A tale of two Cheshire pubs with differing fortunes

Some have bucked the trend mainly due to astute management, like The Old Star in Winsford. Some have not, like the old Raven Inn.

In 1851 there was a beerhouse in Swanlow Lane, Over, there were few dwellings in that location at the time, and the few that existed clustered around the imposing vicarage.

Once the home of the vicar of St Chad's, the ancient church at the back of the pub. The reason for the name is lost in the mist of time but probably after a horse with a star pattern on its face.

The premises were owned originally by the Cross family of Sandiway, and the first licensee shown was John Prince in 1851.

At the side of the pub, a road leads down to the ancient St Chad's Church, which from 1810 to 1930 boasted its own pub, The Bell but known locally as The Blue Bell; this burnt down but was rebuilt in the same style.

Amanda Charlesworth took over The Star Inn in 1923 and remained a licensee for 46 years until 1969.

The Old Star in Winsford (Image: Paul Hurley)

After that, managers came and went until 2011, when the pub was closed and put up for sale. Not an unusual occurrence these days, but one that presented Ernie Welch with the challenge to bring the old pub back to life.

Until the decline in pubs, the Old Star had always been popular with loyal customers, and Ernie spent his own money to purchase the building and bring back the success of the old days.

It's the only freehold pub in the town, so lovers of traditional ales are catered for.  Especially for Guinness drinkers, supposedly the best pint outside Dublin.

In 2014 a national competition was won by the pub against 3,700 pubs nationwide.

The prize was a full-frontal replica of the pub to be on Copacabana Beach in South America during the 2014 World Cup.

The replica of The Old Star pub in Copacabana (Image: Paul Hurley)

Poor Ernie had the onerous task of going out to his 'new pub' and attending the World Cup.

The Old Star was lucky; the next one, The Raven, was not, well, not so far.

The Raven Inn is situated at the far end of Swanlow Lane between Winsford and Church Minshull.

The ancient name for the area is Darnhall. The name Raven comes from the Corbett family, long-time residents of Darnhall Hall and upon whose family crest was a raven.

The Raven Inn in 2000 (Image: Paul Hurley)

The hall was sold to William Henry Verdin, later Sir Henry (my wife's first cousin four times removed) in the late 1800s and demolished in the 1950s.

The pub is believed to be one of the oldest in Vale Royal; it used to be a gamekeeper's cottage but was later mentioned as an alehouse in Weaver Township, an ancient name for Darnhall.

In 1631 the licensee was John Robinson, and in those long-gone days, the customer base would have been the surrounding farms and travellers on the ancient Over to Nantwich road.

How peaceful it must have been in those days, sitting in the candlelit bar, log fire blazing in the grate, casting shadows around the room.

Outside, the only sound was the scuffling of the night creatures in the grass and the distant call of a night owl.

The Raven Inn nowadays (Image: Paul Hurley)

It even had a resident ghost, this one was called Tom, and he was a gamekeeper. His antics could frequently be witnessed in the pub; I wonder what he thinks of his old haunt now.

Sad to look at it now in the modern photo. So at this far end of Swanlow Lane, we have two pubs, one very successful and one abandoned to its fate for many years until it is now totally derelict.