Lets all go on a pub crawl!

In 1846 Thomas Page, Vicar of Virginia Water, complained that the parish of Egham had 15 houses licensed to sell beer and 17 public houses, all for a population of 4500. This timeline relates the history of licensed premises in the local area.

Licensing for the sale of alcohol began in 1552. The term public house first appeared in the late 17th century, and was used to differentiate private houses from those which were, quite literally, open to the public as ‘alehouses’, ‘taverns’ and ‘inns.’ In 1830 the Beerhouse Act allowed individuals to obtain for 2 guineas a licence for brewing and selling ale, beer and cider (not wine or spirits) from their homes – ‘Beer Houses.’ Laws enacted from 1869 onwards made it harder to obtain a licence and restricted opening hours. Many beer houses then closed, or were purchased by breweries and changed to fully licensed public houses.

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We would love to turn this into a Heritage Trail but we need your help!

Do you have a connection to one of the buildings mentioned? Would you be able to sponsor this trail?

Get in touch:

01784 434483
curator@eghammuseum.org