Oatlands Pubs - Latest Research

 A source of information passed to us by a member (on a different topic) has led us to the clue we have been seeking for the connection, if any, between the Beer House and the New Inn.

According to "The Era" of  7 March 1852, in the section relating to Licensed Victuallers Petty Sessions at Kingston upon Thames, John(?) Cotterell applied for a grant of licence (to sell wines & spirits, rather than just beer) at the hearings on the 4th of March, for the New Inn and it was refused. Also in the report it states that an application had been made the previous year for the New Inn by Mr.Wontner and that was also refused.

There is also some absolutely fascinating background history contained in the report, most notably that Oatlands had only thirteen houses in 1851 and had more than doubled to 30 by the time of the 1852 application.

 The same newspaper reports, in its edition of 6 March 1853 that William Cotterell was granted a licence for the New Inn at the hearings of 3 March as a result of his third application.

As we know that the 1851 Census lists William Cotterell at the "Beer House", we can conclude that the New Inn and the Beer House are one and the same - the first pub in Oatlands, built by William Cotterell at a cost of more than £1,000 around 1849-50 - when Oatlands had less than a dozen houses...

Read more about The Beer House here, and about the New Inn here.

Although unrelated to Oatlands, the case of Miss Sarah Evans, who had been trying to obtain a licence since 1847 is well worth reading as a wonderful insight into life at the time.