New White Lion, Middleton Old Road, Blackley, 1960s. (c) Roger Hall [1].
The New White Lion was built in 1809 when the original Old White Lion inn and Middleton Old Road in Blackley was bypassed by the Rochdale Road turnpike. At the turn of the century, as seen at the archives in 1896, the New White Lion had passed to H C Wilson & Co, the predecessor of the familiar Wilsons [1], as seen in 1958 and 1972.
New White Lion, Middleton Old Road. (c) Tricia Neal at geograph under Creative Commons.
The Red Lion and the still-serving Grove on Rochdale Road affected trade at the New White Lion over the years, but that didn't stop it surviving until just a few years ago. The pub was originally a multi-roomed affair, with a resident headless monk ghost, who was linked to the old Blackley Hall which once stood nearby [1].
New White Lion, Middleton Old Road. (c) Tricia Neal at geograph under Creative Commons.
Another more recent claim to fame is suggested by the Dick Turpin sign on the New White Lion, but this turned out to be a joke by the landlord, whose mate Richard Turpin used to help out at the pub. Towards the end, the New White Lion operated as a residents hotel but has been closed since the late 2000s.
New White Lion, Middleton Old Road. (c) Google 2014. View Larger Map.
1. The Pubs of Blackley, Roger Hall (1980).
No comments:
Post a Comment