Arnold Perrett & Co, brewers at Wickwar near Wotton-under-Edge once, owned the the White Hart. The inn eventually passed to the ownership Whitbread through successive takeovers of Arnold Perrett, Cheltenham Original Brewery and West Country Breweries. Enterprise Inns acquired the White Hart through the disposal of Whitbread estate pubs in the late 1980’s. It is now known for its Napalese and Gurkha cuisine.
http://www.thewhitehartinnmaisemore.co.uk
August 1887 – County Police Court: Alfred Watts, of the White Hart Inn, Maisemore [Note: source of info says Minsterworth!], was charged with having sold gin which was 42.9 degrees under proof. Defendant admitted the offence. PC John Potter said he went to the defendant’s premises and saw his wife. He asked for a pint of gin, with which he was served. He paid defendant’s wife 2s for the gin, which he sealed in the presence of defendant’s wife. Mr D.C.C. Chipp said the gin had been analysed by the county analyst. Defendant was fined £1 and costs.
Above: From the Citizen, Monday 2nd September 1974.
Monday, October 10th 1983 – An inn with plenty of spirit… by Beverly Belben.
There seems to be more to the spirits at the White Hart Inn, Maisemore, than mere alcohol… and some of the things which go on would be enough to make even a teetotaller think he had one too many. Bottles shoot off shelves and break on the floor, glasses fall off tables and an ashtray has been known to zoom across the room. Music blares out when the juke box is switched off, the pumps at the bar seem to have a mind of their own, and as for the knocking – that’s just plain spooky.
These strange occurrences, according to landlady Alma Gough and her regulars, are blamed on a ghost called Charlie, who visits the pub at all times of the day and night. Charlie seems to be a friendly ghost, content to throw things around and play tricks with the draught beer. Footsteps have been heard walking across the floor of the room above the bar – when investigation has found nobody there – strange knockings and bangings have come from the ladies toilet, when they have been empty, and on one occasion, alone in the cellar, a barmaid felt sure she was tapped on the shoulder.
The apparition has apparently appeared at least twice. Once as a ‘transparent thing’ in the cellar. And the second time on New Year’s Eve when a group in the pub had their picture taken. When the photograph was developed a mysterious bright object appeared on the print. The picture was enlarged and something like an old woman appeared to be behind the group of people. “It was quite frightening really. We tried to place whatever it was, but thee was nothing that could have been in that particular spot. It was weird,” said Alma. “Of course, it could have been the camera, but with everything else I just don’t know.”
Charlie has ‘haunted’ the White Hart for more than 16 years – he was passed on to the Goughs by the previous tenants. “Before I came here I did not believe in ghosts. Now I am not so sure what to think. I don’t take much notice, but if I was touched by it then I think that would frighten me,” said Alma.
Although the part of the pub particularly prone to the ghostly antics dates back more than 400 years neither Alma nor her customers know of any dastardly deed committed there which would explain a reckless spirit like Charlie. But one evening a woman walked into the White Hart to have a drink. The conversation had not turned to the subject of ghosts but the woman, who was apparently interested in poltergeists, announced that the place was haunted. She just felt it. She asked if there was a well and, when told it was blocked up, she suggested this was the reason for the wandering spirit. The well should be unblocked to allow the ghost to go back inside.
There has even been a séance, but this ended in disarray when a glass fell off the bar and broke and the letters spelt out the words ‘PACK IT IN’. Janine McQuire, who was there at the time, said: “It was my glass which broke. We were nowhere near it. It just slid off the bar, which is perfectly flat and safe, and broke on the floor. It was weird. The same night we had the séance we heard music coming from the old part of the bar. It was sort of hurdy-gurdy music, but there was nothing on to play it,” she said.
Factory worker, Tony Beasley, who has seen things fly off shelves and heard the juke box turning itself on, said: “If it happened near closing time I would put it down to the drink, but it doesn’t. I don’t believe in ghosts but there does not seem any reason for half the things that go on here.”
Bob Allen, a local sales executive, has heard Charlie knocking. “It was always three knocks. About two or three weeks ago we heard it coming from the ladies’ toilet. We went in but there was no-one there. Nothing could have made the sound. Two minutes later, I had just reached for my pint, and the knocking came again, so we dashed back immediately, but still did not find anything. All the windows were secure, no doors banging, no-one outside the toilets throwing stones or anything. Very strange,” he said.
Alma said: “One evening the bathroom walls were wringing wet and hot as if someone had been having a bath, but no-one had. A plumber was in the bar at the time and had a look but could find no reason for it. And on another occasion when the knocking was heard our old dog ran straight from the bar as though he was mad.”
Ghosts or no ghosts there’s something most peculiar about the White Hart Inn – when photographer Steve Taylor and I called there his camera refused to work properly, and his pint of beer was cloudy – only minutes after a clear pint had come out of the same barrel!
Above: The Citizen, 3rd December 1984
The Citizen, Friday 10th October 1986 – What a surprise! Pub landlady Mrs Alma Gough had the surprise of her lifetime at the weekend. She thought she was in for just a quiet family evening when her son and his wife asked her to go for a meal on Saturday night. So image her amazement when she turned out to be guest of honour at a surprise party for nearly 200 people in Maisemore village hall! The event was planned by relatives and regulars at the White Hart pub in Maisemore as a way of saying goodbye and thank you to Mrs Gough, who retired this week as landlady after 20 years.
The Citizen, Wednesday 25th March 1987 – Advertising feature:
An attractive old village pub, The White Hart, Maisemore, officially reopens tomorrow, following the completion of a £50,000 refurbishment programme. “We fell in love with the White Hart the moment we saw it.” said Mrs Christine Creed, who with her husband Ralph and two children, moved into the 400-year-old building last October. “We had always wanted a pub of our own, especially a village pub, and this one seemed exactly right for us. It’s hard work here, of course, but we thoroughly enjoy it. There’s a marvellous atmosphere and the local people are so friendly. And although the White Hart can now offer much improved facilities, we fully intend to preserve its character as a nice country pub.”
The pub, which boasts its own personal ghost (nicknamed ‘Charlie’ by the villagers) has an exceptionally large lounge area, beautifully furnished and decorated, with a section, three steps down, which can be booked for private functions such as business lunches and parties. As you would expect from a Whitbread Flowers house, there is a wide range of beers, spirits, wines and soft drinks from which to choose.
A variety of tasty dishes will be available to customers from next Saturday onwards, with a chef, Mr, Robert Knight, operating from a sparkling brand new kitchen. Customers from Gloucester and further afield will be pleased to learn that The White Hart has a large car park, easily accessible from the A417.
There is also a spacious lawn area, which families will be able to use, weather permitting, in the summer. Children are particularly welcome to enjoy meals at the White Hart provided, of course, that they are accompanied by their parents. And don’t forget the skittle alley, which has its own bar and can be booked seperately for a wide range of functions. Bookings are now being taken, incidentally, for the next skittles season.
Pulling the first pint tomorrow will be local comedian Gerry Thomas and at a buffet party later, music will be provided by the duo Perfect Cure.
Mr Creed has been connected with the licensed trade in a part-time capacity for the last eighteen years, but this is the first time that Mrs. Creed, who used to work in the computers and accounts section of a large insurance company, has ventured into it.The couple have shown their own faith in the new-look White Hart by ploughing some of their own money into the costs of refurnishbments.The magnifient old oak beams which have now been exposed in the lounge serve not only to remind customers of the past, but also of the Creed’s determination to make the White Hart an attractive place in which to linger, not only now, but into the foreseeable future.
The Citizen, Wednesday 18th January 1989 – Truce is called in fight over fun pub: Villagers in Maisemore have decided not to fight plans to hold discos at the White Hart Inn. The owner was given a public entertainments licence for a trial period, despite objections from the parish council. But now members have agreed to see how the “fun pub” goes in its first few months. If there are no objections the parish council will drop the fight. The battle over the White Hart began when owner Ralph Creed asked for permission to hold discos for up to 150 people at the pub.
The Citizen, 14th February 2008 – White Hart is back in business after reopening: Maisemore’s only pub is up and running again after almost a year of closure. The White Hart, which is owned by Enterprise Inns, is now in the hands of John and Julie Cattermole. They are managing the business initially with a view to taking it on a permanent basis. John said he and Julie had received a warm welcome after reopening the pub, which shut last March.
Above: Lassington Oak Morris Men at the White Hart 2025.
Licensing details:
Owner in 1891: Arnold & Co.
Type of licence in 1891: Alehouse
Rateable Value in 1891: Not given
Owner in 1903: Arnold, Perrett & Co., Ltd.
Type of licence in 1903: Alehouse
Closing time in 1903: 10pm
Landlords at the White Hart Inn include:
1856 W. Vallender
1885 John Newman
1891 Thomas Wadley
1902,1906 Walter Sturgeon
1919,1927 William Hopkins
1936 F. Wilcox
1939 James A.C. Webb
1957 Charles Hitchcock
1966-1986 Alma Gough
1986 (Oct) – 2000 Ralph and Christine Creed
2004 Lorraine Crowden
2005- 2007 Stephen Gates and Emma Feakins
2008 (Feb) John and Julie Cattermole
2008 (Nov) Lynne and Andy Ruiz