STOCKDALE ARMS, EAST STREET

Corner of East Street and South Albion Street.

In 1843, various Lodge meetings were held here, including Oddfellows, with the Hearts of Oak prominent in the 1870s. The Stockdale Arms – or Hotel – as it was sometime called had its own brewhouse, club room, skittle alley together with six bedrooms.

Thomas Williams was landlord for many years from the early 1840s, through his wife, Elizabeth’s, death of bronchitis aged forty eight in 1859, until his own death in 1867. When the house was put up for auction.

1873 William Pears was listed as licensee and owner. (see seduction at Stockdale Arms below)

An inquest was held at the Stockdale in Oct 1885 on the death of Anne Chipping, a young women who had been travelling on a train through Leicester, which collided with a goods train. The force of the collision threw her across the carriage, sustaining fatal injuries.

The driver William Wain, was charged with manslaughter and found guilty, although the jury suggested his view of the red danger signal could have been obscured by some trees.  The jury recommended removal of the offending trees.

A couple of months later at the Assizes in December William Wain surrendered to his bail, as the L&NWRail Co offered no evidence for the prosecution the charge was overturned and William Wain discharged (LM)

1877 Frank Wells 1881 Joseph Clemenston licensee. Edward Hughes 1883, Eli Hall 1885,

1889 Alfred Cousins licensee, In June 1899, the pub was bought by All Saints Brewery after leasing it for ten years from Welch Brothers St Martins Brewery. (BHS)

Albert Hill is listed as publican 1907-1931 with his wife Lydia, they had five sons, tragically three of them were killed in the Great War, Percy 23, Leslie 21 and Alcar 21 all perished in the conflict, to lose three of your five sons was a high price to pay for our Country. (info kindly sent by Michael Parker) Albert Hill posted an extract from a letter wrote by his son on the battlefield in France to the Leicester Daily Post.

The headline ran COCKNEY AND HIS PRISONERS- This is a transcript from his sons letter

1931 Frederick William Harper licensee- In 1835 two policemen claimed they say through a crack in the door a man drinking in the pub after time, they then claimed the man crouched down and crawled under the counter, together with Mrs Harper they then ran into the living quarters, Harper was fined £5-3/- inc costs.

1939 Roger McDonagh licensee wife Imelda assisting until the pub closed, although Ronald Freeman seemed to have held a temporary licence towards the end.

March 1948 the removal of the licence was granted to the Leicester Corporation after being compulsory purchased for future development, The Stockdale finally closed in 1956 on the 16th of December, the licence transferred to the newly built John O Gaunt. The council purchased the pub for a reported £1k

The building survived for a few more years as a café, before demolition.