The White Horse and The Six Bells, Great Linford
Between the years 1754 and 1791 there was only ever a single licensed public house operating in the parish at any one time, first The White Horse, then The Six Bells. Unfortunately, though the yearly audit of licensed innkeepers for the Newport Three Hundred (Buckinghamshire Archives D-X-423/9) was fairly diligent in recording the names of the publicans in Great Linford, its compilers frequently omitted the actual signs of the pubs. It is therefore difficult to tell if The White Horse and The Six Bells were two entirely different pubs located at different places within the parish, or a single establishment at one location that changed name?
However, on balance, it seems reasonable to suppose that it was a single establishment. We can also theoretically push the history of The White Horse back even further than its earliest licensing record of 1754 and even attribute the name to royalty. In 1714, Queen Anne, the last of the Stuart's, passed away to be succeeded by George I, who had been born in what is now modern-day Germany, but was then part of the Holy Roman Empire. Prominent amongst the king's heraldic symbols was a white horse on a red background, known in German as the ‘Sachsenross’ and in English as the White Horse of Hanover. This became a popular motif on pub signs, so it does offer the possibility that Great Linford’s White Horse was established on or soon after 1714.
William Syer
The sole licensed victualler in Great Linford in 1754 and 1755 was a William Syer, though it is not until 1756 that he is explicitly named in connection to The White Horse. There are some parish records available for the Syer family of Great Linford, which allows us to build a speculative family tree, beginning with two marriages for a William Syer in the village which took place in 1727 and 1740, clearly indicating that William had been widowed. The first marriage was to a Sarah Clothier on July 5th, 1727, the record of which places William’s place of abode as Stony Stratford, but it also throws up the surprising detail that he was a gingerbread maker!
The marriage appears to have resulted in at least two children, a Sarah in 1729 and an Ann in 1731, both baptised at Great Linford, so we know William had chosen to relocate to his bride’s parish. His wife Sarah died at Great Linford in 1738; her entry in the parish burial register gives her date of burial as October 28th and adds that she was 31 years old and the wife of William Syers, baker and victualler, an old word for someone selling alcohol, almost certainly in this case beer. The duality of profession is not altogether surprising, as his family may well have attended to the dispensing of beer during the day while William laboured with the bakery business. It should also be noted that though we have proof that he was a victualler in 1738, we cannot positively connect him to The White Horse at this time (if indeed the sign was even then established), and equally, the victualing may have involved nothing more taxing than the dispensing of beer from the bakery as a sideline, essentially a "beer shop" rather than a pub.
William’s second marriage was to a Mary Wigg on March 25th, 1740, again at Great Linford. Mary was from Stukeley in Cambridgeshire. The marriage appears to have produced at least two more children, as sadly we can find burial records in the parish for them. A Susanna Siar, daughter of William and Mary was buried August 18th, 1758; the burial record describes William as a Baker. Then a few years later, a Thomas Siar was buried at Great Linford on December 14th, 1760, again described as a child of William and Mary, with William’s profession being recorded as gingerbread baker. The variant spelling of the surname aside, this is clearly the same family.
The last reference to William as the licensee of a pub is recorded in the licensing records in 1759, though the sign of his establishment was again omitted. William died in 1771 and was buried at Great Linford on June 16th, his burial record describing him as a baker. He seems then to have been more baker than barkeep, but clearly, he was licensed for a number of years as a victualler within the village, and his connection to The White Horse is unquestionable.
The marriage appears to have resulted in at least two children, a Sarah in 1729 and an Ann in 1731, both baptised at Great Linford, so we know William had chosen to relocate to his bride’s parish. His wife Sarah died at Great Linford in 1738; her entry in the parish burial register gives her date of burial as October 28th and adds that she was 31 years old and the wife of William Syers, baker and victualler, an old word for someone selling alcohol, almost certainly in this case beer. The duality of profession is not altogether surprising, as his family may well have attended to the dispensing of beer during the day while William laboured with the bakery business. It should also be noted that though we have proof that he was a victualler in 1738, we cannot positively connect him to The White Horse at this time (if indeed the sign was even then established), and equally, the victualing may have involved nothing more taxing than the dispensing of beer from the bakery as a sideline, essentially a "beer shop" rather than a pub.
William’s second marriage was to a Mary Wigg on March 25th, 1740, again at Great Linford. Mary was from Stukeley in Cambridgeshire. The marriage appears to have produced at least two more children, as sadly we can find burial records in the parish for them. A Susanna Siar, daughter of William and Mary was buried August 18th, 1758; the burial record describes William as a Baker. Then a few years later, a Thomas Siar was buried at Great Linford on December 14th, 1760, again described as a child of William and Mary, with William’s profession being recorded as gingerbread baker. The variant spelling of the surname aside, this is clearly the same family.
The last reference to William as the licensee of a pub is recorded in the licensing records in 1759, though the sign of his establishment was again omitted. William died in 1771 and was buried at Great Linford on June 16th, his burial record describing him as a baker. He seems then to have been more baker than barkeep, but clearly, he was licensed for a number of years as a victualler within the village, and his connection to The White Horse is unquestionable.
Isaac Gurney
Isaac Gurney is listed as a licensee in Great Linford for the years 1762-1767, but the sign of his establishment is entirely omitted throughout this period. There was no entry in the licensing records for anyone at Great Linford in 1760 and 1761, but conceivably Isaac had taken over at The White Horse from William Syer. However no other record seems to exist which mentions the name of his pub (or any pub) in the village during Isaac’s lifetime. As to Isaac, there are some parish records relating to the Gurney family in the village, but nothing that speaks as to his profession as a victualler. A solitary baptism record dated February 23rd, 1738, for a John Gurney names the parents as Isaac and Anne, but we then find a number of children born to an Isaac and Hester Gurney in the village between 1743 and 1754, suggesting that Isaac had been widowed and then remarried.
Sadly, the couple faced repeated tragedy, losing three out of five children as infants. All their baptism records state that Isaac was a labourer, as was also the case upon the burial of their baby son Isaac in 1754. Isaac senior is also described as a labourer upon his death in late September 1774. His widow Hester (also variously written as Esther and Easter throughout her life) was buried at Great Linford on December 19th, 1800. So, even more contradictorily than William Syer before him, we have a seemingly unimpeachable source in the licensing records naming Isaac as a victualler, but not a jot of evidence elsewhere to elaborate upon this.
Sadly, the couple faced repeated tragedy, losing three out of five children as infants. All their baptism records state that Isaac was a labourer, as was also the case upon the burial of their baby son Isaac in 1754. Isaac senior is also described as a labourer upon his death in late September 1774. His widow Hester (also variously written as Esther and Easter throughout her life) was buried at Great Linford on December 19th, 1800. So, even more contradictorily than William Syer before him, we have a seemingly unimpeachable source in the licensing records naming Isaac as a victualler, but not a jot of evidence elsewhere to elaborate upon this.
John Knight and The Six Bells
The fact that John Knight became the sole licensee in the village in 1768, immediately after Isaac Gurney’s last entry in the ledger, might reasonably be interpreted to mean he took over Isaac’s establishment, but if he did, the puzzle remains, what was it called? The licensing records are entirely unilluminating until 1774, when John is first recorded as the publican of The Six Bells, which is an intriguing name, as we can be absolutely certain as to its origins.
In 1756, the Lord of the Manor, Henry Uthwatt, had paid for the removal of the original five bells from St. Andrew’s Church, and for them to be recast at St. Neots, arranging at the same time for the manufacture of a new sixth bell. Clearly, The Six Bells was named in homage to this important miestone in village life, and common sense would further lead to the obvious conclusion that the sign would have been adopted at around the same time that the peels of the new bells first rang out. The chronology however does not quite support this, as we know from the licensing records that The White Horse was still in operation in 1757. Thereafter however, the records fail us, and though we can place William Syer and Issac Gurney in the parish as victuallers, it is not until 1774 that the sign of a pub is again included. So perhaps it was shortly after 1757 that the sign of The Six Bells was established, and we might also speculate that it was renamed from The White Horse. As theories go. this does seem to have the ring of truth about it.
While we may struggle to join the dots if any between The White Horse and The Six Bells, we do have more luck gathering together some facts for John Knight, who the licensing records confirm remained publican of The Six Bells until 1798. The Knights appear to be a particularly old Great Linford Family, with the earliest record of the name in the village being the burial of an Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Knight, on October 30th, 1602. Exactly how the John Knight of The Six Bells might connect to the Knights of 1602 (if indeed they do) is at present uncertain, but the Knight family were clearly stalwarts of village life for several hundred years.
John was born in Great Linford in 1727 to an Edward and Elizabeth (nee Coleman) Knight and was baptised at St. Andrew’s church on July 17th. A John Knight was married at Great Linford on November 28th, 1756, to an Elizabeth Herbert. The Herberts seem to be more recent arrivals in the village, circa 1660s. There was one known child from the marriage, Edward born 1757, but the unfortunate conclusion must be that the birth was a difficult one, as Elizabeth Knight was buried at Great Linford on December 18th, the same day their son Edward was baptised. We do learn from these records that John, like his father before him, was then a labourer, but as seems relatively commonplace, a lowly beginning in life did not necessarily preclude advancement to the position of publican.
We can be confident that John Knight subsequently married a Sarah, plausibly Sutley, with the wedding held at Great Linford on October 24th, 1764. Their only apparent child Thomas was baptised at Great Linford on January 1st, 1770, but sadly tragedy was to strike, as the child passed away at barely a month old, and Sarah herself died in November of 1771, to be buried on the 17th. Her burial record names her husband as John Knight, victualler.
By this time John seems to have become a person of some means, as on April 16th, 1782, he took out insurance with the firm the Sun Alliance for a “home” in Wavendon, which he was renting out and was valued at a sum not exceeding £60. The property also included a barn, stable and pigsty adjoining, not exceeding £20 in value, and a barn, cowhouse and hovel, also not exceeding £20. A sum in total of £100 would be worth around £9,000 in today’s money.
As to The Six Bells itself, we are lucky enough to have one legal document dated 1790 pertaining to the pub, in the form of an indenture (Buckinghamshire Archives D-U/1/115), a legal document that in this case sets out the terms of occupation for John Knight. Sadly it offers no clue as to the location of The Six Bells within the village, but there are several interesting facts to be drawn from it. First, we learn that The Six Bells is owned by the Uthwatt family, though at the time the estate was held in trust. The widowed Frances Uthwatt is referenced, as are the two executors of her late husband’s will, Sir Francis Newdigate and Lord William Baggot. There is also one distinct descriptive statement about the property, that it has fruit trees within its grounds, and that these were not to be cut down. Finally, the indenture gives us the yearly rent, set at £3, three shillings.
John Knight passed away in 1797 at the age of 71 and was buried at Great Linford on November 7th. A notification in newspapers in October the following year asked that any persons indebted to his estate were to make payment to Mr Cooch of Newport Pagnell. Here though the story of The Six Bells concludes, as no further persons are recorded in the licensee records in connection with this sign.
In 1756, the Lord of the Manor, Henry Uthwatt, had paid for the removal of the original five bells from St. Andrew’s Church, and for them to be recast at St. Neots, arranging at the same time for the manufacture of a new sixth bell. Clearly, The Six Bells was named in homage to this important miestone in village life, and common sense would further lead to the obvious conclusion that the sign would have been adopted at around the same time that the peels of the new bells first rang out. The chronology however does not quite support this, as we know from the licensing records that The White Horse was still in operation in 1757. Thereafter however, the records fail us, and though we can place William Syer and Issac Gurney in the parish as victuallers, it is not until 1774 that the sign of a pub is again included. So perhaps it was shortly after 1757 that the sign of The Six Bells was established, and we might also speculate that it was renamed from The White Horse. As theories go. this does seem to have the ring of truth about it.
While we may struggle to join the dots if any between The White Horse and The Six Bells, we do have more luck gathering together some facts for John Knight, who the licensing records confirm remained publican of The Six Bells until 1798. The Knights appear to be a particularly old Great Linford Family, with the earliest record of the name in the village being the burial of an Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Knight, on October 30th, 1602. Exactly how the John Knight of The Six Bells might connect to the Knights of 1602 (if indeed they do) is at present uncertain, but the Knight family were clearly stalwarts of village life for several hundred years.
John was born in Great Linford in 1727 to an Edward and Elizabeth (nee Coleman) Knight and was baptised at St. Andrew’s church on July 17th. A John Knight was married at Great Linford on November 28th, 1756, to an Elizabeth Herbert. The Herberts seem to be more recent arrivals in the village, circa 1660s. There was one known child from the marriage, Edward born 1757, but the unfortunate conclusion must be that the birth was a difficult one, as Elizabeth Knight was buried at Great Linford on December 18th, the same day their son Edward was baptised. We do learn from these records that John, like his father before him, was then a labourer, but as seems relatively commonplace, a lowly beginning in life did not necessarily preclude advancement to the position of publican.
We can be confident that John Knight subsequently married a Sarah, plausibly Sutley, with the wedding held at Great Linford on October 24th, 1764. Their only apparent child Thomas was baptised at Great Linford on January 1st, 1770, but sadly tragedy was to strike, as the child passed away at barely a month old, and Sarah herself died in November of 1771, to be buried on the 17th. Her burial record names her husband as John Knight, victualler.
By this time John seems to have become a person of some means, as on April 16th, 1782, he took out insurance with the firm the Sun Alliance for a “home” in Wavendon, which he was renting out and was valued at a sum not exceeding £60. The property also included a barn, stable and pigsty adjoining, not exceeding £20 in value, and a barn, cowhouse and hovel, also not exceeding £20. A sum in total of £100 would be worth around £9,000 in today’s money.
As to The Six Bells itself, we are lucky enough to have one legal document dated 1790 pertaining to the pub, in the form of an indenture (Buckinghamshire Archives D-U/1/115), a legal document that in this case sets out the terms of occupation for John Knight. Sadly it offers no clue as to the location of The Six Bells within the village, but there are several interesting facts to be drawn from it. First, we learn that The Six Bells is owned by the Uthwatt family, though at the time the estate was held in trust. The widowed Frances Uthwatt is referenced, as are the two executors of her late husband’s will, Sir Francis Newdigate and Lord William Baggot. There is also one distinct descriptive statement about the property, that it has fruit trees within its grounds, and that these were not to be cut down. Finally, the indenture gives us the yearly rent, set at £3, three shillings.
John Knight passed away in 1797 at the age of 71 and was buried at Great Linford on November 7th. A notification in newspapers in October the following year asked that any persons indebted to his estate were to make payment to Mr Cooch of Newport Pagnell. Here though the story of The Six Bells concludes, as no further persons are recorded in the licensee records in connection with this sign.
From Six Bells to Black Horse?
We have seen that there is a tentative lineage to be traced from The White Horse to The Six Bells, but can we take this further, and even identify the location of the pub? Possibly so. To begin with, we can categorically exclude the possibility that The Six Bells became the modern-day pub The Nags Head, for the simple reason that we know both establishments were once trading at the same time. The Nags Head was first licensed in 1792, so for six years until 1797, both pubs were in competition with each other. There is however one other candidate, The Black Horse Inn, which was first licensed in 1800, though for this one year only, it was called The Bridge.
It does seem plausible that The Six Bells was renamed, first to The Bridge, and then to The Black Horse Inn. A brief item about The Black Horse Inn in the Northampton Mercury of February 25th, 1944, dates the building to 1667, so if true, it was certainly old enough. If we also consider that the building was located on a main road from Stony Stratford, it would have been in a prime location to catch passing trade, even before the coming of the canal in 1800. Might it then have had an earlier identify as a coaching inn? For more on the history of The Black Horse Inn, click here.
It does seem plausible that The Six Bells was renamed, first to The Bridge, and then to The Black Horse Inn. A brief item about The Black Horse Inn in the Northampton Mercury of February 25th, 1944, dates the building to 1667, so if true, it was certainly old enough. If we also consider that the building was located on a main road from Stony Stratford, it would have been in a prime location to catch passing trade, even before the coming of the canal in 1800. Might it then have had an earlier identify as a coaching inn? For more on the history of The Black Horse Inn, click here.