Spread Eagle, Chapel Street

Former location of Spread Eagle, Chapel Street. (c) googlemaps.

Opposite the Ship (later the Old Ship) and a couple of doors up Chapel Street from the Canterbury in its previous guises, was the Spread Eagle [1].  It was one of Salford's oldest inns, dating back to the 1750s; in the 1772 directory the innkeeper was John Swain, the chap who built the first coach that travelled from Manchester and Salford to Liverpool.  The pub had a 10 year spell as The Phoenix in the early 1800s before the pub gained local fame as being the launch site of Salford's first balloon ascent from the Spread Eagle yard.  The extension of the railways around here cut through behind the pub and later when Exchange Station was built, the pub was bought by the railway company who built the Salford Approach over the back yard. The pub survived until the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway Company and Courts conspired to close it in 1888-89.  In a booklet printed soon after it was written of the Spread Eagle: "the plumes of its ancient glories have been stript, and it has not a single feather left to fly with [2]."

1. Manchester Victoria 1849, Alan Godfrey Maps (2009).
2/ Salford Pubs - Part One: The Old Town, including Chapel Street, Greengate and the Adelphi, Neil Richardson (2003).

Canterbury Hall, Chapel Street

Former Canterbury Hall, Chapel Street, Salford. (c) googlemaps.

Opposite the Red Lion / Raven Hotel at the eastern end of Chapel Street was this pub that went through numerous name changes in its one hundred plus year history.  On the corner of Chapel Street and Greengate, the Clockmakers or Clock Face alehouse was opened in 1790 before it was changed to the Feathers Inn in 1829.  It was the Rising Sun ten years later then the Victoria Bridge Inn, as shown on the 1849 map [2].  The pub was advertised as Fox's Victoria Music Hall in the 1850s and it was around this time the premises were thought to have been rebuilt as the Canterbury Hall, or Canterbury Hotel.  

Former Canterbury Hall, Chapel Street, Salford, 1930s. (c). Neil Richardson [1].

By 1893 the Canterbury Hall closed as a Chesters Brewery house but continued as the Canterbury Plaster Works as shown above.  The place was still owned by Chesters and in the 1930s they even fitted an illuminated sign on the first floor window that beamed "Chesters Brewers of Quality" over the bus station and river to Manchester [1]. The building still survives today as what appear to be office blocks.

Former Canterbury Hall, Chapel Street, Salford. (c) googlemaps.

1. Salford Pubs - Part One: The Old Town, including Chapel Street, Greengate and the Adelphi, Neil Richardson (2003).
2. Manchester Victoria 1849, Alan Godfrey Maps (2009).

Broughton Tavern, Blackfriars Road

Broughton Tavern, Blackfriars Road. (c) Ven16 at flickr.

On the corner of Blackfriars Road and St Stephen Street, this magnificent flat iron public house has thankfully been lovingly preserved as smart looking flats.  The Broughton Tavern was briefly known as the Printers Arms when it was first licensed in 1818 on Green Bank (an old name for this part of Broughton Road, which became Blackfriars Road).  By 1824 it was renamed the Broughton Tavern and remained until the 1870s and '80s when Blackfriars Road was created and the pub was rebuilt about 15 yards from the original site.  Now on a wedge shaped and uneven plot of land, the Broughton Tavern became a Groves & Whitnall house by the early twentieth century and had a boxing ring upstairs [1].  

Broughton Tavern, Blackfriars Road, 1974. (c) NAH1952 at flickr.

Greenall Whitley took over in the 1960s and the Pub Guide describes "an excellent example of a substantial, largely untouched, Victorian public house" with high ceilings, fine woodwork and old glass panels with "Commercial Room" and "News Room" engraved.  Cask Greenalls was the drink of choice along with Guinness and Grunhalle lager in this slightly decaying pub which was nevertheless well worth a visit [2].  The pub company Ascot Taverns bought it in 1991 and unsurprisingly - given the behaviour of some Pub Cos - they closed it two years later, but thankfully it was spared the wrecking ball and remains a spectacular sight when travelling towards town. 

Broughton Tavern, Blackfriars Road, 1970s. (c) Neil Richardson [1].


Broughton Tavern, Blackfriars Road. (c) Manchester Pub Surveys [2].

1. Salford Pubs - Part One: The Old Town, including Chapel Street, Greengate and the Adelphi, Neil Richardson (2003).

2. The Manchester Pub Guide, Manchester & Salford City Centres, Manchester Pub Surveys (1975).

Star Inn, Broughton Road / Greengate

Star Inn, Broughton Road, 1990. (c) deltrems at flickr.

Greengate West today links Trinity Way and Blackfriars road at the northern tip of the inner ring road, but in the past it was known as Broughton Road (which Blackfriars Road replaced) and then simply the northern end of Greengate.  The Star Inn was on the corner with Garden Street, another street lost to the redevelopment of this part of Salford.  The location of the pub was about where the silver motor is down the now inaccessible part of Greengate West.  The pub was first recorded in 1843 and was taken over by Threlfalls in 1907.  In the 1940s the Star Inn was nicknamed Pawsey's due to the well known landlord, Thomas Pawsey, who had it for almost 40 years.


Star Inn, Broughton Road, 1930s. (c) Neil Richardson [1].

Like at the Three Legs of Man and King Billy nearby, boxing matches were held at the Star Inn and around the back was the large "Wooden Hut" which was used for meetings and dances [1].  Whitbread took over in the 1960s the Star Inn was described as an original and traditional Victorian alehouse a with large central bar and tiled throughout.  Whitbread Trophy was served by handpull together with Guinness, Chesters mild, Heineken, Gauntlet and Tankard on keg [2].  The Star eventually closed for good in 1990 [1].

Former location of Star Inn, Greengate West. (c) googlemaps.

1. Salford Pubs - Part One: The Old Town, including Chapel Street, Greengate and the Adelphi, Neil Richardson (2003).

2. The Manchester Pub Guide, Manchester & Salford City Centres (1975).

Bird in Hand, Bury Street

Bird in Hand, Bury Street, 1950s. (c) Neil Richardson [1].

The Bird in Hand was on the corner of Bury Street and Sidmouth Street in an area that was consumed by the building of Trinity Way ring road. First listed in the 1843 directory, the beerhouse was taken over by Chesters Brewery towards the end of the century followed by Wilsons Brewery.  The pub was damaged in a WWII air raid and a new Bird in Hand was built after the war.  Sadly it didn't last much longer as the pub was included in the first slum clearance area, and following a compulsory purchase order in 1955, the pub closed in 1965 and was soon demolished.  The licensees then were Roy and Beryl Ditchburn who moved to the newly built Bird in Hand a little further along Bury Street on St Stephen Street, still open today as Mulvany's Lounge [1]. 

Mulvany's Lounge (former Bird in Hand), St Stephen Street. (c) googlemaps.

1. Salford Pubs - Part One: The Old Town, including Chapel Street, Greengate and the Adelphi, Neil Richardson (2003).

King William IV, Springfield Lane

King William IV, Springfield Lane, 1990. (c) deltrems at flickr.

The King William IV closed as recently as 2003 on Springfield Lane, just off Greengate and Trinity Way at the northern tip of our Salford boundary.  Against the odds it had survived a severe lack of custom as a Marstons pub in the 1970s [1] and also the demolition all around it.  In the 1980s and '90s was a freehouse, somehow still surviving in this scandalously ruined part of Salford.


King William the Fourth, Springfield Lane, 2009. (c) poldyicarus at flickr.

It looks like it's finally gone, as a virtual walk up Springfield Lane shows the tell-tale pink hoardings and nowt but an already overgrown space where the pub stood on the corner of the Lane and Senior Street.

King William IV, Springfield Lane, 2009. (c) poldyicarus at flickr.

Former location of King William VI, Springfield Lane. (c) googlemaps.

In busier times, the King William VI was licensed in 1835 with a brewery alongside on Senior Street.  The pub advertised a large clubroom but the brewery closed in 1863 before the pub was bought up by Taylor's Eagle Brewery in the early twentieth century.  The pub was used to trial Marston's Burton beers and so popular were they that Marston's took over in 1924.  The pub closed in 1980 but then reopened as a freehouse a year later when it enjoyed a further 22 years before finally closing [2].

King William the Fourth, Springfield Lane, 1970s. (c) Neil Richardson [1].

1. The Manchester Pub Guide, Manchester & Salford City Centres (1975).

2. Salford Pubs - Part One: The Old Town, including Chapel Street, Greengate and the Adelphi, Neil Richardson (2003).

Flying Horse, Greengate

Flying Horse, Greengate, 1970s. (c) Neil Richardson [1].

The Flying Horse stood opposite the still standing Waterloo on Greengate and only closed a few years earlier in 1979.  The first licence for the beerhouse was in 1845 and it originally only occupied a small part of the three story building shown above.  The Flying Horse survived an attempt to close it by the police who said the trade was too poor.  In the 1930s and '40s as an Empress Brewery then Taylors Brewery house and it was nicknamed the Flying Knacker, being so small that "if ten men were in the vault you had to sit outside".  In the '40s it extended into what had been a fried fish shop next door and in its final years was a Tetley house [1].  In the mid '70s the Flying Horse was a thriving and highly rated pub with a male vault and small lounge with service through a hatch.  The vault was old fashioned, wood panelled with sporting pictures hung, while the lounge had a record player and a fine selection of LPs and piano.  Hand pumped Tetley bitter and mild plus Double Diamond and Skol were on offer and this must have been one of the few pubs of the time that hadn't succumbed to Guinness [2].  Its sudden, unexpected closure and demolition just four years after such a glowing review sounds like a shame [1]. 

1. Salford Pubs - Part One: The Old Town, including Chapel Street, Greengate and the Adelphi, Neil Richardson (2003).
2. The Manchester Pub Guide, Manchester & Salford City Centres (1975).

Waterloo, Greengate

Waterloo, Greengate. (c) Neil Richardson [1].

Hidden away in the shadow of the ridiculous looking "Abito" Greengate development is an unlikely surviving public house of the once thriving Greengate thoroughfare.  On the corner of Boond Street and Greengate, the first licence here was for the Duke of Wellington in 1815, though it soon became the Waterloo.  By the early twentieth century, Walkers & Homfrays had the pub then Wilsons took it in the 1950s [1].  In the 1970s the Waterloo was a cosy but rather seedy pub with two narrow rooms, one was decorated with guns and swords, the other a garish red with fishtank that was popular with the ladies.  Darts, doms and cards were popular with the small band of local gents who supped Wilsons bitter and mild on beer engines [2].

Waterloo, Greengate. (c) googlemaps.

The isolated location of the Waterloo, thanks to the regeneration (sic) policies of Salford's misguided council, led to its eventual closure in 1984.  The pub lay empty for many years but was retained when the new builds started to crop up around Greengate and is shown as being cleaned up for sale in 2008 above.  In 2009 there was a grim discovery of the body of a man believed to have been a suspect in a murder himself.  In a Manchester Evening News story, locals described the Waterloo as being derelict for 10 years [try 25] but the rumour was that it has been sold and will be redeveloped.  

Waterloo, Greengate. (c) MEN.

1. Salford Pubs - Part One: The Old Town, including Chapel Street, Greengate and the Adelphi, Neil Richardson (2003).

2. Manchester Pub Guide, Manchester & Salford City Centres (1975).

Legs of Man / Three Legs of Man, Greengate

Three Legs of Man, Greengate, Salford. (c) deltrems at flickr.

The original Legs of Man dates back to 1793 when Michael Hunt opened the pub adjacent to cottages he'd built in Hunts Court on the corner of Gravel Lane.  The pub was listed as the 'Legs of Man and Imperial Wreath'  in the 1830s-'40s then the Three Legs of Man from 1850.  Atlas Brewery took the pub in 1867 and James May who took over at Atlas Brewery also became owner of the Three Legs of Man.  May then demolished the original building (shown below, centre) and built a more ornate boozer which Robinsons took over as part of the Kays Atlas deal in the 1920s.  

Three Legs of Man, Greengate, Salford (centre).  (c). Neil Richardson [1].

As a Robinsons pub in the 1970s, the Three Legs of Man was well run with an enthusiastic landlord but was "a victim of planning" (like much of Salford).  Another pub with former glories as evidenced by several large rooms - a vault, an unused stage, lounge, games room, tabled corridor and hotel rooms.  Robbies bitter and mild were served on beer engines along with keg Cock Robin and Guinness.  Robinsons sold the pub in 1994 to Barry Johnston who reopened it as the Cornerhouse.  It lasted about six years into the new Millennium but closed soon after, being demolished in the mid-'00s to make way for the ugly Abito Greengate development.

Former location of Three Legs of Man, Greengate, Salford. (c) Google 2011. View Larger Map.

1. Salford Pubs - Part One: The Old Town, including Chapel Street, Greengate and the Adelphi, Neil Richardson (2003).
2. Manchester Pub Guide, Manchester & Salford City Centres (1975).

Globe / Queen Victoria, Bury Street

Globe, Bury Street, Salford, 1988. (c) Alan Winfield (&wife, pictured) with kind permission.

The Globe stood on the corner of Bury Street and Crown Street, just off Blackfriars Road and Trinity Way and was demolished as the Queen Victoria as recently as 1998.  As the Globe it was licensed from 1823 and by 1860 current licensee was advertising "Weston's Music Hall" in the pub.  In 1874 the "Tallest Man In The World", a 7'4" singer and dancer, and his similarly tall partner, Madame Sansbury were performing in the Globe's grand saloon.  Walker & Homfrays took over the pub towards the end of the century and Wilsons had it by 1949 by which time the pub had expanded into neighbouring cottages to the side and rear [1].  

Globe, Bury Street, Salford. (c) Salford_66 at flickr / Roy Bullock.

In the 1970s the Globe was described as a rather empty backstreet boozer though with an obviously glorious past.  Its central bar offering bitter and mild from beer engines had four interesting rooms all off it. However, the leather benches in the impressive smoke room lay unoccupied as the pub appeared to have been left stranded in an area of modern so-called development - Bury Street was once a thriving thoroughfare as shown above [2]. 

Globe, Bury Street, Salford. (c) deltrems at flickr.

The Globe saw closures in the 1980s and at one stage in the late '80s was a Lees tied house.  In 1992 one last try was a name change to the Queen Victoria under new owners.  This didn't last too long - by 1997 the pub was closed and then demolished not long after in December 1998 [1].

Globe, Bury Street, Salford, 1961. (c) Neil Richardson [1].

1. Salford Pubs - Part One: The Old Town, including Chapel Street, Greengate and the Adelphi, Neil Richardson (2003).

2. The Manchester Pub Guide, Manchester & Salford City Centres (1975).

Globe Inn, Irwell Street

Former location of Globe Inn, Irwell Street. (c) googlemaps.

Where Gartside Street bends today in Spinningfields at the corner of its grassy central area, the Globe Inn used to sit on the corner of Irwell Street in the 1800s [1].   

Former location of Globe Inn, Irwell Street. (c) www.webaviation.co.uk.

1. Manchester City Centre 1849, Alan Godfrey Maps (2008).

16th Century Pubs

The Court Leet kept detailed records of daily life in 16th century Manchester.  Surprisingly, the authorities were rather strict when it came to boozing:

Anyone brewing ale in Manchester had to be able to provide two beds and the innkeeper was required to put forth the 'Syne of a Hand' to indicate that he had ale to sell.  It could be sold at no more than 4d. a gallon for "outdoor consumption" and no more than 6 d. a gallon to be drunk on the premises [1].  Wedding guests (who were expected to contribute to the refreshments) were limited to a contribution of 4 d., to discourage excessive ale consumption on these festive occasions which were generally held at alehouses [2].

Alehouses were frequently the subject of harsh Court Leet regulation. Offences such as gaming and selling ale during "tyme of morning prayer" were severely dealt with, whilst drunken men found "abroad" in the streets at night were not only imprisoned in the dungeon, but had to pay a 6d. fine to the constable which was donated to the poor. Unfortunate alehouse keepers, if found in a state of intoxication themselves, could also be "discharged from alehouse keeping" [1].

1. A History of Lancashire, Henry Fishwick (1894)

2. A History of Manchester, Stuart Hylton (2003).

Crescent Inn, Crescent

Former location of Crescent Inn, Crescent. (c) googlemaps.

Preceding the nearby Crescent pub by at least 20 years, the Crescent Inn was a beerhouse next door to the White Lion / Gardeners Arms and next door-but-one to the Black Horse.  The Crescent Inn can be traced back to 1850 under Joseph Dineley but the building was much older, as evidenced by the magistrates decision to allow licensee Albert Burns to rebuilt the beerhouse as the building was over 100 years old and condemned.  The work may have been carried out by Boddingtons Brewery as they were the owners at the turn of the century.  The Crescent Inn was small, only having a vault and parlour and custom wasn't up to much.  In 1910 the police tried to get it closed as trade had declined to such an extent that the tenant, Albert Brooksbank had resorted to the "long pull" - three halves for the price of a pint.  The pub was destroyed in an air raid in June 1941 [1]. 

1. Salford Pubs - Part Two: Including Islington, Orsdall Lane and Ordsall, Oldfield Road, Regent Road and Broughton.  Neil Richardson (2003).

White Lion / Gardeners Arms, Crescent

Former location of White Lion / Gardeners Arms, Crescent. (c) googlemaps.

The above shot is taken from outside the still standing Black Horse Hotel, showing a row of empty offices between the Black Horse and Oldfield Road.  In the 19th century the row of houses here was called Crescent Parade, and before Crescent Row was built, there was an alehouse here called the White Lion, next door to the Crescent Inn (not to be confused with the still popular Crescent).  It was first licensed in 1870 and was last recorded in the 1797 directory as the Gardeners Arms [1].

1. Salford Pubs - Part Two: Including Islington, Orsdall Lane and Ordsall, Oldfield Road, Regent Road and Broughton.  Neil Richardson (2003).

Black Horse, Crescent

Black Horse Hotel, Crescent, 2008. (c) Andrew Greco.

The western end of Chapel Street where it meets the Crescent today has been known as White Cross Bank, and a little further along the Crescent above the loop in the River Irwell, it was known as Broken Bank.  A few doors down from fine Crescent pub, the Black Horse alehouse can be traced back to 1739 (even older than the Crown & Cushion) when George Metcalf was there.  Under Christopher, Deborah and Ellen Metcalf the pub was also known as the Tom Tinker, Grey Horse and Horse & Jockey (bit of an equine theme due to the Manchester Racecourse that used to be opposite).

Black Horse Hotel, Crescent, 2011. (c) garstonian at flickr.

In 1875 the pub was rebuilt, set back from the road slightly was described as "a modern erection of imposing apperance", with vault, bar, parlour, two refreshment rooms, billiards room and drawing room.   In 1888 under Thomas Moore - formerly of the Boat House in Northenden - advertised a concert room there.  The nearby Groves & Whitnall bought the pub in 1898, then Greenall Whitley took over in 1961 until 1997 when a pub company took over [1].  The pub closed at some point in the '00s when it was a student haunt.  When we passed it last year it looked doomed, but the shot above from March 2011 suggests otherwise as efforts are made to preserve it, as a listed building...

1. Salford Pubs - Part Two: Including Islington, Orsdall Lane and Ordsall, Oldfield Road, Regent Road and Broughton.  Neil Richardson (2003).

Cotton Tree, Saville Street

New Broadcasting House, Oxford Road, former location of Cotton Tree. (c) bbc.

In a month that's seen the sale of the BBC's Oxford Road HQ, New Broadcasting House, ahead of their relocation to Salford Quays, here's another one that preceded it.  The Cotton Tree stood on Saville Street on the corner of York Street in the 1850s.  Saville Street was parallel to Charles Street and was the continuation of Chester Street, while York Street was unbroken, running parallel to Oxford Road.  The site of the Cotton Tree is the internal BBC car park [1].

Former location of Cotton Treet, Saville Street. (c) googlemaps.

1. Manchester (London Road) 1849, Alan Godfrey Maps (2009).

Derby Arms, New Blakeley Street

Former location of Derby Arms, New Blakeley Street. (c) googlemaps.

The Derby Arms sat on this corner of what is now Dantzic Street and the amusingly named Mincing Street, formerly New Blakeley Street and Nelson Street respectively.  This spot in Angel Meadow is just below the notorious old Parochial Burial Ground, better known today as St Michael's Flags in Angel Meadow Park.  The pub was also close to the school which in 1866 become Charter Street Ragged School, today still retaining an array of interesting signs, the oldest being the "Working Girls Home" sign on the right, below.

Charter Street Ragged School, Little Nelson Street. (c) googlemaps.

The Charter Street Ragged School was originally a church mission before it was a school, as the old sign suggests.  As well as providing food, clothing and clogs for local children, it also offered medical services and Sunday breakfasts for down-and-outs [2].  In more recent times it's been a place of residence for young female workers and civil servants, and over the years has had visits from the likes of Engels, Churchill and Dickens.  Wonder if they popped in the Derby Arms for a pint after their inspections.

Charter Street Ragged School, Little Nelson Street. (c) Binary Ape at flickr. 

1. Manchester New Cross 1849, Alan Godfrey Maps (2009).
2. Angel Meadow: the Irish & Cholera in Manchester, Mervyn Busteed & Paul Hindle - www.mangeogsoc.org.uk/egm/3_2.pdf.

Sherwood, Temple Street / Statham Walk

Former location of the Sherwood, Statham Walk. (c) googlemaps.

The Sherwood was situated on Statham Walk off Hanworth Close in the Brunswick Estate of Chorlton-on-Medlock.  This may not mean much to many except keen taxi drives, so to clarify, it was just off Downing Street and the Mancunian Way, a hundred yards north west of the Kings Arms.  The pub is shown as a Wilsons house in 1969 with the new University building going up in the background, and in 1971 and twice in 1973, after a paint job.  It wasn't always situated in the Brunswick Estate, as the estate was only created in the 1960s.  Before then the pub was sited on Temple Street on the corner of Back Rusholme Road, as seen in this 1959 photo.  In 1954 the pub was kept by a George Ferris [1].  While the houses surrounding were all cleared, the Sherwood remained to serve the new estate as that was then built around it.  The practice of clearing estates while leaving pubs standing, dotted about amongst the rubble, was quite a common site in the inner city at the time.  No idea when the Sherwood was eventually demolished but the googlemap shots suggest it might have been reasonably recently.

Former location of the Sherwood, Stathan Walk. (c) googlemaps.

1. http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com.

Blacksmith's Arms, Downing Street

Former location of Blacksmith's Arms, Downing Street. (c) googlemaps

The Blacksmith's Arms stood where Grosvenor Street meets Downing Street, just before the start of London Road, on the right hand side (where the industrial unit is, above).  Today, the Mancunian Way - seen in the near distance - divides Downing Street from London Road. In the 1800s, when the Blacksmiths Arms stood, it was Medlock Street to the right and the then non-culverted River Medlock that marked their intersection [1].  Unsurprisingly, the large pub was named after the smithy adjacent to it.  To the rear of the Blacksmiths Arms was a timber yard then a pleasant looking area of ponds and landscaped greenery, an extension of the already established Ardwick Green jut to the south-east which still survives to this day [1].

1. Manchester (London Road) 1849, Alan Godfrey Maps (2009).

Seven Stars, Ashton Old Road

Seven Stars, Ashton Old Road. (c) closedpubs.

Just off the most easterly part of the inner ring road, this large Holt's house was boarded up in early 2010.  It did a reasonable trade on match days - indeed, we had a good Saturday session in a busy Seven Stars around 2004 - but I suspect that was pretty much it for the week.  The railway line in the background as you look back down Ashton Old Road towards town carries the disused line which once provided a link between Piccadilly Station to Manchester Victoria via Bradford and Collyhurst.

Seven Stars, Ashton Old Road. (c) man-mates.

Afrique Club, Albion Street

Probably location of Afrique Club, Albion Street. (c) flexioffices.

The Afrique Club was a nightclub and after-hours, Sunday drinking establishment, sometimes frequented by Alex Higgins [1].  It was "past the alleyway behind the Britons Protection (presumably Trumpet Street), up some stairs on the way to the Hacienda on the opposite corner, facing the back end of Central Station", according to 'codger' [1].  This puts it probably above the now closed Aqua Bar or the larger Saloni salon at Albion House.

Albion Wharf, Albion Street. (c) googlemaps.

1. http://menmedia.co.uk/alex_higgins_george_best_with_a_snooker_cue.
2. http://manmates.proboards.com.

River, Palmerston Street

River, Palmerston Street, Ancoats. (c) Google 2011 - View Larger Map.

The River on Palmerston Street, just off the inner ring road in Ancoats, was licensed in 1860 as a Cronshaws Alexandra Brewery house before becoming a Groves & Whitnall house [1].  By the 1980s it was a Greenalls house and as shown in these shots, before it shut, a freehouse.  Since closure The River has deteriorated badly.  However, work has been carried out recently to either begin the restoration of the building, or at least sure it up until someone decides what to do with it.  As Ancoats is (very) slowly regenerated, there may be a glimmer of hope for the survival of the building, if not the The River as a public house.

A photo of the River is by Gene Hunt is at flickr.

1. The Old Pubs of Ancoats, Neil Richardson (1987).

Van Tavern, Arthur Street

Van Tavern, Arthur Street (right). (c) Alan Godrey Maps [1].

The Van Tavern was on Arthur Street, a short road off Chester Road, just north-east of Great Jackson Street at the very start of Deansgate.  It's listed on the 1848 map but is gone by the 1920 Ordnance Survey, so must have been named after the caravan, rather than the van.  It gets a mention in the 27 September 1850 edition of the London Gazette:

Van Tavern, Arthur Street, Hulme. (c) www.london-gazette.co.uk.

The Van Tavern was half way down Arthur Street on the right, and going off today's map, this was in the centre of the patch of waste ground shown in the centre right (the unmarked road going south off Deansgate is Owen Street; Arthur Street was between this and Great Jackson Street), not far from Choice Bar & Restaurant and Lava Café Bar:

Former location of Van Tavern, Arthur Street. (c) googlemaps.

1. Castlefield 1848, Alan Godfrey Maps (2008).