Coaching inn
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- This article is about coaching inns in general, for individual inns see: Stagecoach Inn (Disambiguation)
In Europe, from approximately the mid 17th century for a period of about 200 years, the coaching inn, sometimes called a coaching house or staging inn, was a vital part of the inland transport infrastructure, as an inn serving coach travelers. Although many survive, and some still offer overnight accommodation, in general they have lost their original function and now fulfill much the same function as ordinary pubs.
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[edit] Description
Coaching inns stabled teams of horses for stagecoaches and mail coaches and replaced tired teams with fresh teams. Traditionally they were seven miles apart but this depended very much on the terrain. Some English towns had as many as ten such inns and rivalry between them was intense, not only for the income from the stagecoach operators but for the revenue for food and drink supplied to the wealthy passengers. Barnet, Hertfordshire was one such location and even today boasts an unusually high number of historic pubs along its high street due to its former position on the main road from London to the North of England.
[edit] Cock and Bull
A pair of coaching inns alongside the A5 road or the old Roman road Watling Street in Stony Stratford (Buckinghamshire, England), named respectively 'The Cock' and 'The Bull', are said to have given rise to the term "cock and bull stories." Coaches or the Mail coach would stop in the town on their way from London to the North and many a traveller's tall tale would be further embellished as it passed between the two hostelries, fuelled by ale and an interested audience. Hence any suspiciously elaborate tale would become a cock and bull story.
The coaching inns were mentioned in the Post Office Directories of the late 18th century and early 19th century that were the precursors of today's telephone directories: some were to become railway hotels as the coaches were replaced by rail travel.
[edit] Historic inns
Examples of historic sites of coaching inns in central London include the plaque on the Nomura building close to the Museum of London on London Wall commemorating the "Bull and Mouth" Inn; Golden Cross House, opposite St Martin's in the Fields recalls the Golden Cross, Charing Cross coaching inn.
Historic inns in Oxford include The Bear Inn (originally established in 1242) and the Lamb & Flag.
[edit] External links
- Coaching inns. By Anne Woodley.
- Stagecoaches and Coaching Inns. Cottontown.
- www.geograph.co.uk : photos of examples of what may be considered coaching inns
