Cotton Tree, 15 Prince Street, Bolton

 

The Cotton Tree pictured in 2009. Copyright Google.

Opened: 27 April 1966

Closed: 12 September 2024.

Housing clearances in the area to the north of Bolton town centre of the sixties and seventies saw a number of pubs swept away. The were few replacements, but one new pub was the Cotton Tree on Prince Street. This was one of four pubs to have had that name; the others were situated in Edgar Street, Lever Street and there was even a Cotton Tree on Moor Lane that closed in 1869.

The first landlord of the new Cotton Tree was Peter Salmon who was the licensee of the Alexandra Hotel on Stewart directly before moving to the new pub.

The Cotton Tree opened on 27 April 1966. It was designed by local architect Norman Nightingale and built by another local company, Townsons, for Magee, Marshall and Co. By that stage Magees were part of Greenall Whitley and after Magees closed in October 1970 the pub was supplied from Greenall's Warrington brewery.

When the pub first opened there was a contemporary cotton tree mural at the front entrance and a lounge on one side of the premises with thick carpets, comfortable seating and heavy curtains. On the other side was a public bar that was described at the time as “comparatively spartan” but with facilities for darts and dominoes. There was also a function room for private parties. Somewhat tellingly, the pub's beer was kept in a refrigerated store behind both the lounge and public bars. This was at a time when traditional cask-conditioned beer was being phased out in favour of cold, fizzy, pasteurised beer and we can find only a brief period in the nineties when real ale was sold at the pub.

Ad from April 1973

The Cotton Tree became noted for its live music. Some of the acts appearing there towards the end of 1973 included the Dave Bennet Duo, Strangers Duo and Kinwood and Lee. A folk club opened in 1977 and featured performances from such local folk singers as Bernard Wrigley, Rona, The Hometowners and Brian Osborne. There was also a DJ training school at the pub in 1980 and in 1981 rock gigs began on a Friday night and that continued for a number of years afterwards. Many of the bands were locally based and a sample, taken from Issue 2 of local music fanzine Town Hall Steps and which covered the summer of 1982, included Warrior, Night Train, Cliche, Criminal Fingers, Deadly Embrace, Bronx, Deadgiveaway and Wolfpack.

1977

The pub received a refit in 1985, but live music nights continued. There was an eclectic mix with folk on a Thursday – the re-formed Cloggie's Folk Club which had taken place at the Victory Hotel in the mid-seventies – heavy rock on a Friday and the pub's resident organist on Saturday and Sunday nights.

Ad from July 1997

But by 1987 the pub was losing money and was moved by Greenalls from a managed house to a tenanted pub. In November 1992 it was sold by Greenalls to another Warrington-based brewery, Burtonwood. They installed a new landlady, Paula Marsh, who had previously run the Alma on Bradshawgate. Under her tenancy the Cotton Tree became very much a community pub. Paula and her husband Phil put on activities such as line dancing classes and karate training. At one point they were feeding a hot meal every day for up to 50 local people.

Paula Marsh left the Cotton Tree in 2007. The pub was refurbished and again put on live music, particularly jazz concerts. But in June 2014 it closed and was temporarily de-licensed after being put up for auction. By then it was owned by Marstons following their purchase of the Burtonwood tied estate in 2004; however, it was bought by Creative Pubs and Bars Ltd and was immediately re-licensed and re-opened. Real ale even made a brief appearance for the first time in the pub's history.

The end for the Cotton Tree came in 2024 when a planning application was lodged to convert the pub into a children's nursery. It closed in September 2024.

Even though the pub rarely sold real ale it does have a page on the Campaign For Real Ale's website that contains a number of links to historical articles and photographs.