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Staging Post: Deeping
‘The night and the snow came on together and dismal enough they were. There was no sound to be heard but the howling of the wind, for the noise of the wheels and the tread of the horses’ feet were rendered inaudible by the thick coating of snow which covered the earth, and was fast increasing every moment. The streets of Stamford were deserted as they passed through the town and its old churches rose howling and dark from the whitened ground. Twenty miles further on, two of the front outside passengers wisely availing themselves of their arrival at one of the best coaching inns in England turned in for the night at the George at Grantham. The remainder wrapped themselves more closely in their coats and cloaks and leaving the light and the warmth of the town behind them pillowed themselves against the luggage and prepared with many half suppressed moans again to encounter the piercing blast which swept across the open country.’
When this was written by Charles Dickens in ‘Nicholas Nickelby’ in 1838, the Deeping Stage, then known as the New Inn, had been open twenty-five years since around 1803, shown on the house mark still visible today and boasting the initials of the first owners, Joseph Mawby and his wife. It was advertised as being entirely new with ‘well fitted commodious accommodation for the nobility, gentry and commercial travellers’. The posting charge for travellers was 1/3d (15 pence in new money) per mile, and the Boston Perseverance Coach reached the Inn from London every morning at 6.45. The coach to London was in time for breakfast at 8.30 a.m. and arrived in the city the same evening at 9 o’clock.
Prior to this new building, the Bull Inn had provided the only accommodation for horses and carriages which passed through the town, 86.5 miles from London. In 1743 eight stage coaches passed through the town daily and the innkeeper would gladly drive
travellers in his own post chaise to catch other coaches. At the back of the building, the large stables, now garages, are a reminder of these glory days when this was the only way to get around the country.
In 1814 the new Stamford to Boston Post Coach, the ‘Olive Branch’, was stopping at the New Inn. The fare from the town to Boston was 3/6d (just under 50p) for inside passengers and 2/6d if you chose the outside. From Market Deeping to London the fare was 26/- and 14/- respectively. In 1825 evidence of competition between the Inns arose when Thomas Dawson, landlord of the Bull, advertised that all travellers staying at his Inn could be forwarded to Stilton and Boston for just 1/- per mile.
The London Mail was still using the New Inn in 1842. Four years later the local press reported an accident which took place at the Inn. A stage coach had left Lincoln for London and as always the horses were changed at Deeping and the passengers refreshed themselves. This summer’s day was particularly hot and dusty and the passengers and horses were very tired and thirsty. It was approaching 6.00 p.m. when the coach swung through the familiar archway. The horses, smelling water, veered a little to the right of the carriageway; the stone slab floor gave way, an abyss appeared and horses, coach and passengers were plunged into oblivion, leaving the Ostler gaping.
When the New Inn came up for auction in 1951 the bell of the Ostler, employed to look after the horses at the Inn, was still in evidence. Today the name is still seen painted on the wall, and of course the large coaching entrance and the bow windows, now on the inside, then outside, can still be seen. The old wooden bridge over the Welland that predated the ‘new’ bridge, built in the 1840s, crossed where the patio area of the Iron Horse is today, so when coaches travelling to and from London via the Great North Road (A1) entered the town, it was directly into the New Inn courtyard. be answerable to the proprietor if the horses and harnesses were not turned out to perfection.
The average citizen would weigh up the offer of rival coaches competing for his business, and once he had decided he would purchase a ticket from a Clerk who would enter the name on a ledger and issue a ticket for the journey. Great care was taken to avoid over-booking, as the cost of conveying a passenger in this unfortunate circumstance fell to the Clerk. This could prove expensive as the traveller had to be sent on his way by the more expensive post-chaise, unless he was prepared to wait for the next coach.
The journey could be the cause of abject misery or extreme pleasure, the weather could be foul and the company uncongenial. On the other hand, it could be an experience to savour with lively and interesting company in the fresh country air. Alternatively, as a contemporary cartoonist showed, the stage coach passenger inside the coach might be cramped between a fat woman carrying a parrot and a fishmonger smelling of … fish!
In the coaching days of old, these Inns were open 24 hours a day to provide rest and refreshment for passengers and stabling for the horses. The Head Porter was in charge of the stables, commanding a substantial income from tips, as it was important for the regular traveller to be on the right side of him if favours were required. In turn the Porter would
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Our Christmas menu will run from Tuesday 1 st till 24 th December
Senior citizen Christmas meals 2 courses for £9.95 3 courses: £12.95 which will include live entertainment
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