From http://www.twtowncrier.co.uk accessed 13 August 2018.

The Lost Pubs around Paddock Wood: Part One.

“The Hostelries of Paddock Wood”

In the 1841 census the pub was listed as the "Kings Arms" and the landlord was Henry Barden but sometime prior to 1851 the pub must have changed its name to the "Freemasons Arms" as that is how it is described in the census of that year.