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The Palmeira, 70 Cromwell Roadformerly Oliver Cromwell Tavern
Judy Middleton (2003 revised 2014)
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| copyright © J.Middleton The Palmeira is a pleasant looking building with its ironwork on the first floor and an unusual roof-line. It was photographed on 18 April 2014. |
The hotel was built to take advantage of the expected rush of passengers using nearby Hove Railway Station. In the event the station was not much patronised and later became known as Holland Road Halt while Cliftonville Station to the west was renamed Hove Station and became the main one for the area.
The land on which the hotel stands was once part of the Wick Estate (later the Goldsmid Estate) and Sir Isaac Lyon Goldsmid purchased the estate on 25 March 1830 from Thomas Scutt and Thomas Read Kemp. It seems the hotel was already up and running in the 1880s although it is not mentioned in the Directories until 1888. For instance, in the 1881 Directory all that was listed under the heading Cromwell Road was Eaton Riding Stables while it was noted houses were under construction. In the 1880s Palmeira Hotel generated an annual rent of £86-15s.
On 29 September 1887 brewers John Mills Kidd and Herbert Arthur Hotblack purchased Palmeira Hotel for £2,168-15s. The other signatures on the deed of conveyance belonged to Sir Julian Goldsmid, Frederic David Mocatta and Joseph Goldsmid Montefiore. Kidd & Hotblack ran the Cannon Brewery in Russell Street, Brighton, and their letterhead featured a small cannon. The cost of the hotel also included a strip of land on the north side running from the junction with Holland Road; from east to west on the south side it measured 83 feet and from east to west on the north side it measured 80 feet.
In January 1893 Kidd & Hotblack wrote to Hove Commissioners stating they proposed to build a urinal adjoining the hotel and asked whether the Commissioners would be prepared to take it over for the purpose of keeping it clean for a nominal rent; it would of course be open for public use. The Commissioners agreed to take over the urinal for a peppercorn rent with a lease of 21 years. This dual ownership of a urinal was not uncommon at Hove and happened with other pubs as well.
In 1888 T. Miles was landlord but by 1899 Paul Stromer was in charge. By 1905 W. Wise was behind the bar and H.H. Betts followed in around 1910. When William Urquhart arrived in around 1915, a long period of continuity ensued because he saw out both world wars and was still landlord in 1947. It is interesting to note that William Urquhart also ran Wick Inn, Hove from 1920 to 1947, which was also owned by Tamplin’s from 1926.
In June 1926 Tamplin’s took over Kidd & Hotblack and Tamplin’s retained ownership of Palmeira Hotel until the 1950s when Watney’s arrived on the scene. The hotel was sold in 1963.
In around 1979 H.J. Paris renovated the hotel and brought it back to its original décor for Albion Taverns. For a brief spell in the 1990s the pub was renamed Oliver Cromwell Tavern but by 1996 it was The Palmeira. This followed another refurbishment. Planning permission was granted to create a new entrance at the corner of the building and to change a window into a doorway at the back. By this time Scottish & Newcastle owned the premises and they also owned Hove Park Tavern and Brunswick Inn in Hove.
In May 1998 a beer festival took place at the pub featuring six real ales from Sussex. A sign outside the pub ran ‘Enjoy Spring in our heated garden.’ This signified that outdoor heaters were installed under a canopy, still a novelty then. There were attractive floral displays outside the pub too.
In Scottish & Newcastle Premier Club Directory 1999, some 550 pubs, pub restaurants and hotels were listed. The Palmeira was designated a T. J. Bernard pub with a logo of a St Bernard dog that indicated a traditional pub environment with finest quality cask and guest ales plus all-in-one pies.
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| copyright © J.Middleton A view of The Palmeira from Holland Road advertises its Quiz Night and Cask Ale and offers a room for hire for a party or a meeting. |
Sources
Argus
Directories
Encyclopaedia of Hove and Portslade
Copyright © J.Middleton 2014
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formerly Western Hotel / The Juggler
Judy Middleton (2003 revised 2019)
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| copyright © J.Middleton The former Western Hotel is a beautiful building and dominates its prominent corner site with aplomb. It was photographed on 16 May 2014 |
The history of the building dates back at least to the 1840s because in the 1848 Directory E. Fellowes ran a beer shop at 21 Western Road. The 1851 census recorded 44-year old E. Fellowes as a victualler and he was born in Chertsey, Surrey. He lived with his wife Eliza, aged 34, and their children, eight-year old Edmund and Eliza aged three. On census night there were two visitors, and a pot-boy and servant completed the household. In the 1854 Directory the establishment was called the Western Tavern Inn. In 1861 Fellowes was still in charge but he had gone by the following year and Daniel Dawson was the new landlord.
Dawson continued to be mine host until at least 1875 but R. Coulson was in charge by 1885. By 1887 Edward Roffey was landlord and the 1891 census recorded him living on the premises. He was aged 64 and was born at Deptford, Kent. He lived with his wife Agnes Lucy, aged 46, and their daughters Amy Mary, 14, and Lily and Agnes aged ten. Also living at the pub were a cook, a domestic servant, a servant, a manservant and a housemaid. In 1897 the rateable value of the Western Hotel was put at £200. By 1899 A.R. Dickinson was in charge and he was still there in 1910.
By 1915 Lloyd E. Edlin was landlord and by 1930 Edlins Ltd ran the establishment. In 1926 Hove Council passed plans submitted by Clayton & Black on behalf of Edlins for alterations to the pub. By that time the Edlins were a well-known local family whose association with pubs apparently started in 1893 when Emily Edlin took over the management of Regency Tavern, Brighton. Tubby Edlin was a director of the firm but he is best remembered today as a famous actor who lived in a flat at Sussex Hotel, Hove. The most spectacular building associated with the Edlins was the Tudor-inspired fantasy of the King and Queen, Brighton, built in the 1930s and Emily Edlin laid the foundation stone. Then there was the elegant establishment known simply as Edlins on Brighton seafront.
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| copyright © J.Middleton A close-up of the lovely mosaic-work sign. |
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| copyright © J.Middleton This photograph shows the western façade of the pub. |
By around 1990 the pub was renamed The Juggler and in February 1996 the freehold was sold to local operators Webb Kirby for £125,000.
By December 1997 the pub had been renamed Blimey O’Reilly’s. Irish-born manager Sam McCaffrey aged 29 intended to turn it into a little piece of Ireland. There was a dark wooden floor and bar with cream walls to imitate an Irish drinking den. Irish beer was on sale such as Guinness, Gillespie’s, Caffrey’s and Kilkenny. There was no kitchen and food was brought across from the restaurant opposite. In September 1999 a reporter from the Argus stated the place had the genuine feel of an Irish pub, friendly but laid back. The pub sign featured the famous old Guinness toucan with a pint glass balanced on his beak.
But by 2002 the pub had reverted to being called The Juggler, Irish theme pubs being considered somewhat out of fashion by then. Today, it is called The Paris House and underneath Le Pub.
The famous Pub Spy (Argus
13
December 2019) was impressed with the Paris
House. Not
only could he enjoy a pint with his ramekin of ratatouille but there
was also the pleasure of listening to live jazz being played. Indeed,
he described the establishment as Hove’s answer to a golden age
Parisienne saloon, and apparently, there is live music to be enjoyed
every night. As you might expect in such a venue, you could also
order wine or Champagne, if you felt like it. The Pub Spy mentioned
the warm glow emanating from the chandeliers whilst also noticing the
cobwebs adorning them. The walls are enlivened with numerous snippets
from French newspapers, not forgetting an advertisement for absinthe,
faint with age, plus nostalgic black and white photographs. He
awarded the pub four stars for the décor
and five stars for the staff – ‘friendly, fastidious, and
French-speaking’.
Argus
Census Returns
Directories
Collis, Rose Brighton Boozers (2005)
Encyclopaedia of Hove and Portslade
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formerly The Eclipse,
Judy Middleton (2002 revised 2014)
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| copyright © J.Middleton The pub is an attractive Victorian structure built in 1886 and it was photographed on 15 April 2014. |
The pub was built in 1886 and the date is displayed on the west side. In fact it was built while houses in Montgomery Street were still being constructed.
The pub has two south gables and originally each gable was embellished with a black horse and two attendants. The horse on the west side was Eclipse and the horse on the east side was Diamond, both famous horses of the 18th century. Eclipse earned his name by being born at the same time as an eclipse of the sun was taking place and laid claim to being the greatest horse ever bred. He won the King’s Plate eleven times and Lord Grosvenor once offered to purchase him for the enormous sum of £11,000.
The other horse, Diamond, had his great day in the 1790s when he ran over the Beacon Course with Hambletonian for a 300-guinea prize. Diamond did not win but it was still reckoned a great sporting event.
By 1895 Vallance & Catt of the West Street Brewery, Brighton, owned The Eclipse and in the same year Hove Council passed plans for alterations and additions. The pub was worth extra investment because it was one of the ‘big four’ of licensed premises at Hove. This meant it attracted the top rateable value of £320 – a value it shared with the Exchange Inn, Cliftonville Hotel and the Sussex Hotel. Vallance & Catt continued to own the premises until 1929.
Meanwhile, an early landlord was D.W. Campbell who was there in the 1890s and he was still behind the bar in 1910. By 1915 Herbert Peters ran the place and he stayed until at least 1920. By 1925 William Edward Lynn was landlord.
In 1929 there was a change in brewery ownership when Tamplin’s took over from Vallance & Catt. But Tamplin’s did not stay long and sold the pub in 1931.
By 1935 Henry Cecil Andrews was in charge, followed in 1947 by R. Andrews. During the 1950s C. Gordon Staines OBE was the landlord.
By the 1990s Bass Taverns owned the pub. In December 1992 The Eclipse was badly damaged by fire and landlady Val Bingham, aged 52, was obliged to escape by climbing through a first-floor window. She was fast asleep when the fire broke out and neighbour Bob Tullett raised the alarm. Landlord Ken Bingham, aged 62, had left the premises some twenty minutes previously to take a barmaid home. It took fire-fighters three hours to bring the blaze under control and then a few hours later another fire started in the roof.
At the time of the fire the pub was being run under direct management and sales for 1988-1989 were above 600 barrels. The Eclipse stood empty for some months and in October 1993 the freehold free house was put up for sale at £245,000. In August 1994 it was announced that the well-known independent brewers Harvey’s of Lewes (established in 1790) had purchased the premises and it was their first pub at Hove. Building work started in September 1994 and The Eclipse re-opened in October 1995.
In October 1997 Sally Stuckey, the licensee, lamented the loss of the Goldstone Football Ground because on ‘home’ days she said ‘this place would be packed out by lunchtime and after the match.’ She estimated that together with Hove Park Tavern, the Hedgehog and Hogshead, their joint income would be slashed by £100,000 during the football season.
But The Eclipse was still home to Brighton & Hove Albion Supporters’ Club and there were ‘Bring Home the Albion’ posters dotted around. Artist Roy Scarborough from Hastings was responsible for the large caricature of Albion chairman Dick Knight, plus other members of the old Board. There were two large TV screens for fans to watch World Cup matches and an evening menu was introduced. In the summer tables are place outside for customers to enjoy the sunshine. By February 2001 Sally Stuckey was still running the pub, which continued to be a bastion of football supporters. In the winter she liked to have an open fire in the saloon bar.
By 2010 there were new landlords and a new name for the pub too. Graham and Ros Boyd ran the Lord Nelson in Trafalgar Street for sixteen years before moving to Hove. Ros said ‘I’m the first to complain about pubs changing names but the brewery felt they needed to re-establish it with the local community and so we agreed on The Poets’ Corner.’ This is in honour of the local nickname for the area of Poets’ Corner because there is a Byron Street, Cowper Street, Shakespeare Street, Sheridan Terrace and Wordsworth Street. When the old Hove Hospital was reinvented as a residential block of flats it was named Tennyson Court.
The pub was refurbished with a new catering kitchen on the first floor with the menu and food prepared by chef Lynne. To make the ambience more welcoming in the winter there was a large wood burning stove in the public bar.
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| copyright © J.Middleton The Poets’ Corner makes full use of its new identity with a Coleridge Room and a Wordsworth Lounge. |
Argus
Directories
Encyclopaedia of Hove and Portslade
Copyright © J.Middleton 2014
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The Better Half, 1 Hove Place
formerly The Red Lion/Mary Pack's, originally the Cliftonville Inn
formerly The Red Lion/Mary Pack's, originally the Cliftonville Inn
Judy Middleton (2001 revised 2019)
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| copyright © J.Middleton The pub was built in the 1850s and was photographed on 16 April 2014. |
This is one the earliest pubs at Hove having been built in the early 1850s. By 1854 George Chipper was the landlord but he did not stay long and by 1859 Henry Cooper was in charge.
In 1859 an inquest was held at the inn into the death of Robert Goodyear Visiak who had committed suicide at his home 22 Medina Villas by poisoning himself. At that time it was still the custom for members of the jury to view the body, which presented striking marks of rigidity although ‘not drawn up so forcibly as we have heard described from cases of poison by strychnia’. (sic)
The 1861 census recorded that Henry Cooper was aged 42 and was born in Reading, Buckinghamshire. His wife Eliza aged 40 was born in Lindfield, Sussex, and the couple had two daughters Eliza aged 4 and three-year old Clara, both girls being born at Hove. There were also three servants living at the inn. The Coopers were still there in 1866.
By 1871 John Thompson was the landlord and he lived with his wife Ann, their three sons, one daughter and three servants. It seems Mr Thompson must have died in the 1870s because by 1875 his widow ran the inn. Ten years later W. Smith was in charge followed by G. Harfield in 1887.
In 1890 George Humphrey had only ‘been in possession of the premises’ for fourteen days when his stock was investigated. The result led to his appearance before the magistrates charged with adulterating the whisky. But George Humphrey stated the previous tenant had left some stock behind and the case was dismissed. The 1891 census recorded that John Humphrey was aged 26 and was born at Northiam. He lived with his wife Ellen aged 25, their daughter Ethel, his widowed mother and one servant.
In 1894 the Cliftonville Inn began its long association with the Taylor family and William Taylor was the landlord. William and Caroline Taylor had seven children and moved to the south coast from London in 1883. Taylor’s first pub was the Fisherman at Home in Russell Street and the next pub was the Thurlow Arms in Edward Street before they moved to Hove. By 1896 their two sons Alfred and Albert, who had been working as barmen, took over the management of the inn while William Taylor continued to live at the premises.
It is Alfred Daniel Taylor (1872-1923) who is the famous name among cricket aficionados. He was the second son and was born at King’s Cross. In 1902 Taylor married Ellen Louise Dench and by 1915 the family lived at 17 Osborne Villas. But upstairs in a large room in the Cliftonville Inn A.D. Taylor’s extensive collection of cricket books was kept; in fact it was believed to be the largest cricket library in existence. An idea of the size of his collection can be gauged from the fact that in 1908 he owned 1,700 separate publications on cricket.
In 1906 he produced A Catalogue of Cricket Literature. In 1923 he published The Story of a Cricket Picture, which was printed by Emery & Son of 170 Church Road, Hove. He also wrote articles for the Sussex Evening Times and Brighton & Hove Society under the pseudonym ‘Willow Wielder’. He was only aged 50 when he died and Mrs Taylor continued to run the inn for a while.
The Cliftonville Inn used to have five small bars. There was a persistent rumour that that Edward VII, either when he was Prince of Wales or later King, once popped into the inn for a quick drink. If he did he would have had some privacy in one of the little bars. The original windows were of plain opaque glass edged with a double border, the only embellishment being the words ‘United Ales’ and ‘Wines and Spirits’.
By 1930 Alfred O’Connell was the new landlord and he was still there during the Second World War.
Henry Pack was the landlord of the inn in 1947 and he was still there in 1958. When he died his widow Mary Pack took over. She was an institution in her own right, and a large one at that. She used to sit in her special oversize chair on the customer side of the bar, chatting with the regulars. It was rumoured she had once been cook to Hermann Göring. Certainly the pub was famous for its delicious food. There were substantial sandwiches with thick fillings, large homemade pasties and at weekends a man would visit with a basket full of little trays holding freshly cooked prawns for sale.
On the east wall hung a collection of framed photographs taken of special events at the pub organised by Mary Pack, such as the Easter Bonnet Parade. In the south west corner stood a grand piano with a Spanish lady doll on top. A trio comprising the piano, a double bass and a violin used to play classical pieces ranging from Bach to Mozart for the enjoyment of customers in the saloon bar. By that time the inn was divided into two bars, firmly separated by a door.
Once when Mary Pack was sitting in her customary chair, she had a seizure. It was with the greatest difficulty that ambulance men assisted by customers managed to manoeuvre her up the narrow stairs behind the bar and into her bedroom. She died shortly afterwards.
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copyright © J.Middleton
A view outside the pub looking east towards Medina Villas,
revealing a startling contrast between old and modern architecture.
|
The new landlord had once been manager of the Granada cinema in Portland Road. Then the inn was taken over by the daughter of the well-known Scarratt family (of removals fame) and her husband. But Mary Pack’s influence lingered on and the pub was renamed Mary Pack’s and so it continued until 1997.
In 1996 Whitbread Pub Partnerships were owners of the pub and they submitted a planning application to create a new window and doors in the rear yard. An advertisement from April 1996 stated ‘Probably the best freshly cooked food around. Comprehensive fish menu, Sunday roasts (and) dishes of the day.’ On Sundays there was a Wheel of Fortune quiz night and sometimes Mystic Martin would tell your fortune by looking at your palm or by consulting the tarot cards.
In 1997 Peter Hodgson took over as landlord, having previously managed the Wick Inn. The pub was renamed the Red Lion and there was a heraldic rampant red lion on the signboard with the name in brass-style letters on the west wall. No more were the strains of a palm court-style trio to be heard; instead live rock and blues were to be a feature. At the pub once famous for its fare, no food was to be offered.
A New Name
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| copyright © J.Middleton The Better Half in 2019 |
The Red
Lion closed
at the end of February 2015. It is amusing to note that in its
declining years, locals rudely renamed it the Dead
Lion. All
the memorabilia was sold off for charity.
The
pub was closed for a while for a thorough overhaul. By June 2015 the
management advertised it as ‘your new local pub with heart and
soul’. However, the new name was somewhat baffling – it was
called The Better
Half. (Argus
19
June 2015).
In May 2017 it was stated that head chef Andy Keir
was creating ‘contemporary British dishes using great local
produce’. In addition, almost everything was home made.
In
the lively local magazine called Viva
(October
2018) there was a whole-page advertisement inviting people to book
for the Better
Half’s special
Christmas promotion, which would last from the 1 December to the
22nd.
It was called the ‘Ho Ho Ho Half Christmas Menu’. It was claimed
to be ideal for office parties or just a get-together, but it would
cost £30 a person, and a deposit of £10 was necessary.
Sources
Argus
Census Returns
Encyclopaedia of Hove and Portslade
Laughton, Tony A.D. Taylor: the Cricketologist (2002)
page layout by D.Sharp