BLACK BOY Pub of Canterbury

DOVER KENT ARCHIVES

Sort file:- Canterbury, April, 2025.

Page Updated Canterbury:- Monday, 14 April, 2025.

PUB LIST

PUBLIC HOUSES

Paul Skelton

Earliest 1600s

Black Boy

Latest 1908

(Name to)

40 Burgate Street (4 Buttermarket 1899)

Canterbury

The "Black Boy" shown circa 1906 next to the "Olive Branch" which was then Walkley and Co., Wine and Spirit Merchants.

Above photo, date unknown.

Above photo, March 2016, kindly taken by Rory Kehoe.

Walkley's Wine & Spirits store became the "Olive Branch" (c.1930) and was a Bushell, Watkins & Smith house, then (presumably) a Taylor Walker house after 1948 and eventually, in the 1960s, an Ind Coope house.

One time the premises was operating as a shop titles Talisman.

The Black Boy closed in around 1903. In 2013 the site became part of the "Shakespeare" (Butchery Lane) which it backs on to, trading as a licensed coffee house.

The back entrance is in Butchery Lane where coaches could transport passengers and luggage. The courtyard is still there.

The "Black Boy" it is reputed was built on Roman ruins as a lot of Roman flint has been found in the cellar. The premises has been a pub since the 1600s and possibly earlier, and remained as the "Black Boy" till 1908. It is now called the "Old Buttermarket."

It was mentioned in the Carpenter's Company Accounts that in 1663 it was a billeting house for four soldiers.

It is recorded in the 1692 list of inns and was a very old coaching inn then. The coaches driving through an archway to the courtyard the entrance to the courtyard is still there in Butchery Lane.

From the Kentish Weekly Post, 17 May 1741.

Wednesday May 20.

To the worthy FREEMEN of the City of Canterbury who are Interest if Sir THOMAS HALES.

Gentlemen,

You are desired to meet the Friends of Sir Thomas, tomorrow Morning, being the Day of Election, at either of the following Houses, viz.

The "King's Head," in High Street,

The "Fountain," St. Margarets,

The "Dolphin," Burgate,

The "Rose," St. Georges,

The "Black Boy," Burgate,

The "Flying Horse," Dover Lane,

The "Three Compasses," St. Peter's,

The "Golden Lyon," St. Peter's,

The "Mitre," High Street,

The "Rising Sun," St. Dunstan's,

The "Black Swan," North Gate,

The "White Swan," North Gate,

The "Tolerated Soldier," North Gate,

The "Fox and Seven Stars," St. Alphage,

The "Saracen's Head," St. Pauls,

The "Maiden Head," Wincheap,

The "Two Brewers," St. Mildred's,

The "Seven Stars," St. Alphage,

The "Three Tuns," St. Margaret's.

Kentish Gazette, 2 October, 1792.

Canterbury.

Yesterday morning died, and his 83rd year of his age, Mr. Peter Plomer, master of the "Black Boy" public house, (wherein he was born) in the Buttermarket, in this city.

Kentish Gazette, 18 November, 1806.

DEATH.

Friday morning, Mr. Harris, landlord of the "Black Boy," porter-house, Canterbury.

From the Kentish Gazette, 9 April 1839.

We are sorry to state that Mr. J Minter, butcher, of Butchery-lane, in this city, dislocated his ankle and broke his leg, in a scuffle at the "Black Boy," in the Butter market, on Monday evening.

Kentish Gazette, 25 May 1847.

DEATH.

Harris:— May 21. Mr. Thomas Harris, of the "Black Boy Inn," Butter Market, Canterbury, aged 54.

Kentish Gazette, 27 November 1849.

DEATH.

Harris:— Nov, 9, in the Butter Market, Canterbury, Mrs. Ann Harris, landlady of the "Black Boy Inn," in this city, aged 62 years.

Kentish Gazette, 30 November 1852.

CANTERBURY COUNTY COURT.

(Before Charles Horwood, Esq., Judge.)

The usual monthly court for this district was held on Tuesday last. There were upwards of 50 cases entered on the plaint list, but many of them did not possess any general interest.

Cobb v. Caroline Harris.

A claim of £3 9s., for 6 gallons of gin and a box of cigars. Mr. Delasaux was for defendant.

It appeared that Charles Harris, brother to defendant, was formerly in plaintiff's employment, and early in January last year had the above-mentioned goods, which he sold his sister, and keeps the "Black Boy," and she now produced a receipt to show it to have been a bona fide sale.

Plaintive expresses surprise to her when he applied for payment, and she stated that her brother had informed her that plaintiff was indebted to him, and he had taken them in outset.

Plaintiff denied that he owed him anything.

Verdict for the defendant.

Kentish Gazette, 5 September 1854.

MORGAN'S PURE LLANGOLLEN ALE.

Sole Agent for Canterbury.

CAROLINE HARRIS, "Black Boy Tavern," Canterbury. Families and the Trade supplied.

August, 1854.

Kentish Chronicle, Saturday 3 June 1865.

The Adventures of Some Banknotes.

On Saturday last, a man named Richard Holness, a woodreeve, residing at Herne, went to Messrs. Hammond and Co's Bank, Canterbury and cashed a £60 check, for which she received £10 in gold and £50 in notes. In passing through St. Margaret's Street he manage somehow or other to drop the notes out of his pocket. He did not discover his loss until the following morning, when he found the gold in a bag in his pockets and the notes gone. He immediately went to Superintendent Davies, and who having ascertained the number of the notes, took prompt measures to recover the same. He had them cried and made all the necessary enquiries. On Sunday evening a boy in the employ of Mr. Prett, Palace Street, brought one £5 note to the Superintendent being one of those missing, and said he had received it off a boy named Nash, who was apprenticed to Mr. Swain of Wincheap. The Superintendent sent for Nash, who, said that he picked up the note in St. Margaret's, and that he did not know what it was. He had never seen one before, and he thought it was a paid bill, as he saw Mr. Furley's name at the bottom of the note, and he gave it to the little boy. He said that he also saw two labouring men, one short and the other tall pick up some more notes at the same time. From enquiries made by the Superintendent, he traced out that the two men in question were named respectively Sutton and Newing. Sutton the same evening went to the police station, having heard that the notes had been cried, and produced two £10 and five £5 notes, which he said he and Newing had picked up in St. Margaret's. The owner of the notes who is but a poor man, very liberally rewarded the finders with £4, which the Superintendent divided by giving Sutton £3, for picking up notes to the value of £40; Newing with 10s., for a £5 note; and the other two boys 5s. each, for the remaining £5 note. The division of the reward, however, caused a quarrel on Monday evening, between Newing and another man named Barber, who was with him at the time he picked up the note, and who thought he had some claim for a portion of the reward. The men quarrelled and fought in the "Black Boy" and afterwards in the Buttermarket. They were taken into custody, and brought before the magistrates on Tuesday morning, when the landlord of the "Black Boy" said he did not wish press the charged, and they were dismissed with a caution.

From the Kentish Gazette, 12 September 1865.

Impudent Robbery by Soldiers:

Desperate Encounter with the Thieves.

On Thursday, at the City Petty Sessions, three soldiers, named William Bell and Aaron Marsden, privates in the 18th Hussars, and ---- Maloney, private in the 3rd Dragoons, were brought up in custody, the two first having been remanded from the previous day, charged with stealing a decanter containing a quantity of noyeau, value 15s. 6d., the property of Mr. Baker, landlord of the "Black Boy" public house, and also with offering a desperate resistance to the police in the execution of their duty. The two Hussars are known bad characters, both being marked as deserters, and one of them having been flogged.

It appeared that, about 11 o’clock on Tuesday morning, the prisoners were at the "Black Boy," and after they left Mr. Baker missed the decanter of noyeau from a shelf in the bar. About one o’clock the same day Mrs. Cole, wife of the keeper of the Cathedral Gate, saw the prisoners go into the Cathedral Yard. They went to the cloister gates where they drank some white liquid from a decanter, which the prisoner Marsden afterwards covered up with a handkerchief.

Mr. Hagell, confectioner, Burgate Street, who passed through the Butter Market about 1 o’clock on Wednesday, saw a decanter containing white liquid standing behind one of the pillars close to the "Black Boy." The two prisoners Bell and Marsden were standing near, and the third prisoner, who was just coming out of the "Black Boy," said "take it up." Marsden took up the decanter and all three went into the Cathedral Yard. All the prisoners were drunk. Information of the robbery having been given to the police, two members of the force — Holden and Twyman —went in search of the prisoners, and found Bell and Marsden at the "Ordnance Arms" public house, Military Road, the decanter being placed under a stool empty. Holden charged them with stealing the noyeau. Bell ran out into the yard, but returned directly with a chopper and a large stick, and said to Twyman "If you lay hands on me you shall be short of a wing." Bell handed to Marsden the stick, and the policemen, seeing the desperate character of the men they had to deal with, beat a retreat. Holden then went to the Barracks and obtained the assistance of a sergeant and five men, with whom he again went in pursuit of the prisoners, who were overtaken in the North Holmes. On observing their pursuers, the prisoners, though only two against six, offered battle. The prisoners were armed with thick sticks and Bell brandished a knife with which he threatened to kill the first man that came near him. The sergeant, not liking the appearance of things, sent to the Barracks for additional assistance, and was afterwards joined by six more men. The pursuit was then renewed, and the prisoners were brought to bay, for the third time, at Cossington. The prisoners again showed fight, and were not captured till they had wounded the sergeant, who was stabbed with a knife by Bell, and four of the men. Maloney was received into the custody of the police at the barracks, where he had been placed under arrest for a military offence. The Magistrates convicted all the prisoners and sentenced them to hard labour - Bell and Marsden for four months, and Maloney for two months in the gaol at St. Augustine.

From the Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald. 13 January 1900. Price 1d.

DEATH OF A WELL KNOWN CHARACTER.

On Tuesday, the death occurred in Canterbury of a well-known character. The deceased - Mark Garfit - was a retired clergyman and had retired with his cousin, the landlord of the “Black Boy” (Benjamin Mitchell), for the past sixteen years. He lived on an annuity which was paid to the deceased once a month, and since Christmas Day it appears that the deceased had been in an excitable condition. On the morning of the 7th January while downstairs in the “Black Boy” public house he called to his cousin to get him some ginger beer. The deceased was sick and suffering from diarrhoea. Mr. Brian Rigden was sent for, and on seeing deceased a second time he stated that he was dangerously ill and directed that his friends should be communicated with, which was done. At Christmas time deceased had £1 sent to him. According to the doctor's evidence given at the inquest held last evening at the “Shakespeare” public-house, Butchery Line, the deceased died from heart disease, and the jury returned a verdict in accordance with the medical evidence.

LICENSEE LIST

PLOMER Peter to Oct/1792 dec'd

HARRIS Mr to Nov/1806 dec'd

HARRIS William 1824-28+