| Lists of licensees can be accessed (both alphabetically and under pub name) via the frontpage. |
| The licensing records for this area are complete for the years (although not all are included here for privacy reasons):- | It became law in 1872 to keep a register. |
| 1772-1779 | 1891 |
| 1782-1790 | 1903 |
| 1793-1828 | 1921- + | However the Northwich records for 1872-1922 are *missing, and for the years 1743-1771 are only occasional. | *If any one knows differently, please let me know! |
| NAME | ADDRESS | NOTES |
| ANGEL HOTEL (view 1) Angel view 2 |
18 High Street (The Bullring) | The Angel was built c1790, replacing a public house of the same name. It was demolished in 1922. |
| ARROWS | unknown location | There were 2 licensees of this shortlived house in Northwich Township Robert OAKLEY, from 1778 -1779 and Thomas GRIFFITHS in 1782 |
| BARLEY MOW | 12 Edward Street | The Barley Mow was opened first as an off-licence, by William Curbishley in 1891.
(He is named as a beer retailer at this address in Kelly, 1892).
It became a beerhouse in 1903, under licence to Ann Curbishley. It closed as a beerhouse in 1977. |
| BEARS PAW (1) | 1 New Street | The property became licenced as a new alehouse in 1783, closing in 1963 to make way for redevelopment. New Street was built in 1775 by Thomas Marshall for local salt-workers (he was a Salt Proprietor). Follow the link to read something about his descendent, Colonel Sir Thomas Horation Marshall, C.B. |
| BEAR'S PAW (2) | 22 Applemarket Street and 17 Church Street (according to the 1881 census, the address of this inn is '26 & 24, Applemarket Street') |
The property had two frontages, hence the two addresses. It was a licenced house from at least 1763, closing on December 31st 1907. |
| BEEHIVE | HIGH STREET* | Built in 1816, known as the WATERLOO until 1828 Dismantled and rebuilt with present redbrick frontage, 1890-91. |
| BLACK BEAR(1) | 8-10 Crown Street (corner of Crown Street and Market Street) |
Until 1722 the original inn was stone built and a private residence known as 'Celler House'. In 1722 it became licenced but was demolished in 1821 and a brick building, the Black Bear, replaced it. As a licenced house it closed around 1827 or '28. |
| BLACK BEAR (2) | 6 Applemarket Street (according to 1881 census the address is 8 Applemarket Street) |
Opened 1830, closed as licenced premises 1904 Of the 8 public houses in Applemarket Street at the time, this was one of those threatened with closure in 1892, in an attempt by the justices to decrease the number of drinking houses in the town. When its licence was not renewed in 1904 neither the owners nor the licensee were compensated. |
| BLACK DOG | Witton Street, on the same side and to the left of the George and Dragon. | Licensees from 1763 -?1857/60 A depression to the rear of the premises, caused by the collapse of Kents' mine in 1750, became known as the Black Dog Hole, allegedly taking it's name from the public house. The Inn was formerly known as the Greyhound, but it's nickname took over in 1795. In the 1810 survery of Witton, the Black Dog together with its stables stood on 16 perches of land, at a yearly rent of £15, paid to it's owner, Thomas POWNALL. In 1828-29 when the de Tabley estate was sold, it was bought, together with three other houses by a Mr William WORTHINGTON, for £235. A date between 1856 and 1860 seems the most likely for the closure of these licensed premises. |
| BLACK LION | location unknown | Two landlords: Richard CLARE (1777) and Phillip WILDING (1778) |
| BLEEDING WOLF | Market Street/12 Crown Street | 1776-1961 The original property was constructed in 1755 as a private house. It was dismanteld and rebuilt in 1905. |
| BLUE BARREL | 69 Chester Road, Castle* | 1632- the Barrel was formerly just within Hartford township and Parish boundary. It was transferred to Leftwich Licencing District in 1871, which in its turn merged with Castle, to be administered by Northwich Local board from 1875 |
| for the Board see Victoria Inn (T-W) |
| BOILERMAKERS ARMS | 5 Church Street | 1844-1907 There were at least 4 public houses in Church Street. Formerly the Butcher's Arms and possibly, before that, in the earliest part of the 19th century, the Seven Stars. |
| BOWLING GREEN (1) | 1 Station Road | 1851-1957 This Inn was situated over the road from the Cock 'o Witton, on the corner of Mill Street (Old Warrington Road) and Station Road. It was known as the Rifleman until 1870. In 1952 it was renamed the Flowerpot but closed in 1957. |
| BOWLING GREEN INN (2) (picture1) (picture2) |
164 London Road* | Reputedly the oldest public house in Northwich. Date under eaves states 1650 although earliest evidence as a public house dates from 1763. |
| For the Brass Rods - see River Weaver Inn (P-S) And for the Bricksetters Arms - see Foresters Arms(this page) |
| BRIDGE INN | 3 London Road | Licenced from 1869-1912 Famous for 'refusing' to collapse, although eventually it was closed on the grounds of safety. |
| BRITANNIA (1) | Market Street | Had the reputation of being the oldest licenced house in Northwich until 1893. Licensees date from 1660 to 1893. Named the Royal Oak until 1794 when it was renamed The Lamb. Became the Britannia in 1869 Almost certainly one of the public houses mentioned in the Poll Tax returns of 1660. Probably to be identified as 'in the occupation of Henrie SMITH, winekeeper, and Elizabeth, his wife.' It may have existed as a property as far back as 1605, according to a town plan of that period. |
| For the Britannia(2) see the Prince of Wales (P-S) |
| BULLS HEAD | 11 Applemarket Street | Licenced 1782, closed 1956 Last landlord Albert WILKINSON One of the oldest public houses in Northwich Township. The Title Deeds mention it having stables and a garden in 1727. |
| For the Butchers Arms- see the Boilermakers Arms (this page) And for the Carpenters Arms- see the Ship(1) (P-S) |
| CASTLE TAVERN | 9 Chester Road | An already existing building which opened as a beerhouse in 1866. It remained a beerhouse until its closure in 1959. |
| CHAISE & PAIR | unknown location | known licensees: John HAND (1759) and Mary HAND (1776-77) |
| CHESHIRE CHEESE | 17 Castle Street | A beerhouse which closed in 1888. It stood next to the Wheatsheaf. Two known licensees: Robert EARLAM (1853-65) and Jane EARLAM, (1869-83) |
| CHURCH INN | 6 Forest Street/Place/Field | Both a greengrocer's shop and a beerhouse. The grocery outlet closed in 1938 and the area was incorporated into the drinking area. The beerhouse dated from the 1860's but received a full licence only in 1959 with the closure of the Navigation Inn in Barnton. The premises closed in 1973 as the area underwent redevelopment. |
| For the Clock - see the Fox and Goose (this page) And for the Coach and Horses - see the Fox (this page) |
| The COCK | 10 Applemarket Street | Licensees listed from 1794-1853/?56. |
| COCK 'O WITTON 'Old' Cock 'o Witton |
4 Witton Street* | The earliest reference to the inn dates from 1742. The present building opened in 1932, preserving the orientation and building line of the original. Prior to this rebuild the establishment was known as the Game Cock Hotel , under the licenseeship of George Moore. In 1799 'Myers cart overturned outside,... killing a woman and horse'. |
| CORNER CUPBOARD | unknown location | Licensees: John PIERCY 1773-76 Sarah PIERCY 1777-79 William SHAW 1782 |
| For the Cross keys - see Dog and Duck (this page) |
| CROWN (modern view) The 'Old' CROWN (picture 1) (picture 2) |
3 Crown Street* (junction of Crown Street and Witton Street) |
Licensees known from 1778 although the age of the original building is unknown. The Northwich Guardian newspaper had offices in the corner portion of the building before it moved to its present premises. In the 1860's the Crown also functioned as the County Court and Petty Sessions House. Public auctions of real estate were also held here. In 1966 this public house was one of those permitted an extension of opening hours 'for the accommodation of persons attending the Northwich Public Market'. The Crown was renamed the Swinging Witch for a few years from 1978 and then the Brasserie Couronne until recently reverting to 'the Crown'. |
| CROWN AND ANCHOR | 33 High Street | Licenced 1796-1960 The first Crown and Anchor, a coaching inn with wharfing facilities to provide transport of passengers to Weston point and Liverpool, was much smaller than its replacement, built in 1892. This was a 3 storey black and white building with room enough to provide, at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries, a large commercial room which was used as a kind of Corn Exchange where seedsmen could sell cereals by sample to local farmers. |
| CUMBERLAND ARMS | 80 Leicester Street | A beerhouse for most of its existence, this tavern was only granted a wine licence in 1921. During the 1930's the price of beer here was a penny cheaper giving it the nickname of the 'Fourpenny Shop' The first licensee is noted as Richard PERRY in 1834, although the inn was 'unsigned'. It became known as the Star in 1859 and the Cumberland Arms, after 'Cumberland Place', a row houses which stood behind it, in 1888. It closed in 1957. |
| DOG AND DUCK | Market Street | Licensees noted from 1788-1865 There is some confusion about the list of licensees for this hostelry which lost its status as an alehouse c1850 and became a beerhouse named the Cross-Keys. In Kelly's 1865 directory two beerhouses named the Cross-Keys existed, both on market Street, whence the confusion. |
| DOG AND PARTRIDGE | Church Street | Licensees from 1783 to 1844 Formerly The Flat, then as The Polly Flat from 1811, becoming the Dog and Partridge in 1828. |
| DRUIDS ARMS | 11 Leicester Street (at the junction with Gibson's Road). | Built in 1840/?44, sold at public auction in 1896 for £1,100, denoting its profitability.
The building was repaired and heavily shored up but in 1898-9 was still showing signs of structural damage
caused by subsidence from the rock salt mines and shafts directly beneath it.
The last landlord is shown as George LEES (1898-1904) It is thought that the name Druids Arms may have been given by its first known licensee in 1861, one Owen GRIFFITHS. |
| EAGLE AND CHILD (1) | (17) 19 High Street | Licenced 1772-1945? The original building, allegedly of some antiquity and with its own brew house, was replaced in 1895-6 because of subsidence. The new one had more stables with room for 5 horses. The family of Margaret CHEADLE, the last licensee, say that after she remarried (GALE) the pub (at the request of the brewery) remained open during WW2 & did not cease trading until aprox. 1945. It is now the home of HSBC (former Midland Bank). |
| For the Eagle and Child (2) - see the Sportsman (P-S) And for the Egerton Arms - see the Kings Arms (H-O) |
| FARMER'S ARMS | Middlewich Road* | Opened as a beerhouse c1850 coming under Leftwich Licencing District at that time. The present building was built in 1959, slightly south (away from Northwich) of the original building, on the site of its orchard. The original bowling green is still in use behind the present building. |
| FEATHERS HOTEL | 27 & 29 High Street | Opened in 1805 it was originally a wholesale outlet for wines and spirits; closed 1963. Known as the Liquor Vaults until 1923. |
| For the Flat - see the Dog and Partridge (this page) And for the Flower Pot - see Bowling Green(1) (this page) |
| FORESTERS ARMS | 162 Witton Street | Known licensees from 1861-1932 The Foresters Arms was formerly a beerhouse, rebuilt in 1891 due to subsidence. Even so the premises were tiny and were almost forced to close in 1913 being thought 'unnecessary'. From around 1909 it was known as the Bricksetters Arms. |
| FOX INN | 16 (18) Applemarket Street | Built/opened c1894, closed 1969 Last landlord Albert WILKINSON A public House called the Fox was open and licenced in 1769. However it is surmised that this older Fox, having undergone several name changes over time (New Shambles Tavern 1821; Coach and Horses 1822; New Shambles Tavern 1823 and back to the Fox 1834) was eventually closed and demolished at the same time as the Griffin and the Seven Stars and that the new Fox was built on that site. |
| FOX AND GOOSE | Church Street. Exact location unknown |
1788 - 1794 renamed the Clock, in 1792. |
| FREEMASONS ARMS | 43/45 Castle Street* | There is no building shown on the Tithe Award Map of 1845 but by 1856 the Freemasons was in use as a Beerhouse, under licence to its builderand owner, John Rathbone. |
| GEORGE AND DRAGON | Witton Street | Formerly the George. Sold in 1828 for £640, it had stables, lofts, workshops,
3 dwelling houses, a schoolroom, gardens and a bowling green. Demolished and rebuilt
as a black and white half-timbered building in 1928; closed in 1979. Now the site of Dixon's electrical Store and Superdrug. |
| GOLDSMITHS ARMS | 14 (16) Crown Street | 1792 - 1955 Popular with Northwich's Irish community. (Many of the Irish community were housed on New Street) The premises were situated at the corner of Crown Street and Applemarket Street, where the two adjoined the Market Hall. |
| GRANBY'S HEAD | unknown location | 1787 One known licensee: Charles Bishop. There is a theory that the licensee once served under the Marquis of Granby (an English General); it is a common Pub name in the Midlands, too |
| For the Grapes- see the Vine (T-W) |
| GREENBANK HOTEL | Chester Road* | 1894 - present. Three applications were made and refused before the magistrates allowed the building of this public house. It was only deemed allowable following the closure of several other inns within Northwich. |
| GREEN DRAGON | 169 Witton Street* | In the 1810 'Survey of Witton', the 'Green Dragon' had a stable and stood in nearly ¾ of an acre of land, which was used as a garden. By 1828 the land had apparently been reduced to just under ¼ of an acre, when it was sold to the company already leasing it, Northwich Brewery, for £245. The present Green Dragon was probably built around 1870, presenting 'a very good example of a Mid-Victorian public house'. It is much the same externally, but its interior has been refurbished. Formerly, there was a small billiard room on the (west) side nearest the town centre. A much larger billiard room upstairs became a clubroom. In 1905 a bathroom was added to the rear of the building, and also a further bedroom, and a pantry. David Charles HUBBARD (named with his permission) became landlord in 1989. |
| For the Greyhound - see the Black Dog (this page) And for the Grey Parrot - see Winnington Lodge (T-W) |
| GRIFFIN | 16 Applemarket Street | 1865 - 1893 The building was formerly a butchers shop run by George Eachus, who opened it as a beerhouse in 1865. John Thompson sold it in 1869 to James Bostock, who took out a mortage from Greenall Whitley 5 years later. However, the licence was then surrendered around the same time (c1874), as being one of the beerhouses that the brewery had agreed to give up so that it, along with other pubs could be demolished and the new Fox built over their sites. It was demolished in 1893. Edward Allen the last licensee, is described as a 'beer retailer' in Kelly, 1892. |
| Frontpage | next page (H-O) |
With acknowledgement to AJ MacGregor's research work: 'Public Houses of Northwich' |