School Lane / Lower Road

Staple

The Plough Stood On The Spot Now Occupied by Rowan Close. The Sign Above The Door Reads: The Plough, East Kent Brewery. It's tempting to think that the chap in shot is William Rigden?

Above map 1907, kindly sent by Rory Kehoe.

Above label for the East Kent Brewery, 1912, kindly sent by Rory Kehoe.

The Plough, Staple stood on the corner of School Lane and Lower Road, opposite Durlock Road, just to the north of the village. The Plough was referred for closure in 1921 and the East Kent Brewery, Sandwich, was awarded compensation for its loss, and that brewery was brewing beer from about 1890 after taking over the Cliff's Archcliffe brewery in Dover. By 1921, however, the East Kent Brewery had amalgamated with Ash's Dane John Brewery, Canterbury, to form Ash's East Kent Brewery. Despite closing the Sandwich brewery and concentrating production in Canterbury, the newly combined company had somewhat misjudged the post-WW1 economic situation and a projected boom in local tourism and further coal mining development didn't materialise. As a result, Ash's East Kent Brewery found itself over-extended financially and was soon experiencing difficulties in balancing its books. It may well be, therefore, that losing the "Plough" and receiving compensation from the public purse, was not entirely unwelcome.

The "Plough's" previous licensee, Mr J W Rigden, stayed on in the property and sold sweets in what had previously been the tap room. Sometime after it closed, the former "Plough" was purchased by Frank Vincent Tritton, who had been the previous owner of the nearby "Black Pig," Barnsole and Tritton's Brewery, which he'd sold to Gardner's Ash Brewery in 1912. Frank Tritton later sold the old Plough and its new owners renamed it Wayside.

After a serious fire in the 1960s (I don't yet know the exact date) what remained of the "Plough" was demolished and the site was cleared for redevelopment in the early 1970s. Where the "Plough" once stood is now part of Rowan Close.

Kelly's 1903 lists under Staple a William Rigden, beer retailer. No address given but surely, related to J W Rigden above? Father of?

LICENSEE LIST

NOBLE Charles June/1907+

RIGDEN James William 1911-21 (age 47 in 1911)

ELGAR George Harry to Feb/1941 dec'd

ELGAR Mrs E Feb/1941-Jun/1941 dec'd

ELGAR Mr P J (son of above) Jun/1941-Sept/41

SHAXTON/SHAXTED Bertie Sept/1941+

From the Dover Express