Longton - Dolphin Inn

Name: The Dolphin Inn

Address: Marsh Lane, Longton

The Dolphin Inn is located at the far end of Marsh Lane in Longton close to the river Douglas and Ribble Estuary. Back in the 1840s it was a small farm known as Lower Marsh Cottage, located by a well and near the Longton Ferry and Ferry House (see map below). It was originally a beer house and probably opened in the 1850s selling beer as a sideline to the farming business, as the censuses below testify.  

It later became a public house probably sometime in the 1890s for the Longton based W & R Wilkins Brewery (also on Marsh lane but nearer the town centre). The brewery, founded by William and Richard Wilkins was opened about 1870, and was eventually bought in 1952 by Groves and Whitnall of Salford; their premises were later acquired by Greenall Whitley, which used by them as a bottling plant and the Dolphin then became a Greenall Whitley public house.

1844 Map

Listed landlords at the Dolphin were John Walton (1851-1871), William Fairhurst (1881-1891), John Robert Murray (1901), James Dobson (1911) and Zena Slinger (2020).

1851 John Walton Lower Marsh Cottage Farmer

1861 John Walton Farmer & Beer Seller

It's interesting to see the below census also in 1861 showing John Walton's son William following in his father's footsteps working a farm on Marsh Lane and listed as a "beer seller".

1861 William Walton Farmer & Beer Seller

1871 John Walton Farmer of 6 acres & Beer Seller

Burial record of John Walton 29th September 1872

1881 William Fairhurst

At the time of the 1881 census William is not shown as a beer seller but the census 10 years later confirms this was the case.

1893 Map

1891 Census William Fairhurst Farmer & Beer Seller

The Dolphin's next landlord was to be John Robert Murray, erstwhile landlord of the beer shop located at 2-4 Moor Street, Kirkham where he had grown up. His own father, John Murray ran the beer house from the 1860s, which was later to become the George Hotel (now sadly demolished c.2012). 

1901 John R Murray Brewer and Inn Keeper

1909 Map

1911 James Dobson Inn Keeper

2020