There's Life in The Feathers, Ludlow

By Bernard O'Connor

The world-famous Feathers Hotel in Ludlow is a well-preserved Tudor Inn. It is visited and photographed by tourists and locals, but few know much about its history. Bernard O'Connor's latest book on Shropshire provides a selection of over 250 years of newspaper articles that detail the sales, auctions, meetings, political corruption, landlords, landladies, births, marriages, deaths, inquests - and much more - to reveal life in The Feathers.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Apr 29, 2023
• ISBN: 9781447722571

Book preview

There’s Life in

The Feathers, Ludlow

A building with a sign on it Description automatically generated with low confidence

Bernard O’Connor

Copyright @ Bernard O’Connor 2023

Some parts of this document can be used provided due acknowledgement is given to the author.

ISBN: 978-1-4477-2257-1

Frontispiece (https://www.booking.com/hotel/gb/the-feathers-ludlow.en-gb.html)

Maps and photographs

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Extract from 1-inch Shropshire 1921

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Extract from 6-inch Shropshire LXXVIII.NE 1904

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Extract from 26-inch Shropshire LXXVIII.8 1893

Comfort in an historic setting

https://www.feathersatludlow.co.uk/

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(Christopher John https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1282026)

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(Mike Barratt https://historicengland.org.uk/etl/1282026/fd4f21d5 -3efe-4b6c-b11b-7efc8498b56c.jpg)

Food review: A return to the good old days at The Feathers Hotel | Shropshire Star

https://www.feathersatludlow.co.uk/

User submitted Image

Ornate mantlepiece at the Feathers (David Dunford https://historicengland.org.uk/etl/1282026/a9b5f558-c4cd-42a8-98cd-0ccc7715d92b.jpg)

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Ceiling rose at the Feather (David Dunford https://historicengland.org.uk/etl/1282026/ad858f38-b50c-4ee0-8810-d6ab713d0a4c.jpg)

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https://www.feathersatludlow.co.uk/

The Feathers Hotel at Ludlow

https://www.feathersatludlow.co.uk/

The Feathers Hotel at Ludlow

https://www.feathersatludlow.co.uk/

The Feathers Hotel at Ludlow | Luxury travel at low prices | Secret Escapes https://www.feathersatludlow.co.uk/

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Alley leading down north side of the Feathers (Mark Barratt https://historicengland.org.uk/etl/1282026/4033e9ae-fee0-44a0-bce6-b9667751c58d.jpg)

Introduction

Bernard O’Connor’s ‘There’s Life in The Feathers, Ludlow’ provides a fascinating insight into this internationally famous pub. Attracting visitors from around the world, apart from those who have stayed at the hotel or have read about its history, few will know much about how it has changed since it was built in the 16th century. Few will know about the auctions, sales, inquests, meetings, landlords, landladies, staff, drunkenness, assaults, births, marriages and deaths at the life. All of Ludlow life is here.

Details of the building’s architecture were found on the Historic England website:

Feathers Hotel. (SO5124474755) Early C17 front to earlier core. Timber-frame and plaster; brick; double-depth plain tile roof, with three gables to front; brick end stacks to rear. 3-bay plan. 3-storeys and cellar; 3-window range: bays with moulded and carved mullions and transoms, with cast diamond glazing, set in quarter braced framing; 2nd floor, jettied on moulded bressummers on enriched consoles, has larger bay to left; enriched quarter bracing; 3 gables have arch-motif and enriched barge boards and pendants. Central entrance, in porch with enriched pillars and consoles supporting 1st floor balcony with pierced spot-balusters, has C17 studded plank door, in enriched case, with overlight; flanked by C20 bays and further bay to left, and to right, chevron braced panels with casement; under moulded bressummer to 1st floor. Right return continues main features of front. Passageway to rear has (restored) studding with passing brace, and leads to yard; C20 entrance, and C19 and C20 range. INTERIOR: ground floor room to right of entrance has panelling, mantelpiece and wall paintings; 1st floor rooms have panelling, plaster ceiling and overmantel; much exposed timber-framing and ceiling beams. Firemark. (Lloyd D: The Feathers: 1986-).

Evaluation carried out at The Feathers Hotel, Ludlow in 1989 in conjunction with planning proposals to expand the business into the adjacent property of No. 25 Bull Ring [PRN 11040], Ludlow. One trench was excavated by hand and mechanical excavator on the site of a recently demolished 19th century building where a building extension was planned. The original Feathers dates mainly from the early 17th century but incorporates parts of an older building. It was originally a private town house and became an Inn in 1670. At the eastern end of the trench, a stepped brick wall thought to be the eastern wall of the demolished building was exposed. This in turn was laid directly on large flat stones which when fully exposed were seen to be the footings of the town wall [PRN 01177]. It was evident that the substantial footings of the town wall had been used as foundations for the eastern wall of the recently demolished building. <4>

An inn since 1670. Very little of the original timbering remains on the front, though the older work has probably always been faithfully copied. The asymmetrical appearance is partly the result of grafting Rees Jones's façade onto an earlier frame and partly because the northernmost gable originally incorporated the porch entrance at ground level and was treated rather differently from the other two gables. The facade shows almost every conceivable decorative motif: ovolo-moulded windows, lozenge-within-lozenge, plain lozenge work, cusped and spiked lozenges, classical blank arches, cablemoulding, carving of all kinds, brackets, pendents, finials, egg-and-dart moulding, stiff leaves, raised heads, grotesques, dolphins. The Prince of Wales feathers occur on the collar-beams of the gables, but the unusual thickness of the spikes on the cusped lozenges was to enable the 'feathers' motif to appear as fletching on each arrow or spike, and these appear in abundance on the third storey. The great chamber has an elaborate plastered ceiling, is fully panelled and has a richly carved overmantel incorporating the arms of James I. Photographs of overmantel, façade, Hackluyt/Fox shield, plaster ceiling, two outline drawings dating woodwork. <7>

Photograph of the exterior. <8>

Sources

What follows is a selection of over 250 years of newspaper articles which tell the story of life in The Feathers, covering auctions, horse covering, births, marriages, deaths, inquests, meetings, political corruption, landlords and landladies, staff, balls, drunkenness, assaults and more.

To help readers to better understand some of the terminology used by early newspaper reports about land sales, there were forty perches (p.) in a rood (r.) and four roods in an acre (a.). One acre is 4,047m2 or 2.45 hectares. There were twenty shillings (s. or /-) in a pound (often symbolised as l.) and twelve pennies (p.) in a shilling. A guinea was 21 shillings and a sovereign was a pound coin.

Newspaper articles

Aris’s Birmingham Gazette, Monday 19 March 1753

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Aris’s Birmingham Gazette, Thursday 17 June 1771,

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Hereford Journal, Thursday 31 July 1783

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Hereford Journal, Thursday 24 April 1788, To the Curious Breeders, TO COVER this Safon, 1788, at ONE GUINNEA each mare, and half a crown the groom, (the  money to paid on or before the 10th of June next. The famous, well-bred, beautiful BROWN BAY HORSE, YOUNG REGULUS, rifing fix years old, 15 fifteen hands and a half high, the property of Christopher Greenwood. He is matchlefs and unrivalled in beauty, ftrength, and aftivity; every one emulous to take up the brufh of a fox, or travel the road in a capital ftyle, muft grafp the prefent opportunity of breeding from the moft promifing ftallion this country could ever boaft of. He was got by that noted horfe, which has covered in the North of Yorkshire with great fuccefs thefe 14 years, and has got the molft leaping ftallions and the beft chapman's colts of any ftallion in Yorkfhire, and have been fold for the moft money. Young Regulus was bred by John Henderson, Efq. out of his hunting mare; fhe was by Mr. Cafter's Snake, which was got by Elequer Snake, Elequer Snake by Eafbv Snake; which mare he challenged to hunt againft any horfe, mare, or gelding in Yorkfhire, for 100 guineas. Young Regulus is a youthful ftallion, which will render his ftock of more value than thofe of any old, lame, broken down horfe, which has been of great detriment to the curious breeders and London dealers. Young Regulus, for blood, bone, beauty , action, movement, and colour, may fhew with any horfe in the kingdom for100 guineas. This is a true pedigree, as witnefs my hand, JOHN HENDERSON,«Efc., Breeder. He will be at the Greyhound, Hereford, every Saturday; at the Feathers, Ludlow, every other Monday, the Sun, in Kington, every other Wednefday ; the King's-Arms, in Leominfter, every other Friday, and every other Sunday night; where due attendance will given by their humble fervant, C. GREENWOOD.

Hereford Journal, Wednesday 17 March 1793, A MATCH OF COCKS, To be fought at the Plume of Feathers, Ludlow, on the 1ft and 2nd day of April next, between the Gentlemen of Shropfhire and the Gentlemen of Herefordfhire, to fight feven Rounders, feven Matchers, and thirteen Shuffs, for Four Guineas a Battle, arid Fifty the odd Battle ; and to weigh the morning before they fight. JOHN ETHERIDGE, for Salop, MILES SCULL, for Herefordfhire, Feeders.

Hereford Journal, Wednesday 22 April 1795, By Defire of fome Curious Breeders in this Country, WILL BE ADMITTED TO COVER THIS SEASON, 1795, At fo low a Price as One Guinea a Mare, and Half-a-Crown the Groom, (The Money to paid on, or before the 10th of June, 1795}, That High Bred and Beautiful STALLION, Known by the Name of YOUNG MATCH'EM, NOW FIVE YEARS OLD. He is matchlefs and unrivalled in beauty, ftrength, and activity; those who anxious to take up a brufh of a fox, or travel the road in a capital ftile, may grafp at the opportunity of breeding from the moft promifing Stallion this country could ever boaft; he has proved himfelf as good a foal getter as any Yorkfhire; he is allowed by every judge that viewed him to be the moft complete, grandeft, and fafteft trotting Stallion of any in the kingdom; he is a fine bright bay, five years old, fifteen hands three inches high; too much cannot be faid in the praife of this noble and ufeful animal. He is the property of Samuel Ford, who fpared no expence  but lately purchafed him in order to eftabiish a good breed in this country. He was got by Young North Star, who was got by Old North Star, who was got by North Briton, who was got by Old Jacob; Young Match'em's dam was got by Old Match'em, which was one