NORTHWICH and the surrounding area, like Witton-cum-Twambrookes, was well served with public houses and beer-houses, time to take another look at a few of them that have now gone from within the old Northwich boundary, namely High Street.

The first pub that we come to was The Eagle and Child at 17 High Street because there was another Eagle and Child in Castle Street, this one was originally called The Old Eagle and Child. It was initially opened in 1772 but due to subsidence was rebuilt entirely in 1895/96.

Northwich Guardian:

The building which used to be the Eagle and Child

It closed in 1939, and the licence was transferred to the brand-new Beech Tree pub in Barnton. This attractive red brick building still stands with the stone carving of an Eagle and Child on the front elevation; it is now a bank.

Onwards now to The Feathers at number 27 to 29. It was built as the Liquor Vaults in 1805, and until 1923 it was in two parts. A traditional pub and what we would now call an Off Licence, then it was a grocer that sold liquor in bottles.

Northwich Guardian:

The Feathers on High Street

Both parts faced the High Street as The Liquor Vaults. Since opening in 1805, it was known as a wholesale outlet for wines and spirits and had a bonded warehouse at the rear.

There was a passageway from the High Street to this warehouse.

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In 1921 it was purchased by Greenall Whitley, and two years later when it received a full licence from the Red Lion, it was renamed The Feathers in honour of the Prince of Wales. Like most of the area, it suffered from subsidence and was closed and demolished in 1963, Walter Webb was the last incumbent.

Two doors down was the splendid three-story hotel, the Crown and Anchor, the most important coaching inn after the Angel Hotel (already featured), in the Bullring/High Street.

Northwich Guardian:

The Crown and Anchor

When the Angel closed in 1921, the Crown and Anchor became the town’s premier residential hotel. It was built in 1892 replacing an older inn with the same name that had been on the site since 1796.

There was a wharf at the rear and regular passenger and goods boats left from it to Weston Point and Liverpool. Like other buildings in this area, it was flooded continuously, and the foundations were weak.

It closed in 1960, and the TSB now stands at this location. On the opposite side of High Street was the Beehive, that we have already covered in Yester Years.

So, to our last High Street lost pub the Red Lion at 64 High Street on the corner of Crown Street.

Northwich Guardian:

The Red Lion

That building is still there but has been substantially altered if not rebuilt. The pub was opened in 1775 and closed on May 22, 1924 when it was sold to the District Bank.

Northwich Guardian:

The site of the former Red Lion

This was an area prone to extreme subsidence, and most buildings in the area were either lifted, rebuilt or demolished. Crown Street itself led to an impoverished and crowded area of narrow streets, beer-houses and Northwich Market.

When the Red Lion closed, its full licence crossed the road to The Feathers Hotel.