a potted pub history
Published: 2024-11-21 00:00:00
A few nuggets of the pub's history from its origins as a victorian boozer to the present day have been pieced together here with help from local historians, previous managers, owners and customers. We aim to honour the history and evolution of the pub and welcome any further input or contributions to the blog.
Originally built in 1881
The original Duke of Wellington pub was built in 1881, although it is thought that earlier drinking establishments may have existed on the same site alongside numerous other pubs and ale houses situated along the waterfront. These historically served communities centred around the boatyards and maritime industries of Shoreham.
This picture taken around 1910 shows the original façade which at first glance bears no resemblance to the remodelled and extended building completed in 1929.
Architecture
Architect John Leopold Denman is credited with remodelling the building. He had a prolific career with a portfolio that includes a number of buildings of listed status around Brighton and along the south coast. The Duke of Wellington is not a historically listed building, since it suffered the fate of so many pubs undergoing refurbishment in the 1980’s; losing much of the original interior, the bar, partitioning and seating. Around this time it lost its two front entrances leading into a ‘bottle and jug’ service counter and private bar.
The building’s symmetrical façade; stained glass; and mullioned windows, flat roof and parapet are features that allude to a Jacobean style; an intentionally historical design which like other notable Denman pubs came about through collaboration with members of the Arts and Crafts community centred around Ditchling and Brighton.
This collaboration is intriguing as part of the social history surrounding pub culture. During the 1st World War, the Temperance movement gained ground with the imposition of legislation restricting sale of alcohol through reduced pub licensing hours; watered down beer and a penny extra tax on a pint. With the threat of American-style prohibition across the water, growing tension between the aims of the Temperance Movement and economic imperatives is likely to have driven the Kemptown Brewery to join with the national ‘Movement to Improve Public Houses’. In the early 1930s a publication ‘Houses of Repute in Sussex’ set out the KTB’s intentions aimed at controlling excessive drinking by encouraging ‘dining and social congress’; in a place ‘where a man could take his family without hesitation’.
It seems likely that the Arts and Crafts movement found common cause with the KTB’s drive towards pub improvement - though perhaps not in the way we view gentrification of pub culture today. Socialist leanings amongst a number of the movement may have motivated the use of their skills towards public houses in a similar vein to their commitment towards public spaces in church and civic architecture. The ideals of the movement involved a great emphasis on making by hand, with the aim of producing objects of use and beauty to be enjoyed by workers.
There is no hard evidence of any individuals credited with the design of the plaques or the stained glass, however, certain names are linked with the Kemptown Brewery during the late twenties, including Charles Knight, Louis Ginnett and Joseph Cribb. The Arts and Crafts movement’s focus was not exclusively upon the achievements of the individual craftsperson in isolation. Rather there was an underlying belief in, and practice of, collaborative work and the nurturing of new talent through apprenticeship. Represented in the stained glass and interior plasterwork a grape theme emerges which suggests the promotion of wines and sherries for a more genteel clientele. Other original features lost during the 1980’s refurbishment might include paintwork that overlayed some of the stained glass windows and which perhaps made sense of the bizarre designs we now see along the side windows.
Needless to say, the lofty ideals of pub gentrification did not stand the test of time. Our knowledge about the pub before the 60’s and 70’s is scant, but by this time, under ownership first by Charringtons, then Harveys, its reputation was associated with biker gangs using it as a meet up place on the South Coast ride to Brighton. Some still remember it as a time when rock bands performed regularly at weekends and later in the early 80’s this led to the removal of the wall partitions and the old jug and bottle entrance to create the open performance space we have now.
From 1985, under the freehold ownership of Malcolm and Wendy Hardy, the pub was firmly established as a music venue. Bringing in a younger customer base, this era is fondly remembered by (slightly) older regulars of today! A fantastic interview with Malcolm gives a colourful picture of earlier times, highlighting the role live music played in his time and can be found on Youtube.
In 2006 the Dark Star Brewery took over and a new era began when the pub gained a reputation for excellent beers and CAMRA recognition. Its transition from Dark Star to being independently owned by former Dark Star director, Rob Jones in 2013, marks the latest stage in its development. An emphasis on beer and music continues and with a wonderful team of managers, staff and a very supportive and creative pub community, the pub seems to go from strength to strength.
With a life of its own, the pub is somehow more than the sum of its parts and this bodes well for the future in a town where change is rapidly taking place. Surrounded as we are by new housing developments we have been successful in securing legal protections against potential noise complaints from nearby residents. With support from the Music Venue Trust, our loyal pub community, and a certain local celebrity, we look forward to a future in which new residents will join us to cement the pub’s role as a grassroots cultural and community hub.
