The Stafford Arms Public House and Restaurant
Bagnall

This page desribes the history of this ancient building. to jump to the pub's own web site.

The Stafford Arms public house is a Grade II listed building and stands in the centre of the village overlooking the Village Green.It comprises of what was a group of 3 cottages. In 1841 it was known as the King's Arms, and the land in the front of was then known as the Pound. Prior to that it was known as the Bowling Green.

The southern part of the pub was a 3-bay single pile farmhouse the rounded mullions of which suggest a date of around 1600. In 1847 the public house was known as the "Marquis of Stafford".

During structural work in 1964, old stonework was revealed. Removal of cream painted tongued and grooved timber in what was known as the "long room" exposed the original stonework.

At the east end the walls were formed of huge stone blocks thought by local people to have been brought from the remains of Hulton Abbey. However, after reference to the Stoke-on-Trent City Curator, it was discovered that they predated the Abbey by many hundreds of years. (The Abbey was founded by Henry de Audley in 1223).

Originally the part of the building used as a public house was much smaller than the present day, there being two cottages to the right of the licensed premises, between the pub and St. Chad's House. Part of the building now incorporated into the pub was once used as stables, and eight stone lintels can be seen in the stonework. The room was converted into a period lounge, retaining the stone walls as they were with seats and fittings in keeping with the history of the inn.

The building has undergone further recent renovation and now features a restaurant catering for all tastes at a reasonable price. In addition there is now pleasant seating area with wooden picnic benches outside the building, adjacent to the front of the inn and the road and car park.

A romantic view of how village life developed around the Stafford Arms was published in "A Pint-sized History of the Staffordshire Moorlands" by Joan-Ann Grindley (Click here to read extract)