PICTURES: Take a look back at 10 long-lost Northampton pubs and the history behind them
These snaps of long-lost Northampton pubs have been dug up from the archives by local historian Dave Knibb
By Logan MacLeod
Published 18th Feb 2022, 14:30 BST
Updated 18th Feb 2022, 15:40 BST
So many fondly-remembered Northampton pubs have shut their doors over the years but are still in the memories of their customers.
These photos - researched by Dave Knibb, the Northampton author of 'Last Orders: A History and Directory of Northampton Pubs' - show some of the town's old stomping grounds.
Do you remember stopping for a drink in any of them?
Dave's self-published book has sold more than 2,000 copies. To buy a copy, phone 07939990790 or email [email protected].
Do you remember stopping for a drink in any of them?
5. The Star Inn in Western Terrace
Dave said: "The Star Inn, believe me, it was nothing like an Inn, dated back to 1845, it was a small corner street pub. Many little places like this were to become targets for closure by the council in the early years of the 20th century but on the western tip of the old town, or eastern tip of St James, depending on your viewpoint at that time, it escaped. The increased trade from the Castle Station was of great benefit to it as well and began calling itself the Star & Railway Inn although was referred to as just the Star in the papers and to its locals right through to its closure in 1962."
Dave said: "Remembered by many as a ‘biker’ pub, the Harbour Lights sticks out like a sore thumb. It’s the last remaining building from Gas Street and was on the corner of Woolmonger Street, except it isn’t called that anymore. Woolmonger Street still exists, in a different layout but now just around Kingswell Street, the Woolmonger Street by the Harbour Lights is now just the entrance to the St Peter’s Way Car Park, the street with no name.
Similarly, the Harbour Lights is no more. At the time of writing it is a Vietnamese restaurant.
Over the years, no one has come up with an answer to how it got its name, I can finally clear that one up. Although open as a beer house in the 1850’s, it never had a ‘sign’ above its door until 1886. It just so happens that the sensation in the theatres in 1886 was a play called ‘The Harbour Lights’ and it just so happens that a production of the play came to Northampton the same year and played to rave reviews. Case closed."
Dave said: "The Railway Tavern was first recorded in 1869 and I think that is most probably when it opened, within a year or so. Even with the proliferation of pubs in this area, it was still pretty brave to open up a place so close to the long established Pomfret Arms, but as the name suggests, it was trying to attract a slightly different clientele. It was never big enough to offer many rooms to let but there was enough to keep it busy from the onset."
Dave said: "The brand spanking new London & North Western Hotel opened in 1898. The first owner, William Stone made an immediate impact in the community when he lost £4,600 in the back of a cab in June 1898. He had taken the bag with him when he left the Hotel but had left it in the back of the cab, there was £100 in gold and silver and £4,500 in deeds and documents. The bag, along with the money was still in the back of the cab the next morning, the driver had gone straight home and put the horse and cab straight back in his stable. No harm done, although the tale somehow got into the Mercury and caused a stir, no publicity is bad publicity I suppose.
The sixties saw the pub side thriving, with the pub being one of the most popular and boisterous in Northampton. Its last hurrah ran out in 1970 though when it closed down and was demolished for the Barclaycard building, if it was still a thriving hotel then things might have been different, but it had sadly outlived its large façade."
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