft Street where Robert is described as a master carer. He died in 1923.

The Duke Of Wellington was taken over by Wright Green. He was also a carter and lived further up John Street and was most likely known to Robert Holme. But while Wright Green ran the pub for over 15 years his time at the pub ended badly when its licence was refused in 1905.

Number 26 John Street was later combined with number 28 to make enlarged retail premises. A marine store dealer named William Hatton was there in 1924. It was subsequently converted back into two residential properties.

John Street no longer exists – at least not by that name. Many of the properties, including the former Duke Of Wellington pub, were demolished in the mid-sixties, but around a dozen remained for some years after. The thoroughfare was widened and became College Way, now University Way.

University Way looking towards Deane Road in September 2014 (copyright Google Street View). Whowell Street runs off to the left. The car park in the distance is the site of row that contained the Duke Of Wellington.

Poplar Inn, Vernon Street - Kent Street

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The Poplar Inn was situated at 74 Kent Street, but it was on the corner of Vernon Street and at times its address was given as 82 or 84 Vernon Street.

The first mention of the pub comes in the 1871 Bolton Directory when it was being run by Robert Lyne. But in the census return of that year Robert is said to be an iron turner so it is likely that the pub was being run by his wife, Mary Ann. Both Robert and Mary Ann came from families with connections with the licensed trade. Robert’s father was Peter Lyne, who ran the Rainforth Hotel on nearby School Hill. Mary Ann’s father, Thomas Suttle, had been a brewer. The couple later went on to run the Duke Of Connaught on Mill Street.

The Poplar Inn was taken over Winfield’s Silverwell brewery on Nelson Square in the 1890s. Brewery takeovers ensured the pub’s ownership changed at regular intervals over the years. Wingfield’s sold out to the Manchester Brewery Company in 1899. MBC were bought out by Salford-based Walker and Homfray’s in 1912 and finally Wilson’s took over Walker and Homfray’s in 1949.

The Poplar was a Wilson’s pub when it closed around 1970. The building remained empty for a few years before being demolished. New housing was built on the site in the early-eighties.

Vernon Street, pictured in September 2014 (copyright Google Street View). The Poplar was situated on the corner of Kent Street and Vernon Street. Part of Kent Street still exists, but at the opposite end to where the Poplar Inn was. Pleasant Gardens - seen here going off to the right - was built at the Vernon Street end. The Poplar was on the far corner as we look.

Elephant and Castle, 103 Kay Street

Kay Street pictured in September 2014 (copyright Google Street View). The Britannia Service Station in the distance was built in the late sixties on the site of what was once the Elephant and Castle.

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Not to be confused with the pub of the same name in town - about the fourth pub to hold the name - the Elephant and Castle on Kay Street was another example of retail premises that became a beerhouse. Philip Howarth appears on the 1836 directory as a shopkeeper on Kay Street. By the time of the 1841 census he was a joiner, but by 1843 he was a beer retailer at the Elephant and Castle. He left in 1861 having built the Nelson Hotel on Chorley Old Road. He died in 1862.

The Elephant and Castle was situated on the west side of Falcon Street with the Royal Oak just a few doors away, the Falcon on the other side of Kay Street and the Golden Cup around the corner on Haigh Street. It was a competitive environment.

The pub continued under numerous licensees after Philip Howarth left. William Sidlow succeeded him but in the late-1860s, but he lasted only a few years before leaving and there were no long-serving landlords at the pub after Philip Howarth.

The Elephant and Castle was eventually bought by local brewer Sharman’s and they threw in the towel in 1921. The pub closed down and the building was converted into a residential property. It was demolished in the sixties, along with a large number of other buildings in the area. The Britannia Service station was subsequently built on the site.

Waterloo Hotel, 306 Waterloo Street

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The Waterloo pictured in the late-fifties. It was the last building on Waterloo Street with Blackburn Road going up the centre of the picture and Halliwell Road off to the left. 

The Waterloo Hotel – not to be confused with the Waterloo Tavern at the Folds Road end of Waterloo Street – opened in 1820 with Robert Brooks as its first landlord. The pub was situated on the corner of Waterloo Street and Blackburn Road though directories up to about the middle of the nineteenth century tend to give the address as Waterloo Place.

The pub was owned by the Manchester wine and spirit merchant Henry Carswell towards the end of the 19^th century, but it was later sold to Magee, Marshall and Co. [1]

The Waterloo closed in the late-sixties. The Bolton Evening News printed this picture in 1965 when it was announced that the pub would be demolished as part of a slum clearance. 

[1] Bolton Pubs 1800-2000, by Gordon Readyhough. Published by Neil Richardson.

A similar view to the above picture but taken in September 2014 (copyright Google Street View).

Stanley Arms, 1 Egyptian Street

Pen Street runs down the side of the Stanley Arms in this late-twenties shot of the pub.

Egyptian Street takes its name from the Egyptian Mill which was built just off Blackburn Road in 1861. Numerous rows of terraced streets were in the process of springing up in the shadow of the new mill and at number 1 Egyptian Street, on the corner with Pen Street, stood the Stanley Arms.

This was one of three pubs in Bolton by that name (the others were on Derby Street and on Chorley Old Road).

For many years the pub was in the hands of Samuel Leach and his family. Samuel was originally a weaver from Tottington, but he moved to Bolton in the 1840s. Together with his second wife Hannah, whom he married in 1850, he took over the Stanley Arms in the 1860s and it was the start of a family association lasting some 30 years.

By 1881, Samuel had retired. Hannah had passed away and the Stanley Arms was being run by his daughter, Mary Spencer, and her husband Richard, whose family were also publicans. His father had run the Dog and Partridge on Moor Lane.

Samuel died at home on 26 October 1887, but it was a time of tragedy  that must have left the pub's very future in doubt.  Mary had died a few months before Samuel and Richard Spencer died in early 1888. Samuel left an estate worth £3602 to his son, Miles, who was described as his only next of kin. Miles was living in Hull at the time, but he returned to Bolton to continue the running of the pub. However, when he died in 1897 and the link with the Leach family was broken.

The Stanley Arms had its own brewery for many years but it was later sold to Joseph Sharman’s brewery at Mere Hall, less than half a mile away from Egyptian Street. Sharman’s were taken over by George Shaw of Leigh in 1927 and Shaw’s were in turn taken over by Walker Cain Ltd in 1931.

The Stanley Arms closed in the early sixties [1]. The area was cleared later that decade and new housing built in place of the old rows of terraces.

Egyptian Mill remains. It ceased to be used as a textile mill around 1960 – around the time the Stanley Arms closed so perhaps the two events were related. But the mill has been used for storage since 2010.

[1] Bolton Pubs, 1800 – 2000, by Gordon Readyhough. Published by Neil Richardson (2000).

Prince Of Wales, 102 Mount Street

The Prince Of Wales pictured in 1961. Belgravia Street runs by the side of the pub. St Matthew’s school was a little further down with St Matthews church behind the photographer.

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The Prince Of Wales, situated at 102 Mount Street, on the corner of Belgrave Street, was a few years behind the slightly longer established Mount Street Inn. But it did have one advantage over its neighbour in that whereas the Mount Street Inn was only licensed to sell beer – at least until 1961 – the Prince Of Wales was fully licensed and as such could also sell wines and spirits, though whether that made any difference in the Halliwell of the 1860s is open to question.

At first, the Prince Of Wales was in the hands of the Bogle family who originated from the Tonge Moor area. The 1841 Census shows a number of the Bogles working in the printing industry, but at least two of them got into the pub trade with both John Bogle and George Bogle running the Prince Of Wales in the late -1860s and early-1870s.

By 1876, the pub was owned by Thomas Iddon, who remained there for almost 15 years. But Iddon decided to get out of the pub trade. He was in his sixties and he sold the Prince Of Wales to Wingfield’s brewery, based in Nelson Square.

However, Thomas Iddon’s successor at the Prince Of Wales was someone already known to him. Alfred Edward Cox was born in Northleigh, Oxfordshire in 1855. He was a tram driver in Bolton and he lived with his wife and daughter at 259 Derby Street, which was the Black Horse, another of Thomas Iddon’s pubs. On hearing of the tenancy at the Prince Of Wales he successfully applied for the position and so, in 1888, Albert Cox began an association with the Prince Of Wales that was to last for 25 years.  He and his family remained at the pub until 1913 when he retired to Ivy Road. He died at the beginning of 1918, aged 63.

Wingfield’s sold out to the Manchester Brewery Company Ltd in 1899. They were in turn taken over by the Salford firm of Walker and Homfray’s in 1912. Wilsons Brewery of Newton Heath took over Walker and Homray’s in 1949 and it was a Wilson’s pub that the Prince Of Wales ended its days in 1965.

The area was later redeveloped and the Spinners Arms was built close to the spot where the Prince Of Wales once stood.