Robin Hood (Bridport)
By Henrik Thiil Nielsen, 2017-06-13. Revised by Henrik Thiil Nielsen, 2018-06-17.
The Robin Hood Inn in Bridport closed in 1961, but the name is still used locally to refer to the building, which became a private residence shortly after the pub closed.[1]
A.D. Mills in the English Place-Name Society's fourth volume on Dorset cites Kelly's Directory of 1939 as source and also, oddly enough, refers to a typescript calendar of records of Bridoprt for mention of a Robin Hood ale in a 1555 record.[2] It would have been somewhat remarkable if there had been any direct causal relationship between a feast arranged to bolster parish funds in 1555 and the existence of a public house first recorded in 1939, and there is in fact no reason to think that this was the case. Mills, writing in 2010, might have turned to the Records of Early English Drama volume on Dorset, published in 1999, to see this record in proper context (see Bridport festivals).
While the Robin Hood may have served its first customers a couple of decades before it was listed in the 1939 directory, I would be surprised if it was much older than WWI. None of the trade directories listed in the Background section below mentions it. It is not indicated on any of the 6" O.S. maps listed below (see Maps section), but this is not surprising as they usually do not label inns and other establishments situated in towns and cities.
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
- Closed Pubs: Dorset: Bridport: Robin Hood
- Mills, A.D. The Place-Names of Dorset (English Place-Name Society, vols. LII-LIII, LIX/LX, LXXXVI/LXXXVII) ([s.l.]; Nottingham, 1977-2010), pt. IV, p.360; and pt. I, pp. xiii, xx, for source references.
Maps
- 6" O.S. map Dorset XXXVIII.SW (1889; surveyed 1886-87)
- 6" O.S. map Dorset XXXVIII.SW (1903; rev. 1901)
- 6" O.S. map Dorset XXXVIII.SW (1903; rev. 1901) (georeferenced)
- 6" O.S. map Dorset XXXVIII.SW (1931; rev. 1928)
- 6" O.S. map Dorset XXXVIII.SW (c. 1948; rev. 1938).
Background
- [Hunt, E., compil.] Hunt, E. Hunt & Co.'s Directory of Dorsetshire, with Part of Hants and Wilts; Comprising Comprehensive Lists of the Commercial, Professional, and Private Residents in Every Village, Town and Hamlet throughout the Entire County of Dorset, Likewise in the City of Salisbury, and the Circumjacent Towns of Christchurch, Downton, Fordingbridge, Hindon, Lymington, Mere, Ringwood, Romsey and Wilton, and in Numerous Intervening Villages; also of the City of Bristol, and the Towns of Axbridge, Bruton, Burnham, Castle Cary, Chard, Clevedon, Crewkerne, Glastonbury, Ilchester, Ilminster, Langport, Martock, Shepton-Mallet, Somerton, Wells, Weston-super-Mare, Wincanton & Yeovil. Together with a Descriptive Account of each Town, an Epitome of Each Village, Particulars of Carriers, Coaches, Railroads, and Water Conveyances; Postal Arrangements and Other Useful Information (London, 1851)
- [Kelly and Co.], compils. Post Office Directory of Dorsetshire, with Map Engraved Expressly for the Work and Corrected to the Time of Publication. 2nd ed. (London, 1855)
- [Kelly and Co.], compils. Post Office Directory of Dorsetshire, with Map Engraved Expressly for the Work and Corrected to the Time of Publication (London, 1859)
- Kelly, E. R., ed. The Post Office Directory of Hampshire, Including the Isle of Wight; Wiltshire & Dorsetshire (London, 1875)
- [Kelly's Directories Ltd., compil.] Kelly's Directory of Dorsetshire (London; Birmingham; Glasgow; Leeds; Liverpool; Manchester; Sheffield; Antwerp; Copenhagen; Oslo; Rotterdam; Bombay; Kobe; Capetown; Buenos AIres; Rio de Janeiro; Santiago de Chile; Melbourne; Sydney; Wellington; New York; Paris; Hamburg, [1889])
- [Kelly's Directories Ltd., compil.] Kelly's Directory of Dorsetshire (London; Birmingham; Glasgow; Leeds; Liverpool; Manchester; Sheffield; Antwerp; Copenhagen; Oslo; Rotterdam; Bombay; Kobe; Capetown; Buenos AIres; Rio de Janeiro; Santiago de Chile; Melbourne; Sydney; Wellington; New York; Paris; Hamburg, [1895])
- [Kelly's Directories Ltd., compil.] Kelly's Directory of Dorsetshire (London; Birmingham; Glasgow; Leeds; Liverpool; Manchester; Sheffield; Antwerp; Copenhagen; Oslo; Rotterdam; Bombay; Kobe; Capetown; Buenos AIres; Rio de Janeiro; Santiago de Chile; Melbourne; Sydney; Wellington; New York; Paris; Hamburg, [1911])
- [Kelly's Directories Ltd., compil.] Kelly's Directory of Dorsetshire (London; Birmingham; Glasgow; Leeds; Liverpool; Manchester; Sheffield; Paris, 1915)
- [Pigot, J., compil.] Pigot and Co.'s Royal National and Commercial Directory and Topography of the Counties of Derbyshire, Dorsetshire, Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, Monmouthshire, Oxfordshire, Shropshire, Somersetshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, Wiltshire, Worcestershire. Comprising Classified Lists of All Persons in Trade, and of the Nobility, Gentry and Clergy, Resident in the Towns and Principal Villages in the Above Counties. An Account of Every Mode of Transit for Passengers and Merchandise: Including Perspicuous Railway Tables, Detailing Full Particulars as to Time, Fares, Stations, &c. and Lists of the Bankers of the United Kingdom (London; Manchester; St Augustin, 1842
- Slater, I., compil. Pigot and Co.'s Royal National and Commercial Directory and Topography of the Counties of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Cornwall, Devonshire, Dorsetshire, Gloucestershire, Hampshire, Herefordshire, Monmouthshire, Oxfordshire, Somersetshire, Wiltshire, and North and South Wales. Comprising Classified Lists of All Persons in Trade, and of the Nobility, Gentry and Clergy, Resident in the Towns and Principal Villages in the Above Counties. An Account of Every Mode of Transit for Passengers and Merchandise: Including Perspicuous Railway Tables, Detailing Full Particulars as to Time, Fares, Stations, &c. and Lists of the Bankers of the United Kingdom (London; Manchester; St Augustin, 1844)
- Slater, Isaac, compil. Slater's (Late Pigot & Co.) Royal National and Commercial Directory and Topography of the Counties of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Cornwall, Devonshire, Dorsetshire, Gloucestershire, Hampshire, Somersetshire, Wiltshire, and South Wales (Manchester and London, 1852-53)
- Wikipedia: Bridport.
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Notes
- ↑ Closed Pubs: Dorset: Bridport: Robin Hood.
- ↑ Mills, A.D. The Place-Names of Dorset (English Place-Name Society, vols. LII-LIII, LIX/LX, LXXXVI/LXXXVII) ([s.l.]; Nottingham, 1977-2010), pt. IV, p.360; and pt. I, pp. xiii, xx, for source references.