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The Oxford Arms was our tenth visit of the day to a venue selling alcoholic beverages and I can already hear my two loyal blog readers bemused to where eight and nine have gone. So, eight was the Lowestoft Tandoori and I’ll come back to that in another post as it’s not really a pub, with number nine being the Falcon. Unfortunately, I was in some sort of food coma by then due to the portion sizes at the Indian, so I sat in the garden with a rum, which was Julian’s bright idea to ‘settle my nerves’, meaning I didn’t really look around inside. To be fair to the Falcon, and we are rigorous in our study tours, we’ll revisit it on the next trip.

The pub was built in the late nineteenth century and it was formerly known as the Oxford Stores and I’m starting to wonder if there’s a single pub in Lowestoft that hasn’t changed its name at some point. The above map is from the 1880s and it shows that at the time the area was fields, the pub is in the centre-right of this white space. The pub was built by Youngman & Preston and there was an application made in September 1897 to change the licence from George Henry Read to James Charles Butcher, so I’m guessing that the pub first opened in around 1890. Tragedy struck just weeks later as the Evening Star reported:

“On Sunday evening Mr. James Butcher, landlord of the Oxford Stores, at the corner of St. Margaret’s and Oxford Roads, Lowestoft, died suddenly. The deceased, who was married, and about 33 years of age, was well known and popular. He formerly kept the Waggon and Horses, on the Beach, and on the licence of the High Street house being removed during the widening of that thoroughfare, he went to the new house. The cause of death was an affection of the brain, from which he suffered during the summer, but apparently recovered. He was taken ill on Wednesday night, and though attended by Dr. Bell, the seizure terminated fatally.”

All rather sad, especially as in 1911, the landlord William Butcher died at the pub aged just 39 years old and William’s wife had died at the venue the year before. They don’t sound like the most uplifting first few years of opening.

Julian came here over fifty years ago, which is quite a sobering thought. Today, the venue shows live sports and there are some occasional music events to excite and delight the local denizens.

Inside the pub, there’s a pool table and general games area. As an Everton fan (I say fan, that is a rather aspirational way of saying that I sort of look at the league tables every week) I’ve mentally blocked out something in the photo.

The main bar and my legs.

I mentioned sobering thoughts earlier on in this post and that’s evident here, with Julian opting for a delicious lemonade. Or at least until he realised these things no longer have sugar, just a heap of aspartame which I personally think is likely potentially more dangerous than the sugar that the authorities have obsessively removed, but there we go. There weren’t any real ales here and the drinks selection was quite limited, which was the main reason for Julian’s less than decadent choice.

I wasn’t having sobering thoughts, I had half a pint of Guinness and it tasted as expected and was at the appropriate temperature.

There’s a breakfast menu and the venue also sells food at lunchtimes.

This is a good idea in the toilets given the ridiculously hot weather that we’ve been having recently.

Overall, this felt like a traditional community pub and it offered a friendly welcome and some minor interest from locals on who these new customers were when we entered. The service was efficient, the venue was clean and I rather liked the heritage of the pub, although the separate rooms of the lounge bar and the saloon that once existed have all been knocked through. The drinks selection here isn’t really something that I’m personally looking for, although Guinness is always a decent fall-back arrangement, but the pricing was low. The online reviews are very positive and I’m fairly confident that this is the sort of pub that will be here for generations to come.

The seventh pub on the study tour that Julian and I took part in last week in Lowestoft was the Triangle Tavern. This is located on St. Peter’s Street, next to the Triangle Market and it’s also the brewery tap for the rather wonderful Green Jack brewery. The brewery was founded in 1993 by Tim Dunford and they moved to larger premises in the town in 2009.

The pub was trading from at least the 1860s, although I’ve struggled with the history of this venue and I think it’s something that I’ll have to return to. The pub isn’t marked on either of these maps from the 1880s and the road layout has changed here a bit, with Arnold Street not being cut off to build a road, Artillery Way, through the middle of the town. The pub is located just to the right of where ‘pump’ is mentioned on the lower map (the left hand one on the bottom map) and you’re welcome for that entirely useless cartographic lack of precision…..

The below article from 1909 isn’t about the pub, but about the Triangle Market located just in front of it, and I was amused that the council spent a fortune doing it all up and demanding everyone now pays a rent, only for stall holder to tell them “you do what you like, and I shall do as I like”, which evidently annoyed the town clerk.

“It will probably be remembered that some months ago Lowestoft Corporation decided to lay out the Triangle—which has been an eye-sore for some time—as a garden or open space. There was at once strong opposition, and sundry public meetings held to denounce the Corporation, and to suggest the conversion of the spot into a proper market place. A deputation of shopkeepers in the vicinity waited upon the Council, to urge their preference for a market, and in deference to the wishes expressed, the Triangle has since been paved and drained, at a cost of £180, properly prepared for a market, and stallage spaces marked out, with a reserve price upon each. For one 12-foot space next High Street, the reserve was 8s. for use two days a week.

On Wednesday night, at the Town Hall, Alderman Notley attempted to let by auction the stallage spaces and one or two advertising spaces on the hoarding which adjoin, but only received one bid, (£4) by Councillor E. Tuttle for one of the spaces on the hoarding. Certain conditions and stipulations as to the user of the Triangle, with a view of keeping off cheap-jacks and other “shows,” had been drawn up by the Council, and at the conclusion of the “letting” Mr. Notley remarked that it did not appear that the market was wanted very much. The Town Clerk remarked that it must be clearly understood that nobody would be allowed to go on the Triangle unless he hired stallages, under the conditions and stipulations laid down.—Mr. Mack (an old stall-holder) said he should be there on Saturday. The rules and regulations were made by the Town Council, but he had paid his way there for 20 years. “You do what you like, and I shall do as I like,” he added.—The Town Clerk: I have no doubt that if he goes on the Triangle, legal proceedings will be taken against him.”

Oooh, free books. And I liked the annotation of “where?”…..

The beer board and that’s a fine choice of beers from Green Jack with the pricing all being reasonable. I hadn’t actually realised that Green Jack did as much as keg beer either.

The bar area with the service being prompt, friendly and engaging. The pub accepts cash and cards, with the selection of bar snacks being reasonable. The general atmosphere was welcoming, the customers here always seem relaxed and calm (well, in the front bar) and it’s I think one of the best pubs in the town.

There was no doubt that I would have a half pint of the Ukraine, a 7% traditional ale that was brewed as a one-off to support the country. And the beer quality was high, one of the better real ales that I’ve ever had, there was a toffee flavour, it was malty, bitter and beautifully rounded. The ABV was rather hidden and there was a fruity element to the whole arrangement, a most marvellous beer.

One long bar and I was standing in the front bar to take this photo and this section of the pub used to be the Oddfellows. I’m unsure at the moment about this, it’s possible there were two pubs next to each other, that isn’t ultimately that rare, but I can’t find any source for this other than CAMRA and it might be something I have to investigate at a later date. Unfortunately, my ‘investigate later’ pile is quite substantial.

The back bar and this was the original part of the Triangle pub and I always think it’s a little more lively back here. There’s a pool table, as eagle-eyed readers would have noticed, with another seating area off to the left of this photo.

Overall, I have visited this pub rather a lot of times in the past and it’s a welcoming and warm environment, with two very distinctive bars. It is popular, well-used and frequently in the Good Beer Guide, just as it deserves to be.

The sixth pub of our onerous Lowestoft study day was the Carousel and this is another pub where the history is rather more challenging than ideal to uncover as it has changed its name on numerous occasions. It started off at the Herring Fisheries (the pub is located by Herring Fishery Score), then became the Spread Eagle Hotel (also being known as the Spreadeagle and the Spread Eagle), then becoming the Carousel, then becoming the Wheatsheaf and then becoming the Carousel again a few years ago. The building dates to the 1880s and I suspect is built on the same site as a previous licensed premises. In the late 1880s, the pub was operated by Youngman & Preston and they kept it until they were acquired by Lacons in 1919 and the original site of Youngman & Preston’s brewery is located where the Bird’s Eye factory stands today.

Here’s the pub in the 1880s, it’s the PH located just above the word ‘Herring’ and that score is still there today, albeit rather modified. The town’s police station is also just around the corner, handy if there are any issues that need resolving……

This article was in the local newspaper in 1903:

“LOWESTOFT LICENSING CASE DISMISSED.

“TURNED QUEER” ON GETTING INTO THE AIR.

At the Lowestoft Police-court on Thursday, before Mr. W. Mobbs and other magistrates, Frederick R. Golder, landlord of the Spread Eagle Hotel, High Street, Lowestoft, was charged by Superintendent Shipp with permitting drunkenness on his licensed premises on April 14th. Mr. Cecil Taylor (Messrs. Chamberlin & Taylor) appeared in support of the information, and Mr. E. A. Bracey of Norwich, was for the defence.

William Wright, pawnbroker’s manager, of 143, High Street, said on the afternoon in question he saw a man named John Rattle, who pawned a pair of boots. Witness advanced him 7s. 6d. for them. Rattle was perfectly sober, and witness gave the question in a proper manner.

George Lambert, labourer, in the employ of the Lowestoft Corporation, deposed to seeing Rattle in the Spread Eagle twice during the afternoon. He went in and came out twice, and about the second time witness followed him and finding constable.

Mr. Eastaugh – Do you often go into public-houses?

Witness – Well, sometimes when I am on my rounds I go and have a little refreshment.

Mr. Eastaugh – But you went into the public-house twice during the afternoon.

Witness – Well, it was just after the holidays, and I had a little extra.

Mr. Eastaugh – And you work for the Corporation?

Witness – Yes.

Mr. Eastaugh – I’ll bear that in mind.

Cross-examined – Witness was present when a policeman came in and told the landlord not to draw drink for a certain man. That man was not Rattle.

John Rattle said he went to the Spread Eagle after pawning the boots, and treated several persons standing in the bar. He had two half-quarters of Holland’s gin. Previous to going to the pawnbroker’s he had half a quartern of gin at the Harbour Hotel. He had been a teetotaller for some months but was recommended to take gin. He could not say what time it was when the policeman picked him up. He felt all right in the house, but turned queer when he got into the air. He went down a back street instead of going home, and fell at the top of Police Station Road. He fell sick when in the street.

Police-constable Wright stated he saw Rattle at 3.20 and he was then sober. He next saw him at five minutes to five, when he went into the Spread Eagle to warn the landlord about another man. Rattle was then leaning on the counter with his back to witness. He could not say whether he was sober or not. He said nothing to Rattle. Witness had left the house about five minutes when Rattle went past him. He was drunk and rolling down the street. He went into Milton Road, and witness followed him. When at the top of Police Station Road he fell, and as he was helpless witness took him into custody. Witness afterwards saw the landlord, who stated that Rattle went into the house drunk, and he did not serve him. He further intimated that the man had only just walked into the house, and thought witness had followed him in.

Cross-examined – Golder told him that he had only just come in from his business. He was working at a desk at the time.

Mr. Bracey then addressed the Bench, and said he thought the magistrates would be satisfied that his client did not permit drunkenness on the premises. The constable went into the bar, but did not see anything in the condition of the man to draw the landlord’s attention to him.

The defendant was sworn, and stated that he had been in business in Lowestoft for between three and four years. On the day of the charge he went home about 4.45. The policeman warned him about serving a certain man. Witness saw Rattle near the counter, and thought at first that the policeman was referring to him. Witness took the precaution to order the man out. Witness could not say if the man had been in the bar earlier in the afternoon, as he did not go in till about 4.30.

Chas. Clarke, basket maker, of 7, Jacob’s Street, said he went to the Spread Eagle about four o’clock. The landlord was not present then. A little before five Rattle came in, and the policeman behind him. The defendant ordered Rattle out, and did not serve him.

Cross-examined – He could see Rattle was drunk, and thought the policeman would draw the landlord’s attention to him.

George Annis, labourer, of White Horse Street, spoke to going to the public-house about three o’clock. The landlord went in over an hour later. Witness then confirmed the statements of the last witness.

George Skittall went into the house at 2.25 and remained till five. Rattle went in at 4.55, and was not served with drink.

Police-constable Ward Rattle went into the bar about half-past four. Rattle ordered something, but the landlord did not draw anything for him.

Police-constable Warner, re-called, said he did not see anybody go into the house that was drunk.

The magistrates retired, and having consulted a quarter of an hour, dismissed the case.”

It all sounds rather confusing, but I’m sure that it was a handy reminder for pubs in the town not to serve drunks, or at least, not to let the police see them do it. A newspaper article published in the Eastern Evening News in 1909 read:

“ASSAULT ON LOWESTOFT POLICEMAN.

NORWICH MAN SENTENCED.

At Lowestoft Police-court to-day, before the Mayor and other magistrates,

Edward Woods alias Henry Howes, rag and bone collector, of Norwich, was charged with assaulting Police-constable W. Pearson whilst in the execution of his duty at Lowestoft on the 3rd instant.

Police-constable W. Pearson said that he was called to the Spread Eagle Hotel to eject the prisoner and three other men. Witness asked the proprietor if he had requested prisoner to leave, and he replied that he had. Witness then asked him several times, but he refused to go. Witness got hold of one of the men to eject him, whereupon prisoner said, “No, you don’t,” and struck at witness until he got further assistance. When they were outside prisoner jumped on to witness’ back and pulled him to the ground. After witness had handcuffed his prisoner, the present prisoner again obstructed him and tried to get the man away.

Martha Armes, barmaid at the Spread Eagle, also gave evidence, and said that prisoner and some other men were causing a disturbance in the bar of the hotel. They had been refused drink owing to their condition. When Police-constable Pearson tried to eject one of the other men, the prisoner tried to strike the officer. When they were outside prisoner again obstructed the policeman when he was struggling on the ground with another man. Whilst witness was assisting the constable, prisoner struck witness in the left eye, and also kicked another barmaid, who was endeavouring to get prisoner off the constable.

Prisoner—Did I strike you wilfully?—Yes.

William Hall, landlord of the Spread Eagle, corroborated, and said that prisoner kicked witness whilst he and the barmaids were assisting the constable.

Prisoner here said he was telling the man who was in the constable’s charge to go quietly. He called Mr. E. Tuttle from the Bench as a witness, and asked him if he saw him (prisoner) strike the constable. This Mr. Tuttle said he did not see him do.

Prisoner, who was characterised by Superintendent Shipp as an “undesirable,” was sent to prison for twenty-one days’ hard labour.”

There was quite a lot of drama along these lines that took place here, I imagine Lowestoft was quite a challenging place at the turn of the last century with many “undesirables” lurking about.

Firstly, apologies for the lack of photos in this post, the excitement of seeing Kieron rather distracted me. This photo is a zoomed in version from the one below, showing some of the beers that were available. The pub is large with views out to the North Sea and I had forgotten that there’s an exciting set of stairs to reach the downstairs toilet. Anyway, that’s about the limit of my witterings about the pub since I wasn’t paying much attention to them, but I do get easily distracted when talking to interesting people. There’s a pool table in the pub which I understand is well used, with music nights also taking place to surprise and delight the locals.

There were some bottled real ales available, but on these study tours we limit ourselves mostly to half pints, so I went for the John Smiths which was smooth, light and tasted as expected.

It’s a pleasant enough pub, the size meant it didn’t feel quite as vibrant as the Welcome and the Volunteer, with the service being friendly and the surroundings comfortable. The building, although not the pub business which has a lease for a few more years, went up for auction last year with a guide price of between £260,000 and £280,000, which doesn’t seem unreasonable at all given there are two decent flats located on the upper floors.

NB, as I was short of photos, Julian sent me this which he took in the pub.

The fifth pub that Julian and I visited on our latest study day was the Welcome, located just a few doors down from the Volunteer. First opened in the mid-nineteenth century, it was formerly known as the Adelaide Stores or the Adelaide Vaults.

In 1896, the Suffolk Mercury reported a little theft that had taken place at the pub, not helped by the landlord accidentally keeping it unlocked.

“Two lads named George Balls (16) and Charles Smith (17) took advantage of a recent opportunity for enjoyment. On Wednesday night in last week the door opening on Old Nelson Street of the Adelaide Stores was inadvertently left unfastened, and going past just after six o’clock the following morning, the two lads seized the chance presenting itself. Going inside they selected a quantity of cigars, several bottles of wine and whiskey, and about 5s. The cigars, wine, and whiskey were hidden on the beach near the Model Yacht Pond. Smith had previously been employed by Mr. Turner, the landlord, and when the latter discovered the confiscation of his property he communicated with the police. P.-c. Ruffles at once went in search of Balls, finding him near the buried booty. Over two shillings was found upon him, Balls explaining the possession of such unusual wealth by saying Smith had lent it to him. He was locked up, while Smith joined him in custody soon afterwards. Both then confessed. Balls showed the officer where they had deposited the stimulants and cigars. Only one bottle of wine was found, and Balls concluded that someone must have watched the interment of the remainder and quietly abstracted it.—At the Police Court on Monday the prisoners were committed for trial at the Quarter Sessions.”

In 1904, the Bullards owned pub was required to make changes as it had become “a nuisance”…..

“Respecting the Adelaide stores, London-road, Supt. Shipp raised an objection to a bar which was situated in a narrow passage adjoining the premises. The sanitary arrangements also left much to be desired. At present a great nuisance prevailed. The Magistrates’ Clerk, Mr. F. S. Ellen, said fresh plans had been put in and Messrs. Bullard had written explaining that they had every desire that the house should be well conducted, and would be prepared to carry out any alterations suggested.

Supt. Shipp said he had inspected the plans, and if the alterations proposed were carried out that would practically remove his objection. Mr. P. H. Le Strange proceeded to explain the plans to the Bench, and said the passage would be better lighted than at present. After private consultation the Bench decided to adjourn the matter for a fortnight, and suggested that there should only be one entrance in the passage, and that the proposed smoke-room should be approached from the public bar.”

I can’t find out when, or indeed why, the pub name changed to the Welcome, but the old name stopped appearing in newspaper records at the end of the 1930s, so I’m not sure if there a post-war change of name for whatever reason.

Anyway back to today and there was a friendly welcome from the team member behind the bar. Here are the beer options which I think it’s fair to say did not surprise and delight me, although Lacons Encore on keg is OK I suppose at a push.

I prefer Encore on cask, which is rare for me to say (and Julian will wholeheartedly agree with), but this is light, hoppy and reliable.

If I’m being honest, I’m not fully convinced that this seating arrangement is entirely optimal. It was at this point that my friends Rob and Annette, who I knew from Lowestoft twenty years ago, came in and that was a lovely treat for them to see me. I won’t be rude about Rob on this blog, as I was rude to him in person and I think that’s more agreeable, but it was good to see them both again. Annette was also in fine form, so that made our stay at the pub a little longer and I’m sure that I’ll be back to see them in the future.

This series of photos was on the wall, mostly showing the Beach Village, including the Rising Sun, the last building to be demolished. I sense another series of ‘fascinating’ posts on this, as I’ve long been fascinated by the Beach Village and its destruction. I’ll return to that theme….

This was a perfectly friendly pub, the service was polite and the arrangements were comfortable despite the slightly specialist seating. And it was good to see Rob and Annette of course.

The fourth pub of the day that Julian and I visited was the Volunteer, a Stonegate pub operated as one of their Craft Union venues. I quite like this chain, the pubs are wet-led with no food, usually community driven and are very often really quite, er, vibrant. The pub first opened in the 1890s and was known as the Volunteer Stores, this later became a Inntrepeneur pub before Stonegate acquired it.

The Lowestoft Journal published in September 1914 what I thought was an interesting article and it occurs to me that this would have been one of the first correspondences that the locals would have heard from the front.

“Mr Bessey, of Lowestoft, who has been returned wounded from the front, and is now in Hospital, Woolwich, has written as follows to the Volunteer Stores, Lowestoft:-

Dear Pal,—Just a line to say I have returned from the war to England, wounded in both hands from shrapnel fire. They are only slight wounds, and I shall be as well as ever again in about three or four weeks. I have no bones broken, only flesh wounds. I expect I shall have to go back again for another issue after I get well again, but I don’t grumble, as I think myself lucky to be alive now. It was hot, I can tell you, before I got bowled over. I got mixed up with other regiments, so I took no harm, and shall be able to tell you more if I have the luck to see you again. I didn’t think I should have reached England again so soon. I should like to be out at the front at the finish, if we come out on top, so as to return home with my regiment. Now must bring this letter to a close, as I cannot write very well with my hands bandaged. We got plenty given us out in France, also in Belgium. The people out there behaved well to us.”

I’ve seen this before as well, when the injured returned back home early in the war were actually fearful that they’d miss the finish as it wasn’t exactly expected this conflict would last for years. There seems to be some link to the military in the pub, they raised support packages for British troops in South Africa in the early twentieth century and in more recent years there were military items displayed on the wall.

The prices in the chain are firmly towards the lower end of the scale across the keg, cask, softs and spirit options, an approach which requires a high volume of customers. They only had one real ale when we visited, the Gold Beer From Hobgoblin. The customer service wasn’t appalling, with the service time being reasonable.

The pub was clean, although Stonegate do perhaps need to do some maintenance upgrades to the venue.

The lower section of the pub and there’s another feature of Craft Union pubs, which is that they show a lot of sport.

The pricing and some of these drinks are cheaper than at JD Wetherspoon venues.

The beer was Hobgoblins Gold from Marston’s Brewery, priced at £2.20 a pint, it was well kept but it’s quite a generic and uninteresting beer. Julian liked it, but he’s more into beers like that.

There’s certainly a place for Craft Union pubs, they offer cheap drinks and try their best to be affordable. The downside of that is that inevitably there’s a challenge to maintaining the building and keeping it safe for all customers, something some of their pubs achieve and some simply don’t. When we visited it is fair to say that the venue was very lively, although it didn’t feel unsafe. I suspect that this is one of these pubs that someone new to the area could visit and be made to feel welcome, so an essential part of the community.

The third pub of the day that Julian and I visited was the Fishermans Wharf which is located on the South Pier in Lowestoft, just off Royal Plain. The sun was shining, as I might have mentioned, and it was looking busy in their external seating area. The venue is managed by the pier as their food and drink operation, and before anyone asks, they don’t seem to use an apostrophe in the pub name and so nor have I. The pier itself was opened in 1846 and was designed by William Cubitt as part of the wider harbour works that were taking place. We didn’t take the opportunity to explore the pier area, but this was only the first part of our Lowestoft adventure, so we’ll perhaps add that to the next expedition.

Back to the venue, where there was a friendly welcome from the team member. There were two real ales available, the Ghost Ship from Adnams and the Old Speckled Hen from Greene King. There didn’t seem to be any keg of interest, just the usual generic stuff.

A boat nailed to the ceiling to add some authenticity.

The interior of the venue.

I ordered the Ghost Ship from Adnams, it was light, refreshing, hoppy and a reliable number, although it’s not really something that particularly surprises and delights me, but it was well-kept. Julian ordered the same and was entirely content with the temperature and keeping of the beer.

Julian ordered a second beer, the Old Speckled Hen from Greene King, and if I’m being honest, I think that the sea would have tasted better. On the turn and odd (the beer, not the sea).

We weren’t in a food ordering mood, as Julian had booked the Lowestoft Tandoori for later on, but the dishes coming out looked decent. I was surprised at how brave some people were sitting outside eating fish and chips, with the seagulls just inches away from them.

Overall, this was a busy and clearly popular venue, it was mostly clean, the service was friendly and the prices were reasonable. There are parts of the pub that perhaps need something of a renovation, but these are challenging times and the proximity to the sea must be problematic in terms of staying on top of maintenance as if I lived next to the North Sea I suspect that I’d look flaky in places as well. The beer selection wasn’t vast, but it’s a small venue and they’re clearly serving what their clientele want. It’s well reviewed on-line and it certainly has some rather pleasant sea views, so all really rather lovely.