PUBLIC HOUSES/BED & BREAKFAST ESTABLISHMENTS IN BRASSINGTON

Public Houses

There are now two Public Houses in Brassington, the Old Gate Inne(above) on Well Street, and the Miners Arms on Miners Hill.

Bed & Breakfast Establishments

There are two Bed & Breakfast Establishments, The Old Barn on Middle Lane, and Lonsdale House at Longcliffe.

Contact No's

The Old Barn - Tel. 01629 540317 Hugh Tyler.

Lonsdale House - Tel. 01629 540360/540659 - Julie & Brian Flinders. E Mail. bzeflin@aol.com

Web site www.lonsdalehouse.freeserve.co.uk

The Miners Arms - Tel. 01629 540222

The Old Gate Inne - Tel. 01629 540448

Brassington has always been well served by Public Houses and Ale Houses. These were The George & Dragon (now Dragon House), The Miners Arms, The Gate, The Royal Oak on Well St, The Red Lion (now Red Lion House) on Kingshill, The Thorn Tree also on Kingshill (now Thorntree House), and The Red Lion (now Tudor House).

250 Years of The Miners Arms

The Miners Arms like most of the old houses in Brassington was, in its early days, part of the Manor of Brassington. This meant that its owner held it as a tenant or "copy holder" of the Manor Court by a jury or "homage of 12 local men, and the details written in the Manor Court Roll. The Brassington History mentions a legal documentof 1747 when the tenant was William Locker, but the first time a transfer of The Miners Arms was recorded in the Manor Roll was on April 24th, 1771.

'At the same court came Mary Wayne, widow of Robert Wayne late of Brassington deceased, and Thomas Wayne eldest son of the said Robert and Mary Wayne and surrendered into the hands of the Lords of this Manor by the Rod according to the customs of the said Manor. All that messuage house,cottage or tenement in Brassington afores'd with a barn and a stable thereto belonging and also so much of a garden (adjoining said house) as extends to the middle part of the Middle Window in the said house now in possession of Robert Allsop and also all that "Messuage" house, cottage or tenement adjoining to the Northwest end of the afores'd house commonly called 'Palmers House' --- to the use and behoof of Robert Allsop of Brassington afores'd and Sarah his wife for and during their joint lives and the life of the survivor of them and from and after the 'decease' of the survivor of them --- to the 'use and behoof of the Right, Heirs of the said Robert Allsop forever.'

The description was the same as a series of transfers during the 19th Century. The copyholders after Robert Wayne, Mary Wayne and Robert Allsop were:

1802 Jane Allsop, niece of Robert Allsop under his will.

1858 William Slack, son of Jane Slack nee Allsop. Jane had died in 1850 and her husband Thomas Slack, the pub's licensee had applied to the Manor Court for the copyhold to be transferred to him. However the Court decided that William was Jane's lawful heir and entitled to it. The description of the property includes the joining of the two houses --- "but which said Messuages were some time since and are now converted into and used as one Dwellinghouse". In 1861 William Slack paid £5 to William Hopkin, tailor, for 'all that newly erected Stable with part of the premises belonging to the said William Slack and called 'The Miners Arms Inn' . William was a farmer.

1872 Joshua Slack. He redeemed for £400 a mortgage which his father William had raised on the pub in 1867 and was admitted to the copyhold. In 1879 Joshua Slack and the Lord of the Manor, Arthur Harward, a solicitor in Wirksworth signed an indenture of Enfranchisement whereby for the payment of £25 by Joshua Slack, Harward agreed "that the said Joshua Slack, his heirs and assigns shall and may at all times hereafter peaceably and quietly possess and enjoy the said hereditaments and premises". Having obtained the freehold Joshua sold the pub in the same year 1879 to the Burton Brewer Sidney Evershed. Eversheds Brewery later became part of Marston, Thompson and Evershed, who in the past year sold the premises to Banks Brewers, the present owners of the Miners Arms.

The first known licensee was Thomas Slack who was landlord from 1808 until his death in 1860. He married the pub's owner Jane Allsop in 1812. He was a farmer and from 1804 - 1839 Barmaster for the Brassington leadmining liberty. Records which he kept both as Barmaster and Innkeeper have survived and show that during his lifetime the pub was the centre of lead mining activity here. The miners 'Barmote Court' of 24 jurymen met here to adjudicate disputes and elect the next years jury and it was from here that the Barmaster ran the industry 'giving' mines, 'nicking' unworked ones, 'reckoning' the amounts of lead ore mined and recording the prices paid by the smelters who bought it.

Many miners had regular accounts with the landlord/Barmaster showing that he gave long credit for his fees for 'measuring' their ore and for purchases of ale, food, mining goods such as candles and timber and much else. The miners were not the only ones who had accounts at the pub - the landlord dealt with local farmers and gentry too, giving credit and lending money at 5% interest.

In addition to being the venue for Barmote Court, The Miners Arms was also the home, from 1828 - 1882 for the twice yearly meetings of the Manor Court and in the second half of the 19th Century for the Oddfellows Society whose membership and accounts and parade banner were kept here. Thomas Slack's grandson Joshua kept accounts which show that in 1872 he provided credit to the trustees of the new school while it was being built paying labourers and carriers and supplying ale for the village band at the opening. Like other pubs of the time The Miners Arms had its own brewhouse and the early landlords sold their own beer. This probably continued until the sale to Sidney Evershcd in 1879.

Here is the list of known landlords and landladies from 1808 until now:

THE GATE INNE

Landlords and Landladies

1823 William Toplis

1830 Elizabeth Toplis

1861 Sarah Spencer

1901 William Pounder

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