Robin Hood (Reading)
| Locality | |
|---|---|
| Coordinate | Near 51.443623, -0.958829 |
| Adm. div. | Berkshire |
| Vicinity | |
| Type | Public house |
| Interest | Robin Hood name |
| Status | Defunct |
| First Record | 1851 |
By Henrik Thiil Nielsen, 2020-05-22. Revised by Henrik Thiil Nielsen, 2022-05-08.
A pub named the 'Robin Hood' on Shinfield Road in Whitley, Reading, is recorded from 1851 to 1877.
Information on publicans etc. from this period can be found at Pub Wiki.[1] IRHB has not been able to determine the exact address of the pub. However, a look at the 1851 census record for this area seems to suggest that the pub was situated, not on Shinfield Road properly speaking, but on its northwestern extension which was, at least officially, named Christchurch Road. After visiting Whitley Villa on the eastern corner of Christchurch and Highgrove streets, the census-taker called at Whitley Crescent No. 1 through 15,[2] just east of Highgrove Street. His next stop thereafter was the Robin Hood on Shinfield Road. Subsequently he visited seven more households on that road and a fair number on Southern Hill and Redlands.[3] The route he took, coupled with the fact that the maps tell us that Shinfield Road proper was quite sparsely populated in this vicinity, leads me to suggest that Christchurch Street may locally have been considered part of Shinfield Road. It certainly was so in physical terms. A public house is indicated at the east end of Christchurch Road, but this is the still existing Queen's Head.
In want of the exact coordinate, that listed in the infobox and indicated on the interactive map points to a fairly central point on Christchurch Road. Perhaps a local can tell us precisely where the Robin Hood was?
Gazetteers
- Not included in Dobson, R. B., ed.; Taylor, J., ed. Rymes of Robyn Hood: an Introduction to the English Outlaw (London, 1976), pp. 293-311.
Sources
- 1851 Census of Berkshire, Piece 01692c, Image 00365, at the Genealogist (£)
- Pub Wiki: Robin Hood, Shinfield Road, Whitley, Reading, Berkshire.
Maps
- 25" O.S. map Berkshire XXXVII.7 (c. 1877; surveyed 1876), No copy in NLS
- 25" O.S. map Berkshire XXXVII.7 (1899; rev. 1898) (georeferenced)
- 25" O.S. map Berkshire XXXVII.7 (1899; rev. 1898)
- 25" O.S. map Berkshire XXXVII.7 (1911; rev. 1910)
- 25" O.S. map Berkshire XXXVII.7 (1934; rev. 1932)
- 6" O.S. map Berkshire XXXVII.NE (1900; rev. 1898) (georeferenced)
- 6" O.S. map Berkshire XXXVII (1883; surveyed 1872-77)
- 6" O.S. map Berkshire XXXVII.NE (1900; rev. 1898)
- 6" O.S. map Berkshire XXXVII.NE (1913; rev. 1909-10)
- 6" O.S. map Berkshire XXXVII.NE (c. 1936; rev. 1931-33)
- 6" O.S. map Berkshire XXXVII.NE (c. 1944; rev. 1938)
- 6" O.S. map Berkshire XXXVII.NE (c. 1947; rev. 1938).
Background
- 1851 Census of Berkshire, Piece 01692c, Images 00362, 00367-71, at the Genealogist (£)
- The Whitley Pump: A walk around Christchurch Conservation Area – First Stop; by Evelyn Williams
- Wikipedia: Whitley, Reading.
Also see
Notes
- ↑ Pub Wiki: Robin Hood, Shinfield Road, Whitley, Reading, Berkshire.
- ↑ These and the Villa are not labelled on the early O.S. maps, but see The Whitley Pump: A walk around Christchurch Conservation Area – First Stop; by Evelyn Williams.
- ↑ [1851 Census of Berkshire, Piece 01692c, Images 00362, 00367-71, at the Genealogist (£).]