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THE BOWL INN HASTINGLEIGH OPENING HOURS - Monday: Closed Wednesday - Thursday: 5pm until 10:30PM Friday: 5pm until late Sunday: Midday til 9pm
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HISTORY Here is an extract taken from "A History of the Breweries" by David Harper. The book is only a couple of years old but some revisions have been made to this passage in order to keep it up to date. A lot has changed in those two years. You can purchase the book from amazon.co.uk if you click on this link:
Whitbread: the Inn behind the Signs and a history of the breweries. High on the windy Downs above Wye one will find The Bowl Inn housed in a solid, squat, white- painted building. The original sign still swings in the breeze* (The sign has been replaced and modernised with THE BOWL INN" with Free House written below in gold on a green background.) Records date back to the 1700s, at which time the old alehouse was almost certainly housed in the property now known as Myrtle cottage, which was built by Thomas Newport. It was this house that was mentioned in the will of John Sankey proved in 1744. It crops up again in the will of Richard Sankey dated 4th January 1805, at which time the pub passed to Edward Scudamore and Edward Tournay as trustee, with the license held by Mary Moreland. The house must have been passed back to the Sankey family as in the 1840's Samuel John Sankey leased it to Stephen Hayward and on 27th December 1853 sold an alehouse called the "Bowl Inn" to the brewer George Ash and others. George died in 1867 and his estate passed to his sons Thomas and George. The pub is listed in a schedule of the brothers' assets compiled in 1870 and includes those appurtenances erected and built by Stephen Hayward. This would be the present pub. The landlord at the time was Soddard Fagg who was paying a rent of £18 p.a Stoddard must have been here for a long time as he is listed in the 1861 census and retired in 1882 when he went to live at Crabtree Farm, another property built by Thomas Newport. The pub, church, and just opposite, the Tappenden stores, which has served the surrounding villages for over a hundred years, were the hub of village activity.* (The village store is now closed and there have been no plans to re-open it) The present building probably started life as two agricultural workers' cottages with many alterations carried out since. In 1856 the Reverend Preideaux founded the Elmsted Friendly Society to provide a very modest income when a worker fell sick. Subscriptions and benefits varied, but it is interesting to note that a death payment of £7 was made on the demise of a man, yet only £3 on the death of his wife! As late as the 1950's this society still had 77 members. The annual general meeting was originally preceded by a church service that one missed on pain of death - actually a fine of 1 d was levied! Members then adjourned to the "Bowl" where Mr. Cobb had prepared an excellent repast. The members were congratulated on their great musical ability. The club is also to be congratulated that, although the share-out rule was abolished only last year, there is now a substantial balance in hand of £20. The pub was also a meeting place for the Rat and Sparrow club and each week members would gather, bringing with them their haul of sparrows’ heads and rats’ tails to be counted. Members of the committee would later dispose of these grisly items by burying them in the pub garden. At the end of each year the landlord would prepare a cold dinner and a modest reward would be given to the member with the highest tally. Tuesday was market day at nearby Ashford. Although mainly an animal market, other produce, such as eggs, was sold. The pub landlord was the eggler, collecting eggs and taking them with a mule and van (a four wheeled cart) to be sold at the market. The village was a good place to live and landlords generally remained for a long period. Besides Stoddard Fagg, on the 11th October 1909 Mr. R. Kerr succeeded Mr. Cobb who had arrived in about 1895 and remained until his death in 1932. His widow then managed the house for a few years. A Mr. Newport took over in May 1948 and remained until his death on 13th February 1962, after which his widow Margaret carried on for a further year.
Mains water was laid on in 1928 and electricity came to the pub in 195. In 1946 two pull-beer engines costing £40 were installed by A. Kerr. Shortly afterwards, in 1950, repairs and alterations costing £1200 were carried out. For a long while the pub boasted a skittle alley next door to the house, which, as far as I know, still remains.*
(The skittle alley was apparently set up in the barn next door to the pub but no longer exists.) Trade at the best of times could only have been modest and this was reflected in the rent charged. In 1938 no rent at all was payable and ten years later the sum was very modest £6/5 – per quarter. In 1946 a Mackeson representative called at three in the afternoon to be told by the landlord that he had not seen a customer all day! On 25th October 1979 Whitbread installed a manager to run the inn and on 25th April 1980 they sold the premises with licence.
-Separate passage written by S.T. Blown Ron and Annie took the pub over in October 2004. They carried out extensive restoration and cleaning throughout the whole building. They had never run a pub before but after plenty of hard work, love and commitment they finally reopened the pub in December 2004. It was a hard start but after learning from those in the pub business and the patient locals, they now run a first-class house. Getting in the Good Beer Guide 2007 was a clear indication that they must have been doing something right. Serving up a great selection of beers, wines, real ales and ciders, Ron and Annie have also helped revive traditional events such as the Hastingleigh Carnival in the summer. Numerous charity events have been set up to constantly help fund Hastingleigh church and Bodsham Primary School. |
