Pubs and Breweries in Gloucestershire Past and Present
Little Crown, Commercial Street, Cheltenham
Commercial Street, off Bath Road, was known as Union Street South in 1926 reference. There were at least two pubs in Commercial Street, the Lamb and Flag being the other.
Courtesy Michael Wilkes.
William Stone Lane was the owner of the Little Crown in 1891 and he ran it as a free house with no brewery tie. The Little Crown was a humble beer house with an annual rateable value of £23.15s.0d. It is likely that William was approached by the Nailsworth Brewery Company for a possible sale as it was in their ownership in 1903. The annual rateable value increased by one pound and fifteen shillings to £25.10s.0d.
Note the surviving pub sign bracket to the left of the building.
The Little Crown closed down in 1980. I can recall it being a very small traditional back street corner local and it sold excellent West Country P.A. on handpump.
It has been converted into veterinary surgeons and was regularly seen on the BBC programme ‘Vets in Practice’.
Landlords at the Little Crown include:
1844 Daniel Boulton (Crown, Union Street)
1870 John Philipps
1891 Clement Press
1903 Arthur William Ryder
1926 Alfred Thomas Matthews
1939 Alfred William Small
Hi Geoff,
Here are a few more landlord details for the Crown / Crown Inn / Little Crown on the corner of Commercial Street and Bethesda Street in Cheltenham.
1843 Daniel Boulton or Bolton
1844 you have Daniel Boulton in what was then Union Street (Bethesda Street now), and he is listed under “Beer Retailers” with a Union street address in the 1847 Hunt & Co. Directory, as well as the 1848, 1850, 1851 and 1852 Edwards.
1859, 1865 and 1867
1870 you have John Philipps and J. Philips is also listed in the 1872-3 Royal Directory for the Crown Inn Union street
1878 Clement Priss is listed in the Royal Directory at 6 Union Street S. which ties in with the Clement Press you have listed as a landlord in 1891
1902 – 1904 Built-Leonard A.W. Ryder Little Crown Inn also 1905 – 1908 Annuaires
1909 – 1912 Annuaires Mr. A. T. Matthews Little Crown Inn – also 1913 – 1916 Looker-On, plus 1922, 1924 & 1925 Built-Leonard
1926 – 1933 Kelly’s – Alfred Thomas Matthews Little Crown inn
1934 & 1935 Kelly’s Frederick B. Griffiths
1937 – 1943 + 1945 7 1948 Kelly’s Alfred William Small
1950 & 1952 Kelly’s George James Price
I got the earlier and later unaccredited dates for Daniel Boulton from the cheltenhamsouthrown.org website, where it reports: “In 1843 licensee Daniel Bolton or Boulton was charged with keeping his beerhouse open at 11.30 on a Saturday night, in contravention of licensing hours. He did the same in 1859 (fined 2s. 6d.) and 1865. And in 1867 he was summoned for opening the bar “during the hours of Divine Service.”
It also reports that in 1891 when Clement Press was licensee he was fined £1 for serving alcohol on a Sunday morning.
And finally that in 1946 when Alfred William Small was the landlord, he won £518. 18s. on the football pools!
