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Summary

Unlisted former 19th century public house, perhaps with earlier origins associated with the London to Bath Road, demolished in 2021 and site redeveloped

Monument Type(s):

• TOLL HOUSE? (Georgian to Mid 18th - Mid 19th century - 1714 AD? to 1850 AD?)
• PUBLIC HOUSE (Mid to Late 19th century to Early 21st century - 1854 AD? to 2011 AD)

Full Description

The Travellers Friend is shown on the OS First edition of 1878 <1> and on later historic mapping until the Fifth edition of 1965. It lay within the small hamlet of Calcot Row. Modern mapping shows it under a different name, 'Murdoch's'. Historical pub research indicates that the Travellers Friend was in operation in 1854 (from Billings' directory) <2>.

The building was adjacent to the Bath Road and was clearly of more than one period of construction. It had a tall extension on its east side that had three way views along the road, similar to the windows of some toll houses. Both parts of the old building had tile-hanging on the upper storey facing south, and slate roofs.

Information from the BIAG site visit report of 1986 <3> records that it was owned by Blatch's Brewery of Theale from 1872 to 1965, when it was sold to Halls Brewery of Oxford (Allied Breweries).

A heritage statement on the results of a building survey and desk-based assessment of the building by Forum Heritage Services in 2018 <6> reported that the Tilehurst parish tithe map of c. 1840 shows a small house on the site, labelled as plot 235. The plot was described as a cottage and garden owned by Thomas Draper and occupied by William Bailey. A Land Tax redemption document of 1866 makes reference to the property being a public house and garden called The Traveller's Friend. Ordnance Survey maps show the property was enlarged by 1866 and 1878, remained largely unaltered up to 1912, but had substantial changes made to it between 1912 and 1932, and again in the mid- to late 20th century. These changes were reported to have almost entirely erased the original 19th century building.

In 2018 <6>, the building was reported to be in four parts with a single-storey conservatory at the west end. The conservatory was attached to the gable end of a low two-storey block with a slate roof and two bay windows. The low storied block was attached to a taller two-storied block, described as a large canted bay with a window on each of the three bays, also with a slate roof. The upper storeys of both two-storied blocks were faced with bands of plain clay tiles. To the east of the taller block was a single-storey flat-roofed addition. Various other additions to the rear of the building were used for kitchens, toilets and store rooms.

The building was demolished in 2021 <7>.

Sources and further reading

Related Monuments

Associated Excavations and Fieldwork

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