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Home >
Bedfordshire > Toddington > Red Lion
Red Lion
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The Red Lion was situated at 22 Market
Square. |
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From Bedfordshire Heritage: |
The Red Lion occupied premises on Market
Square which until the later 19th century had been as the Waggon and Horses
(this is specifically stated in remarks made by a solicitor in 1897
[X95/346a]). The property is listed by the former Department of the
Environment as Grade II, of special interest. The listing describes the
property as of 18th century origins (however, see below), of whitewashed
brick with an old clay tile roof, hipped to the right. There are three
casement windows with glazing bars and three ground floor canted bays with
lattice.
The Red Lion (or Waggon and Horses) was not a licensed establishment of long
standing, as it does not appear in the countywide licensing registers of
1822 to 1828. In 1850 the Waggon and Horses beerhouse at Toddington appears
as Lot 13 in the sale particulars of the Newport Pagnell Brewery. The title
to the lot was said to commence with an indenture of 16 October 1802 between
John Bennett and David Willis on the one part, and William Badley on the
other. The beerhouse was described as "containing Tap-Room, Parlour,
Washhouse, Cellar underground, and four small Bed-chambers. Stable, and the
use of a Pump of Water. Also an undivided third part of the Yard in the
rear, with a right of way over the other two-thirds, but subject to a right
of way in favour of the two adjoining Tenements over the said undivided
third." The house was occupied by Daniel Potts at an annual rent of £10.
Potts is listed as a beer seller in Toddington in directories from 1847 to
1869.
The earlier history occurs in a conveyance of 1867 in which the property is
described as "A messuage in the Manor of Toddington formerly in occupation
of John Parsons now converted into several dwellings in occupation of John
Wildman, John Fowler, Stephen Bunker, Daniel Hart junior and others". This
seems to pre-date 1867 by some years (as is not uncommon in deeds) before
the property was used as a beerhouse. The property was enfranchised, that is
converted from copyhold to freehold, in 1892.
The former Waggon and Horses was known as the Red Lion by 1871, when it was
owned by the Luton Brewery of Thomas Sworder and Company (as tenants of the
Manor of Toddington). It was among fifty-eight licensed premises included in
the sale of the Thomas Sworder's brewery in 1897, when the sale particulars
stated that the property consisted of a bar, a sitting room with cupboards,
a private entrance, tap room, kitchen, small scullery with sink, larder,
washhouse with copper, cellar, four bedrooms and a room over the kitchen.
Outside there were a goods yard with double gates, a loose box, open cart
shed, pig sty and stable, manure pit, two closets, a urinal and a pump. The
tenant was Mr. W. Evans, and the rent was £12 per annum. Sworder's business
was purchased by rival Luton brewer J W Green.
The Rating and Valuation Act 1925 specified that every building and piece of
land in the country was to be assessed to determine its rateable value. At
this time the Red Lion had a bar, a tap room, a smoke room, a living room, a
kitchen and a cellar downstairs, with five bedrooms above. Outbuildings
consisted of a brick and slate stable; a brick, timber and slate stable; and
a cart hovel. The Red Lion sold 1½ barrels (36 gallons) of beer and three
dozen bottle of spirits per week. The valued described it as "miserable"
with good bars but low pitched. It was held by Charles Evans from J.W. Green
at a "fair" tied rent of £10 per annum, reduced from a pre-war rent of £16
per annum.
The Red Lion was granted a full licence as the Red Lion public house on 8th
February 1952. In 1954 J W Green merged with Midlands brewer Flowers, taking
the latter's name. This company was taken over by Whitbread in 1964. In 2002
Whitbread sold all its public houses and the Red Lion was bought by
Discovery Inns. It became the Ritzy Bar in 2011 and closed in 2014.
The son of former landlord Charlie Bray contacted Bedfordshire Archives in
2017 mentioning that he saw the inside of the building while it was
undergoing major renovations and that the upstairs turned out to be lath and
plaster, believed to date back to the 17th century. He also said that former
owners had deeds suggesting it was built in 1665. This cannot be verified by
anything held by Bedfordshire Archives but is entirely plausible given the
location of the building; dates given in listed building descriptions are
often generalised estimates rather than based on fact. |
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