Chorley's Inns and Taverns: White Horse Inn

Name: The White Horse Inn

Address: 1, Market Street, Chorley

A painting of the top of Market Street in the early 1800's. From left to right are the Red Lion Hotel,
the Swan with Two Necks (to be), the White Horse Inn and the old town hall on the right.

The above picture is hung in the current Chorley Town Hall. It is listed on the Lancashire Lantern as the White Lion but this is an error as directory and census records confirm, No.1 Market Street was the White Horse Inn. It first appeared on records as early as 1818 and was open well into the 1900's. The widening on Union Street in the mid-1900's cleared the area where the White Horse stood but roughly speaking it was on Bingo car park and part of the current Union Street today.

Listed landlord were John Gray (1818), Richard Wilson (1822-24), William Waring (1835-41), James Henry Dewhurst (1851-65), Hannah Dewhurst (1871), Joseph Green (1872-82), George Green (1889-91), John Seddon (1901-11) and Michael Seddon (1921).

John Gray was a well known Chorley man in the early 19th century, working as Parish clerk, chief chorister, town crier, bellman and innkeeper. He was the landlord of the Old White Horse Inn, a thatched house which stood next to the Parish Church until the clearance of that area.

One Saturday evening in Winter, just after 10pm Mr Gray was in church preparing the heating for the Sunday services when he noticed a courting couple leaning on the church wall. He thought it was time they were home so he went to the Vestry and put on a white surplus and crept along the graves until he was level with them. He rose up towering above the couple and asked in a ghostly voice ‘Are ye gooin’ to stop theer o’ neet?’ There was a loud yell from the boy and a hideous scream from the girl and they both ran at full speed away from the wall in different directions.