Take a tour of the town of 800 inns
STEVE JAMES looks at some of the historic pubs within Wolverhampton’s ring road: Part One
SOMEONE once asked me, how many pubs were there in Wolverhampton? Excluding its outer suburbs, over the years there were probably more than 800 pubs. Here we focus on the town centre, roughly bounded by today’s ring road.
The focal point of Wolverhampton town centre was, and still is, Queen Square, which was the site of the first public toilets for women. The oldest pub was the Swan, dating from 1770. It was an old coaching inn where the Shamrock, Nimrod and Emerald stage-coaches stopped, but closed in 1877. The Wheatsheaf (1818-1956) was soon renamed Harley’s Vaults, but later became a building society office. The Bird in Hand (1818) was closed by 1850.
The Empire Vaults (1900) later became the Hippodrome Bar, but was destroyed by fire in 1956. It was later rebuilt and became Yates Wine Bar and then the Slug and Lettuce. The Board (1873) sold “Harmer’s homebrewed ales – finest in the world” and later became the Tavern in the Town.
Just across the road is the Lych Gate Tavern, opened by Black Country Ales in 2012. The building dates back to 1726 and was previously used as wine vaults. On the corner of Exchange Street is the Parisian (2016), a modern café/bar, with the
Exchange (1866) on the corner of Cheapside, which later became the Cuban Exchange.
The Market Place and Horse Fair formed another focal point of the town centre, where much activity and business took place, particularly in the old market hall. Most of the ancient hostelries here had disappeared before 1900, and most of the area is now occupied by the Civic Centre.
One of the oldest inns was the Old Crown, a home-brew pub dating back to 1792, but gone by 1874. Others included the Fleur de Lys (1818-1880), Freemasons Arms (1818-1879), Black Boy (1818-1851), Rising Sun (18511870), Unicorn (1854-1869), Cock and Cross Keys (1818-1870) and Old Horse Fair Tavern (1858-1878). John Barnsley kept the Hop Pole (17921861) and was also the town’s turnpike road surveyor.
North Street has been severed by the ring road close to the Molineux Hotel. This was originally built for ironmaster, Benjamin Molineux, in 1740 and first licensed in 1870. It closed in 1979 and is now home to the City Archives. On the corner of Molineux Road was the Feathers (1818-2015), originally known as the Plume of Feathers and rebuilt for North Worcestershire Breweries in 1910. It offered three brands of stout, including Imperial stout at 2d a pint.
The Lion dated back to 1780 as the Red Lion, but closed in 1850. The Chequer Ball (1818) closed in 1973, while the Tiger (1818) was rebuilt in 1885 and renamed The Stein and Alchemy before becoming the Dog and Doublet in 2014. It was next to the Town Hall Hotel (1875), built on the site of the White Lion, and later became the Little Civic, Numa Bar and Green Room.
The Fox (1871) was demolished in 2014 and became a car park for Wolves FC, while the Fox and Grapes (1818-1874) was originally the Druids Head Tavern. The Queens Hotel (1858) was once a Bent’s (Stone) brewery pub, but became Popworld in 2014, while the Old Mitre (1833-1936) became a Temperance Hotel in 1904. Jessops Hotel (1866-1934) once had an American bowling saloon, while the Cottage Spring (1864-1935) became a private house and was later demolished. Other pubs included the Gladstone (1868-1972), White Lion (1818-1874) and Colonel Vernon (1871-1966).
Lichfield Street was mostly developed as part of a clearance scheme of 1875. Several civic buildings were built here, including the Art Gallery, designed by Julius Chatwin in 1884.
The Posada (1885) was named after the Spanish word for an inn or hotel. Its distinctive faience tiled frontage, with Art Nouveau lettering, was added by local architect, Fred Beck, in 1901. The pub is now listed (Grade II), with its interior included in CAMRA’S list of heritage pubs. A few doors away is the Goose (2000). Behind the Posada in Wheelers Fold is Mcghees (2004), along with the Little Swan (18221883), next to the Pig and Whistle (1818-1879).
Shorter-lived pubs included the Noah’s Ark (1792-1883), Brown Bear (1818-1871), Smoke Shop (1818-1865), White Rose (18181880), next door to the Prince of Wales (1871-1880), and Unicorn (1835-1850). The Criterion Hotel (1881-1978) became Valhalla in 1976. We’ve also lost newer pubs like the Bank (1996-2013) Lichfield (1976-1982) and O’neills (19952012).
Another main focal point is Princes Square, where England’s first automatic traffic lights were erected in November 1927. In Wulfruna Street, the Lamb (1845-1931) advertised “pure home-brewed ales brewed on the premises”. More recently, the Royal London (1999) occupies the former Royal London Insurance offices. Opposite was the Hooded Ram (1996-2019), previously Rothwells, in the former Westminster Bank premises. Not far away in St Peter’s Square was the Three Crowns (1858-1926), while the Wellington Arms (1849-1939) was nearby in Wadhams Hill.
Along the lower part of Lichfield Street, we’d find the Bohemian (2016) and Wetherspoon’s Moon Under Water (1995), in the former Co-op store. Opposite is the Britannia Hotel (1896), previously the
Victoria Hotel, haunted by former artistes performing at the Grand Theatre, opened in 1894.
Fryer Street was home to the Cheshire Cheese (1835-1868), Crown (1868-1896) and the much newer Light Bar (1994) in the iconic Chubb Buildings, built in 1899. On the corner of Fryer Street and Lichfield Street, the Sir Tatton Sykes (1851-2008) was named after a famous racehorse owner and rebuilt in 1888 by A.P. Brevitt for Butler’s (Wolverhampton) brewery.
Opposite, the Prince Albert (1861) became the Royal Commercial Hotel, built in Jacobean-style by George Wormal in 1901, and is now Grade II listed. It’s haunted by Miss Williams, who wore a man’s suit, smoked a pipe, rode a powerful motorbike and had an illicit affair with a Royal Navy Wren. Close to the railway station in Railway Street were the Railway (18451861) and Big Cat (1828-1849). On the new station approach road is the Sunbeam, opened in 2016 and recalling the Wolverhampton-built motor car.
In the back streets, we’d find the White Bear (1822-1894) in Berry Street, along with the White Lion (1833-1889), opposite the Green Man (1834-1881), and Royal Exchange (1841-1866). The London and North Western Hotel (18731967), built on the site of the Cock (1818), became part of the Britannia Hotel, as did the Carnarvon Castle (1855-1985). Little Berry Street was home to the Nags Head (1818-1851) and Brewers Arms (1858-1873).
Along Broad Street, many pubs closed before 1900, including the Dog and Partridge (1792), Clog, Union, Old Leathern Bottle and
Admiral Vernon (1818), opposite the Jolly Crispin (1850), Harp (1833) and Bridge (1864). Other pubs included the Raven and Bell (1828-1921) and Squirrel (18451973). In Charles Street, the Staffordshire Knot (1818-1975) had a popular music hall. In Montrose Street, were the Whale (1850-1901) and Daniel O’connell (1857-1960), with the Limerick (1873-1978) in Westbury Street.
Stafford Street was home to the George Hotel, originally built in 1735 and first licensed in 1833. It was rebuilt a century later by A.T. Butler, renamed the Varsity in 1993 and taken over by the university in 2012. The Hogs Head was first licensed in 1828 as the Vine, rebuilt in 1891 by A.P. Brevitt, and became offices in 1984, but reopened as the Hogs Head in 1998. Other early pubs, first licensed in 1818 but no longer here included the Royal Oak, Black Horse, Four Ashes, known locally as the “Block”, Britannia, Mug House and Old Mug House. Some pubs built later in that century, but long gone included the Queens Head, Old Crown, White Hart, Isle of Man, Leaping Bar and Hibernia. The Northumberland Arms (1854) closed in 1975, with the Great Western Hotel (18711976) on the corner of Horseley Street.
On the corner of Little’s Lane, the Warwick Arms (1855-1975) was frequented by the Irish community living in nearby Caribee Island, described in 1849 as a “collection of the most squalid looking houses on the north side of Stafford Street” and cleared in 1875. Around the corner were the Roebuck (18581906) and Case is Altered (18811901).