I never went into the Black Horse in Sidcup.
It had stood on the High Street for 300 years and was demolished in 2011.
According to one newspaper report* it was knocked down on condition that the developers would “build a new facade reflecting the pub as it was in 1897.”
Well I will let you make a judgement on that, for here is the pub as it was sometime in the later 19th century and as my friend Jean photographed it earlier last month.
There is much more to the story which you can follow by reading the original newspaper report but I will leave you with Jean’s comment that this
“was supposed to have had a facade that was an accurate reproduction of the original.
The new façade is so poor a reproduction that it even its windows were not traditional wood windows”
And if you want, then you can revisit the stories in the series on Sidcup.**
Now I am the first to admit that sometimes old and cherished buildings face huge challenges from changes of use, to the high cost of restoration, but there are plenty of examples where what was a long standing historic feature has been preserved even if it is just the facade.
It will be interesting to see just what people make of the sad tale of the Black Horse.
Pictures; the Black horse in the 19th century and today, courtesy of Jean Gammons
* Developer forced to recreate facade of former Black Horse pub in Sidcup, Tim MacFarlan, News Shopper, July 10, 2013, http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/10537828.Developer_forced_to_recreate_facade_of_former_Black_Horse_pub_in_Sidcup/
**Sidcup, http://chorltonhistory.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Sidcup
According to one newspaper report* it was knocked down on condition that the developers would “build a new facade reflecting the pub as it was in 1897.”
Well I will let you make a judgement on that, for here is the pub as it was sometime in the later 19th century and as my friend Jean photographed it earlier last month.
“was supposed to have had a facade that was an accurate reproduction of the original.
The new façade is so poor a reproduction that it even its windows were not traditional wood windows”
And if you want, then you can revisit the stories in the series on Sidcup.**
It will be interesting to see just what people make of the sad tale of the Black Horse.
Pictures; the Black horse in the 19th century and today, courtesy of Jean Gammons
* Developer forced to recreate facade of former Black Horse pub in Sidcup, Tim MacFarlan, News Shopper, July 10, 2013, http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/10537828.Developer_forced_to_recreate_facade_of_former_Black_Horse_pub_in_Sidcup/
**Sidcup, http://chorltonhistory.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Sidcup
I practically grew up in the pub
ReplyDeletePlaying in the gardens and function rooms upstairs
with the landlords kids back in 70's.