Sheffield pubs: A look back at pubs which housed 40 horses, ghosts and survived wars

Many Sheffield pubs were built to slake the thirsts of steel workers and those in associated trades. There was a proliferation of beer houses and pubs in the area throughout the latter quarter of the 18th century and a positive boom through the 19th century.

Sometimes these were no more than one or two terraced houses knocked together. In a number of cases, they sat at the corner of rows of terraced houses and provided a unique focal point for a community or works in the vicinity.

An early Sheffield pub picture illustrates Snig Hill’s Pack Horse which could accommodate 40 horses. It was a vast building erected in 1860 to largely cater for the coaching trade and its balcony was often used by politicians to appear before the electorate to celebrate victory.

The Pack Horse was acquired by Sheffield Corporation around 1900 and demolished to facilitate the rebuilding of Snig Hill and other improvements. In a newspaper article from July 9, 1902, and headed ‘Sheffield’s Tramway Improvements Extensions Now In Hand’ it is reported: ‘The tramway system in Sheffield extends constantly…In various parts of the city important work is at hand, and the City surveyor and his staff find no small share of the duties connected with the system…The Pack Horse Hotel is held on a short tenancy, and when that building comes down it will be possible to run a line from Westbar, along Bridge Street, to the bottom of Waingate…’

Surviving photographs of the Pack Horse give us an insight – like many old pictures do – into a world unimaginable today and an area that bears no resemblance to present times.

Sheffield pubs suffered badly during the Second World War Blitz on the city. At about 11.44pm on Thursday December 12, 1940, a German high explosive bomb scored a direct hit on the Marples Hotel. Shortly before that, customers and staff were singing to the accompaniment of gunfire. About 70 people died in the wreckage but seven were rescued alive. It was the worst single tragedy of that terrible night.

After the hostilities, the Marples was eventually rebuilt. On July 20, 1990, Bert Malkin was photographed at the Hotel. He had been drinking at the premises for 60 years.

During the Blitz, the main bars of the Black Swan, Snig Hill, were reduced to rubble. However, this did not deter the landlord who converted his private rooms for use by the pub's customers and this was the situation for the next 21 years until the site was redeveloped.

The new Black Swan, built along with office accommodation, reopened almost exactly 23 years after the Blitz on December 11, 1963. The pub later became famous as a music venue, hosting acts such as Joe Cocker, Dr Feelgood, the Clash and the Sex Pistols. Later name changes included: Compleat Angler, Mucky Duck and the Boardwalk.

A mishap befell a member of the Compleat Angler bar staff in June 1984. Head Barman Philip Ogle was preparing the bar for opening and went to the kitchen downstairs to get ice. While he was in the room the self-locking door slammed shut and he was unable to get out as he had left his keys in the bar. Unwilling to miss opening time, he asked the staff in the Old Brewery Taps to send him back upstairs in the dumb waiter, which the pubs shared.

Philip got in with the ice and when he reached the top found that the doors were jammed shut. He then tried to return to the kitchen but found the lift had stopped working. His cries for help could be heard in the Old Brewery Taps and the staff called the fire brigade to get him out.

The Albert pub, on the Division Street/Cambridge Street corner, could be traced to at least 1797 when it was called, Union. It was renamed Albert to commemorate the death of Prince Albert. The Albert was pictured during demolition – between 8-10 of November 1979 – as it was claimed the building was unstable. The site subsequently became a car park before Whitbread announced in April 1998 redevelopment would take place.

The Sicey, on Sicey Avenue, Southey Green, underwent extensive alterations to the tune of £160,000 in December 1981. It opened as a Beefeater Steak House and included a small 'village' within its walls. An advertising feature of December 5, 1981, gave further details: 'You could spend the best part of an evening exploring the mini buildings of the olde world village, made from genuine old stone, roof tiles and other materials...Or Annie Cummings' shop with its bow fronted window may take your fancy. A village hall which seats up to 25 people has also been included in the design. One of the main attractions is the waterfall and pond sheltering under the wide branches of a tree…'

Many old pubs claim to have ghosts and in 1983 it was stated that the Carbrook Hall Hotel, Attercliffe Common, was one of the most haunted houses in Sheffield. The ghosts said to inhabit the premises included, an old Edwardian lady, an old man, a hooded monk and a Roundhead in a black hat (a smoker, as he was said to stand next to the cigarette machine).

They perpetrated a number of strange incidents including; glasses thrown from shelves, televisions turned off, drawers dislodged, floating cigarettes and people grabbed by unseen hands. In 1983, Carbrook Hotel landlord and landlady Keith and Doreen Moorhouse were quick to dismiss these claims as, in the year they had been resident, they had not had any problems.

Landlord Anthony Baines of the Foresters Inn, on the corner of Rockingham Street, was reported to be ‘shell-shocked’ in March 1983. This was after a vault containing oyster shells was discovered while builders were digging footings for a new extension.

This mystifying discovery was explained by a Sheffielder who informed that an oyster dealer had premises next to the pub in 1903 and had probably dumped the shells in the vault. When the pub re-opened after refurbishment on 3 January 1990, Lord Mayor Tony Damms was called in to do the honours. Pictured at the ceremony were Robbie Halkett Whitbread tenanted director and tenants Peter and Barbara Moffatt.

The premises extending back to at least 1828 have also been titled Yorick, The Yorl and Olive Bar. As the Foresters Inn, it was formerly tied to Shepherd, Green & Hatfield’s Neepsend Brewery and subsequently absorbed into the Stouts & Waterman Brewery estate.

A triple celebration was staged at the end of May 1995 at the Cocked Hat, Worksop Road. The first involved landlord Alec Robshaw (62) and wife Ethel (61) after they announced they would enter semi-retirement in July. Alec had been in the trade for 35 years and was previously President of the Sheffield Licensed Victuallers Association.

Regulars were assured that the pub would stay the same as the reins were handed over to their son Antony. Money was also presented to the Sheffield Wheelchair Sports Club as events organised by the pub had raised £366. To cap the celebrations the Cocked Hat was included in the CAMRA Good Pub Guide for the tenth year running under the direction of Alec, which was a rare achievement.