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The changing face of one of the
oldest inn's in walsall... |
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history of The Black Country Arms
from 1627 to the present day. |
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The History of The Black Country
Arms... |
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The Black Country Arms, originally
named 'The Green Dragon Inn' and
often referred to by locals as
simply the 'Dragon Hotel' or 'Dragon
Inn', is a Grade II listed building
and is situated near to the junction
of High Street and
Goodhall
Street, at the top end of Walsall
Town's market hill. The hostelry is
one of the town’s most ancient and
historic, and has been used as an
Inn from as early as 1707 when the
building was leased from the
Corporation of Walsall by Ephraim
Deykin.
Originally part of the town's
Guildhall, the establishment was
first mentioned as a separate entity
in 1627 and may have been in
existence prior to that.
By 1769 the hostelry was known as
the 'Green Dragon Inn' and had
become both the social and political
centre of Walsall due to its close
association with, and in fact being
part of the Guildhall, the
predecessor to the Walsall Council
House. At this point in time the
lessee had been required to rebuild
the Inn within five years,
incorporating a 'sashed front', 'a
parapet' and a 'stone cornice’. This
work was completed circa 1773 with
further alterations being made in
the early part of the 19th century.
An early edition of 'Aris's
Birmingham Gazette' mentions 'an
unusual public breakfast in fair
week 1771, held on the bowling green
of the 'Green Dragon', admittance 1
shilling each, a good band of music
is engaged'. Mason's Map of 1832
shows the bowling green flanking
Goodhall
Street, reaching almost as far as
Freer Street, some 55 yards in
length, 15 yards longer than a
modern standard bowling green. In
his 1813 History & Directory of
Walsall, Pearce described the
bowling green as 'excellent'. The
Directory also goes on to reveal
that 'the parish was perambulated
again in 1805, 1806, and 1807' and
mentions 'Dinner at Mr William
Bagley's Dragon Inn'. This tour of
the town boundary was a tradition in
most parishes, usually conducted by
the Mayor and Burgesses.
At that time, the 'Green Dragon' was
the foremost Inn in Walsall and an
upstairs room was used by the Mayor
and Corporation and was familiarly
known as 'The Town Hall'. In the
early part of the 19th century the
old corporations in the UK were
investigated by a Royal Commission,
resulting in the introduction of
Municipal Corporation Act of 1835,
sweeping away the corporations to be
replaced by new local councils.
Excluding poor relief and road
repairs, the corporation accounts of
1810 for example, showed an
expenditure of £591, a third of
which was spent on wine bills, paid
to Mr Thomas
Wakeman
of the 'Green Dragon'. |
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The Inn’s original Assembly
Rooms were being used from at
least 1787 to 1803 as a
temporary theatre, at which
local historian Billy
Meikle
claimed Sarah Siddons (left,
circa unknown), married to the
son of a Walsall Licensee and
the most famous actress in the
country, had played. The
Assembly Rooms were used prior
to the building of Walsall’s
first permanent theatre in the
(Old) Square, taken by one
Samuel Stanton for many seasons,
erecting within the same, a
temporary theatre consisting of
a pit and gallery in which his
company used to perform to ‘many
and overflowing house’. In 1819
the Inn’s owner, William Farmer,
leased the Assembly Rooms to
Father Francis Martin, who
equipped the rooms for use as a
Catholic Chapel.
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At one time or another, the Inn was
also used as a Methodist Chapel,
Masonic Lodge and as a meeting house
for groups of breakaway Particular
Baptists and seceding
Congregationalists.
James Bullock had the premises
by 1834 and by 1851 the
proprietor was Edward Parker,
replaced in 1861 by Mark Parker.
The Guildhall next door was
rebuilt in 1865-1867, yet the
old Inn remained, with new
Assembly Rooms built to the rear
in
Goodhall
Street in 1851. On the roof of
the Inn was the market bell,
which rang for many years to
sound the close of the once
famous Walsall market.
By 1880, William Parker was
leasing the premises, later
followed by William Cooper who
left the 'Dragon' in 1902 for
the 'Spotted Cow' in nearby
Bloxwich.
Selwyn Hawkins was the hotelier
there from around 1900, but by
1905 the Inn was de-licensed,
later becoming the office of the
Magistrates Clerk.
Sadly, the premises was left
derelict for many years in the
late 20th century, but in 1976,
the 'Green Dragon' was once
more, following extensive
rebuilding and re-licensing by
Banks's Brewery. Similarly the
adjoining Guildhall was also
restored and converted into a
shopping centre, restaurants,
and offices. The main structure
still looks much the same as it
would have in Victorian times,
despite the considerable changes
made in 1976, when the Assembly
Rooms in
Goodhall
Street were removed to provide a
rear service area for both the
re-opened 'Green Dragon' and the
'Guildhall' (now an Italian
restaurant).
After the comings and goings of
numerous managers and following
many years of difficulty, the 'Green
Dragon' finally and sadly closed its
doors for one last time, although
the story doesn't end there. A short
time afterwards, the Inn was
re-opened, this time under the name
of the 'Cobra Lounge', a privately
owned Lap Dancing Club which was not
well accepted, nor welcomed by the
townsfolk of Walsall. Thankfully the
club was far from a success and
lasted only a matter of months
before closing down.
In November 2008, the pub was taken
over by Black Country Ales, who
beautifully restored this historic
property back to its former glory,
renaming it The Black Country Arms.
Many temporary managers have come
and gone since its opening, that is
until Debbie Humphries and Richard
Goode took over the reins in late
July 2009, quickly earning the award
for Walsall CAMRA Pub of the Year
2009, 2010 and 2011, as well as
being Regional Pub of the Year
Finalists 2011.
In August 2012, Debbie and Richard
moved on to pastures new making way
for the current Landlady Kim
Langford and hubby Roy. Kim was the
former Licensee at Walsall CAMRA's
landmark pub, The Pretty Bricks
(also Black Country Ales), which she
and Roy successfully put back on the
real ale map, following a long
period of closure.
Under Kim and Roy's tenure, the good
name and high standards at The Black
Country Arms have been more than
maintained - indeed the pub has gone
from strength to strength. Kim and
Roy have worked hard to put their
own stamp on this great town centre
pub, which has paid dividend.
In 2012, they earned the honour of
Walsall CAMRA Pub of the Year
runners-up award, only four months
after taking over and since then
they have gone on to win a multitude
of awards, including Walsall CAMRA
Pub of the Year in 2013, 2015 and
2017 and West Midlands County Pub of
the Year in 2016. Click here for
a complete list of Black Country
Arms accolades. |
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