Charles Wells
By Bill Exley
By Bill Exley
This building now a private dwelling, formely 5, High Street is situated in Blunham village square with the name The Ragged Staff above its door, so preserving history of a bygone era . Any history of licensed premises in Blunham is complicated by the fact that there have been two seperate Pubs/Beerhouses both starting as the Ragged Staff and later The Salutation , so I will keep them seperate to avoid confusion. The Queen's Head Beerhouse was originally called the Ragged Staff in the years prior to1786, then from 1786 until 1847 it was called The Salutation . This original Ragged Staff [Q.H.] was a Beerhouse serving pints well ‘before’ 1846, but these records are unavailable. It must be noted from ‘all’ my records of Blunham Pubs / Beerhouses that the tenancies changed hands many times after short periods. The owners even took the previous name with them on a move, as regards The Salutation being renamed The Old Salutation trying to attract their regulars to follow. There were many, many Land workers, as farming was so labour intensive and reliant on man power, before the advent of machinery. All were regular drinkers due to the very nature of their work using most of the 8 village ’drinking holes’. This Beer House was formely called The Ragged Staff changing to The Salutation in 1786 and finally The Queen's Head sign outside from 1847 to c.1925 when it closed it's doors.
| Henry Usher sells The Salutation for £345 to a Joseph Lovell | 1846-1865 |
| 1st Licence granted and re named The Queen's Head | 1847 |
| Lovell sells the Inn to a Herbert, Albury Dunnage | 1865-1869 |
| Oliver Steed , Brewers of Baldock | |
| James Boness (Bonus ?) | 1869-1889 |
| Robert Beadle | 1889-1891 |
| Eliz. White | 1891-1893 |
| William John White | 1893-1894 |
| Records show a James John Kither and Jane Arthur [Arthur Jane?] were domicile in 1894 |
|
| William James Phipper (Kither?) | 1894-1897 |
Sold to Charles Wells, Bedford Brewers |
1895 |
| William Giggle | 1897-1904 |
| Mrs Hannah Giggle | 1904-1908 |
| Grandad and Grandmum of a Mr Brown, Gamekeeper at Tempsford Hall | |
| John Burton | 1908-1914 |
| Herbert Currant |
1914-1924 |
Herbert Currant then moves to The Horseshoes pub for a 30 years stay |
|
The Queen’s Head is sold by Chas. Wells to a father & son ‘both’ called Harry Thom. Dennis then Closes . between : |
1925-1926 |
The 'Q.H.' site was also locally known as ' The Police House' and as such occupied by - |
|
| PC Harry Ashton and family | 1927-1934 |
| P.C. Whitemore, then P.C. Jack Frith and families | 1934-1942 |
| Henry, Stanley Green ( fm Great Barford) | 1942-1957 |
| Peter and Rosalie Davis | Oct 1957 to 1983 |
THE RAGGED STAFF
My researches into the origin of the local Pub name "The Ragged Staff" used by two Pubs, led me all the way back to 1268 and the coat of arms of the Earls of Warwickshire. It is here we find within the Quarterings of the shield, a Bear and Ragged Staff (A ragged staff is from the branch of a ‘young’ tree stripped of its leaves). There is no obvious local historical connection, as I first thought, but a nationwide usage of the Pub names "The Bear" or "Ragged Staff" in general. The usage by a Public House/Beerhouse in olden days, was to show allegiance to the King or a local Landowner, why ? Respect/Employer? -- Bill Exley Nov .2011.
Page last updated by Bill Exley 29th June, 2012 .