WE HAVE BEEN AROUND FOR A WHILE
HISTORY
Beginning its life as number one Albert Place in the early 1800s as a funeral carriage business ,Samuel Taylor (first landlord ) had the idea of selling ales to the public as well as serving the local council with carriages and horses to bury Wolverhampton’s dead . Born in Tettenhall in 1805 Samuel Taylor is still to date the longest serving landlord, beginning in 1845 until his death in 1865.
Miss Elizabeth Jones became the second licensed victualler notable, for having seven sons and six daughters between 1864 and 1882. Remarkably three sets of twins.
Listed in the 1891 census ,the Royal Oak became 48 Compton Road run by Mrs Margaret A Morris with her son Fred Morris ,a retired blind ,maker and her niece Florence Williams . She ran the public house with her husband from 1890 but her husband sadly died three years earlier .
Two more landlords followed (F Cross 1893-1895 and E Jackson 1896) before the inn had its first refurbishment from a simple two up two down with stables and stores into a what we see today . The First World War passed with Mr. James Turley in charge (1910-1923),the same Turley family who run the office stationery business on Newhampton road opposite the Summer House public house to this day . Later in the twenties the architect Joseph D. Wood oversaw the complete rebuild of the pub which would be run by Mr M Woodward until 1935.
Mr Wilfred Shaw saw in the war years (1935-1948),his family using the wine cellar as a bedroom during the bombing raids. Finally in 1948 he moved onto the Wheel at Codsall with his family .
Not much more is known of the next eight or so landlords apart from Sydney Jones who was a demon dominoes player, as proven with his two wooden shields which still hang on the wall today .
A Dutchman took the helm ( Arie Hoogen)in 1965 and carried on till 1972. Ivor Gethin famously appeared on the ATV news show with his “pie and a pint deal “. From there other landlords came along but not stopping more than four years or so until the current licensee ,Susan Fullwood ,with her husband Keith,who have continued to serve pints since 2006
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