Campaign For Real Ale

CAMPAIGN FOR REAL ALE

What’s in apub name?

The great and diverse pub scene that we are able to see in Leek today is a microcosm of the wider UK pub scene as awhole.

Many towns have lost their array of differing styles of drinking establishments and although Leek has certainly lost some, it has also retained enough for us to be lucky enough to enjoy every day.

You only have to look at the diverse range of pub names in our wonderful town to have amini glimpse of British life, with abit of history and heritage thrown into the mix for good measure.

We have an example of the most common British pub name in The Red Lion in Market Place. The Red Lion is apopular feature on many heraldic Coats of Arms and was used as an easily recognizable pictorial sign outside inns and taverns before most ordinary folk could read and write.

In arecent CAMRA survey, there are reckoned to be around 600 ‘Red Lions’ still trading as public houses throughout the UK. Our very own Leek example has the obvious layout of aformer coaching inn, where horsedrawn Royal Mail coaches would call, not only to drop off and collect important mail connecting the business and commerce of the daytoother towns but to offer rest and refreshment to weary human travellers and horses alike.

While most places have lost their historic coaching inns, The Red Lion together with the nearby Roebuck in Derby Streetare quite easy to spotasformercoaching inns and stand out from other pubs, as they both have atall archway leading to asizeable rear yard which would allow for the stabling of horses, while thebuilding itself would oftenhave several floors above the pub and outbuildings at the rear to accommodate the many travellers passing through.

Until fairly recently Leek had a pub with the second most common name in the UK (according to CAMRA figures) in The Royal Oak, which was situated on Buxton Road, on ground now occupied by the Pharmacy, between the Park Medical Practice and the Lidl store.

Anod to Royalty is always a common theme in pubnames and Leek still has acouple in that category. The Prince of Wales on the Wallbridge estate, which was obviously named afterPrince Charles, as it was being built around the time of his investiture to inherit the title of the reigning monarch’s eldest son in 1969. The new pub actually opened its doors the following year.

The Blue Mugge on the corner of Osborne Street and QueenStreet was formally called The Queen’s Arms, again after being built around the time of Queen Victoria’s accessionthe throne in 1837.

Pubs are oftennamed after skilled trade names and local occupations. Once again Leek has its very own examples of this theme in The Dyers Arms named after the extensive silk dyeing trade for which Leek became famous and is the only example of this pub name in the UK. The Silk Mill in Market Street and The Old Mill in Heywood Street and the new Mulberry Leaves near Sainsbury’s have been named with a reference to Leeks former mighty silk industry. In case you didn’t know, silkworms feed solely off mulberry leaves and many were commercially farmed in large glasshouses to provide aready supply of silk for Leeks mills. And although afairly newcomer to the Leek pub scene, The Cobblers in Russell Streetissonamed as it stands on the site of aformer cobblers shop.

Famous people, particularly politicians and military big hitters also feature in some of our local pub names. Obvious examples are The Wellington in Wellington Street, is named after The Duke of Wellington famed for commanding the victorious British troops at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, which in present day Belgium. The Earl Grey on Ashbourne Road (which incidentally is soon to reopen) is probably named after the 1st Charles Grey (1729 –1807) who fought in the American war of independence. His son the 2nd Earl Charles Grey, Baronet of Howick (1767 –1845) wasaWig politician who rose to become Prime Minister in the 1830’s and was responsible for sweeping changes in British political life,including the Great Reform Act 1830, the Abolition of Slavery Act 1833 and went on to start awhole raft of reforms that led to various employment acts which eventually ledtothe endofchild labour in the mines and factories.

The Wilkes Head in St Edward Street is named after the member of parliament John Wilkes (1725 – 1798). He was famed for his controversial speechesand pamphlets which were mainly aimed against the rich and privileged classes, which got him into trouble on numerous occasions. The name Wilkes Head is spelt in slightly different waysinvarious places in and around the puband in other publications, which can all be considered correct in different contextual circumstances. Amore detailed biography of John Wilkes can be found on the wall to the left of thebar inside.

The AbbeyInn at Abbey Green and The Priory on Abbots Road indicate Leeks historical ecclesiastical connection with the monks of former Dieulaclres Abbey which was destroyed during the ablution of the monasteries by Henry 8th.

So you see Leek really does have it all, with agreat and diverse range of pubs and bars, agreat range and choice of beer, cider, wines, spirits and cocktails, and agreat sense of our own industrial, political and military heritage but most of all, pride in our own town. Cheers!

Steve Barton

Chairman of the Staffordshire Moorlands branch of CAMRA