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Anglezarke/Limbrick - Black Horse

Name: The Black Horse

Address: Long Lane, Limbrick, Chorley, Lancashire

The Black Horse
Visitors have been welcomed at The Black Horse for a very long time. It was 1577 when the Pub was originally licensed by the Leyland Magistrates; during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, making it one of the first recorded Pubs in the country. The local area of Heath Charnock boasted several licensed premises, amongst which The Bay Horse, The Yew Tree Inn and The Black Horse have much historical value. The Author and Researcher Thomas Burke claims that there has been an Inn stood on the site of The Black Horse since before 1066, and parts of the original cellar still stand and are used by the Pub for serving Beer today.


The Black Horse's history is quite a colourful one. Being stood on the site of the original A6, many travellers have passed through the doors and used the Inn's coaching and Horse Stabling facilities. Oliver Cromwell is reputed to have spent some time there during the Battle of Preston. The Old Inns of Heath Charnock were once social centres for the local people. They not only provided refreshment and entertainment but also served as venues for meetings and such events as Coroner's Inquests on sudden deaths. The Black Horse and most of the other property in the Hamlet of Limbrick is built of local grey stone. It imparts to the local charm, which visitors find hard to believe is only two and a half miles from the centre of Chorley.
(taken from Black Horse website) 

1800s
This pub first appears on official online records in the Leyland Hundred Poll Books of 1835 where William Hargreaves was the occupant.  

Leyland Hundred Poll Books of 1835

In 1841 he is shown on the census as coming from Lancashire and  living with his wife Catherine and their seven children; not only did he run the pub but was he was also working as a farmer and a pattern drawer.

1841 Census
Landlords at the Black Horse from the census and directory records show the following: - William Hargreaves (1835-41),  John Carter (1861), Andrew Smith (1865-76), John Smith (1879-91), Kate Higginson (1901), James Heald (1911), William Iddon (1921), Bert Reed (1950-60s), Tom and Gladys Morris (1967-69), Arthur & Joyce Collier (1969-1996) and Andrew & Tracey Edmondson (1990s).


1861 Census


1871 Census


1881 Census

1891 Census


1901 Census
2020

1911 Census

1921 Census

Landlord Bert Reed & Landlady c.1960


LEP 1990s Landlord and landlady of the Black Horse pub at Limbrick, Andrew and Tracey Edmundson
The Black Horse 2015

12 comments:

  1. Hi, where did you view the poll books? Thanks.

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  2. These were sourced from Ancestry.co.uk Kim.

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  3. Do you know if there are records of the inquests? I'm doing research from Canada and have found two deaths in my family tree that had inquests at their local pubs - I'd love to find out more.

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  4. I would send an email enquiry to the Lancashire Record Office in Preston if I were you Amanda as they are the most likely to hold such records and if they don't, they should know who does. You could also search online on their website>> http://archivecat.lancashire.gov.uk/calmview/Overview.aspx
    Good luck!

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  5. Great beer ,great food ,great staff

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  6. Kate Higginson who was Landlady at the Black Horse, Limbrick, in 1901 was my great, great grandmother. Some information that may be of interest is that her husband, John Higginson, sadly committed suicide in the cellar of the Black Horse in 1901. I got the following information from Mr Paul Topping on Chorley Then and Now on Facebook "On 17th March 1901 at 5 pm the Landlady Kate Higginson, found her husband in the cellar, hanging from a beam. John Higginson had been apparently given 3 months notice to vacate the premises by its owners, Whittle Springs Brewery and he had told Kate on a number of occasions that she would have to bury him before they left. He was apparently seen with the rope in his hand one hour before his wife found him. Perhaps he was on a trial period and not considered suitable." I believe he had a 'Gentlemans Funeral' whereby only men attended.

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  7. My gt gt gt grandad was William Hargreaves, listed as first recorded landlord in 1835, his wife Catherine's family owned ridgewood farm very near to the black horse, their son Peter my gt gt grandad, went working on the farm after my gt gt gt grandad was drclared bankrupt in 1841 (or there abouts)

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  8. Hi, under the landlords names etc there is no mention of my mum and dad Arthur and Joyce Collier ? They ran the pub for 27 years from 1969 to 1996. I have lots of stories of ghostly things happening there !

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for contributing. Any stories you have would be great if you're willing to share them.

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  9. Why is The Black Horse not listed on Historic England?

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  10. Richard Langford6 June 2023 at 04:09

    I imagine no-one has ever applied to have it listed. Can be done on https://historicengland.org.uk/

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