The Former Edward I Inn, Upchurch by David Wood

Like other former Upchurch inns such as the Lord Stanley and the Anchor & Hope at Otterham Quay, the Edward I no longer exists in the village. The building in which the inn was first located is still situated opposite the church in Horsham Lane and is known as ‘Wayside,’ while the inn’s second location in The Street is now used by the Co-operative Stores.

The building in Horsham Lane dates back to the late seventeenth century after the original fourteenth century building which had once served as the vicarage had fallen into disrepair. This is mentioned in the list of all the benefices in the diocese of Canterbury dated 1663.

After being owned by farmer Thomas Dodd and then Wakeley Brothers to house their workers during the first half of the nineteenth century, flint merchant Edward Gaskin occupied the building during the 1850s. The building then operated as an unlicensed beer house during the 1860s. According to the ‘Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald’ dated September 21st 1867, Edward Mills applied for a license to sell alcohol but the application was refused. A few years later the building appeared as the Edward I Inn for the first time in the national census for Upchurch dated 1871. The census also shows that Charles Copping had become the new landlord. He lived in the building with his wife Anne, a maid and seven farm workers who lodged there. Like The Crown, the Inn provided alcohol and a social meeting place for male village residents who mainly worked on local farms and in the brickfields. Popular beers on offer at the time were English porter, stout and pale ale.

The national census for Upchurch dated 1891 shows that Michael Smitherman had replaced Charles Copping as the landlord and he lived at the property with his wife Rebecca and four children. He arranged smoking concerts at the building during the 1890s. These were live musical events where an exclusively male audience smoked, drank and chatted while the performance took place, popular during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Michael Smitherman held smoking concerts at the Edward I to raise money for Upchurch residents in need of support. A smoking concert held in July 1898 raised money for George Capeling whose wife had recently died and for an ailing Edward Hollands in July 1899. Horticultural shows were also organised at the building three times a year and these raised money for St Bart’s Hospital in Rochester.

With a large number of small rooms, the bar area was situated on the ground floor with a beer cellar directly below. It isn’t known how many separate bars existed at the Edward I but there were usually two or three for different classes of people in nineteenth century pubs and inns.

The Former Edward I Inn, The Street, Upchurch.

Thanks to: www.dover-kent.com - Kent's Public House Archive Site for this photograph,
taken after the Edward I Inn had closed and the building became
The Royal Naval Convalescent Home for Wounded Sailors.

New premises were constructed for the Edward I in The Street in 1893. An opening ceremony took place followed by a musical procession led by the village brass band which marched through The Street on October 19th 1893.

While Medway brewery Style & Winch owned the Edward I, Michael Smitherman, formerly the landlord in the Horsham Lane inn, became the first landlord at the new building in The Street and he continued there until 1911. His two great granddaughters Mary Barden and Jane Goodwin live in Upchurch.

After Michael Smitherman finished as landlord, Alfred Wyles who had previously served as proprietor of the Anchor & Hope at Otterham Quay took over as a beer retailer at the inn which, according to the electoral register for Upchurch, continued to function with the name Edward I until 1916.

When the Edward I Inn finally closed the building became The Royal Naval Convalescent Home for Wounded Sailors in 1917. Miriam Hilton-Coulton lived and worked there as the matron and continued running the convalescent home as ‘The Miriam Rooms’ after the war. Only The Crown has continued to function as a pub in the village centre.

About David

David Wood was born, raised and still lives in Upchurch today. He is able to write from personal experience about village life and the changes that have taken place over the years, making ‘Memories of Upchurch’ a very readable book and detailed historical study of the village.

David's book, ‘Memories of Upchurch’ is available direct from David at: david3702001@yahoo.co.uk or from us here at Upchurch Matters.

Price £12 + £3.50 postage and packing.

David Wood