THE WHEELWRIGHTS ARMS AKA THE WHEELERS (Usual address Spittal Street)
Wheelwrights Arms, above as the building is today. Central chimney gone, upper windows shrunk and lower half obviously changed significantly. The pub name was at one time painted on the upper centre of the building, with Fullers brewery name below.
1833 - Stephen East.
1839 - St. East.
1840 - Stephen East.
1844 - Robert Rockell (possibly the same Robert as at the nearby Prince Albert in 1841)
1852 "Crown Lane" suggesting at this point an entrance, perhaps even the main entrance, was on the side there.
1853 - Robert Rockell (also offers cartage and lodgings).
1861 - Robert Rockell (also a carter).
1864 - Robert Rockell.
1866 - Robert Rockall summoned for having his beerhouse open at an ilegal hour. He was serving customers at 4.30 am instead of the permitted 5am. This might seems ridiculously early but agricultural labourers were often required to be at work by 5am, or even earlier in the summer. He was fined 10 shillings.
1871- Robert Rockell (also carrier).
1872 - Robert Rockall.
1875 - Robert Rockell died, and son James took over. James defined himself as a carriage maker in 1871 when he was living at the Wheelers with his dad.
1878 - James Rockell transferred business to James Tilbury (moved from George and Dragon).
1880 - Proposed transfer to William Lloyd refused. James Tilbury transferred licence instead to Charles Freegard.
1881 - James Freegard (born Wiltshire) .
1885 - James Freegard transferred business to James Arlett / Harlett.
1890 - Henry Ecklin passed the premises to John Henry Drewe / Dewe [probably should say John Henry Jeffs]. The pub got its swing sign board this year - useful for dating photos, although it disappears again in later Edwardian images.
1891 - John Henry Jeffs passed it to Jesse Parsons. Jeffs was born in 1837 Warwickshire according to the census. His wife Lucy died in 1891 after a long battle with consumption which probably sparked him into wanting to leave the premises. Also in 1891 Jesse was burgled and cigars and cigarettes stolen from him. To read the sad circumstances of Lucy's death, read the post here.
1892 - Jesse Parsons transferred licence to George Rogers / Rodgers. George was Sergeant in East Surrey Regiment. Jesse went to take over the Sportsman's Arms Inn in North Dean, Hughenden, Bucks.
1893 - George Rogers/Rodgers.
1894 - "Mr Roger's Widow" [Ann]. George was buried at Holy Trinity Church but we have been unable to locate any surviving gravestone. Some members of his old Surrey regiment attend the funeral. He was only 47.
1895 - Ann Rogers transferred premises to Edward Sims. Possibly a Frank Rogers might have been given a holdover in between times (conflicting evidence).
1896 - James William Rowe. 2. William Richard Rose.
1897 - W R Rose 2. John Reading.
1898 - John Bradley.
1899 - John Bradley transferred premises to Charles Brown. John wad forced to leave as his licence had been endorsed for second time related to unruly conduct at the Wheelers. On the second occasion, it was for allowing "quarrelsome conduct" in the taproom, specifically a foul mouthed arguement between Mr & Mrs Anson that could be heard from some distance outside. When P C Marks entered the pub he also found two men drunk in there which was another black mark. The worst affected of these two drinkers, Charles Slade of Trinity Rd, was separately fined for his conduct.
1899 - 1904 Charles Brown. Born circa 1860 in Nuffield Oxon according to the census. Wife Jane.
1907 - C Smith.
1908- structural alterations to the premises allowed.
1909 - Mr Smith. He organised a Christmas Day football match to raise money for the Cottage Hospital.
1910 - Arthur E Smith 2. Richard Lane.
1911 - Richard Lane transferred licence to George Branch.
1913- George Branch transferred licence to Wesley Hodge.
1914 Wesley Hodge transferred licence to Arthur Strange (holdover).
1915 - Arthur Strange 2. Wesley Hodge temporarily back again??
1916 - Arthur Strange transferred licence to William King of Greys, Essex.
1917 - William King to William Roberts.
1917-27 William Roberts. In 1921 he decided to sell the pub's coin-operated automatic piano. Penny a time, and it will pay you one of 10 tunes. Either he couldn't sell it or he replaced it with another model as when the pub closed in 1928 it still had an automatic piano.
1927 - Messrs Nicholson's and sons owned pub. Licenced transferred to Richard J T Marsh a retired timekeeper of Marlow Bottom.
1928 order for closure under scheme to limit the number of licenced premises in a given area. Richard J T Marsh landlord of the time (Richard James Thomas). The representative of the local J.Ps who nominate it for closure said it was a "small, rather dark and the conditions are rather poor." Sells 1&1/2 barrells of beer a week (compared to for example 5&1/2 barrells at the Bank of England in the same year). Richard said that that provides enough income for him as he receives a pension to supplement his earnings. He had only taken in the premises that year.
To find all pub content, see the Pub Related index here. Non pub Spittal Street content is indexed here. To find all mentions of an individual see the A-Z person option on the menu. Happy hunting!
SOURCES included
1833 Parochial Assessment working notebooks and correspondence owned by my family.
1853 Mussons and Cravens Commercial Directory
Pigots Directory 1844
Kelly's Post Office Directory -
1869,1877,1883, 1903.
Census - 1861,1871,1881,1891
Robson's Directory 1839
Windsor and Eton Express, Apr 10 1875, held at British Library Archive and accessed via the BNA.
Bucks Herald 10 Jan 1874, 26 December 1874, 18 June 1887, as above.
Reading Mercury 19 Sept 1874, as above
South Bucks Standard, 06 January 1893, 08 Nov 1895, 2 July 1897, 19 May & 22 Sept 1899, 2nd October 1902, as above
Bucks Free Press 24th November 1911 and August 14th 1914 Bucks Free Press Archives.
1872 list of pubs and the breweries that owned them, held at Buckinghamshire County Council Archives.
Numerous ads, licence session reports etc.
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