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Spread Eagle Inn 14 Spiceal Street

Vivienne14

Vivienne14

Kentish Brummie Moderator
Staff member
This long-established inn in the Bull Ring, became a large inn and hotel which at one time had a concert hall and stabling for 100 horses !

Did the Spread Eagle become damaged during WW2 bombing or was it demolished for the 1960s Bull Ring redevelopment ?

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Source : British Newspaper Archive
 

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The closest I've got to finding a photo of the SE inn is this 1921 aeriel view. One of the buildings (rear view) at the bottom of the photo must be the inn.I think it was directly opposite St Martins, but I don't yet know which one would have been #14 Spiceal Street.

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This Britain From Above view also shows those buildings in 1931.Be nice to be able to identify the inn from those buildings.

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The Spread Eagle appears to change to the Criterion in the late 1880s . It was at 14 Spiceal St. though mcuh later Spread Eagle Yard is mentioned in Kellys.
 
Was this the pub building, see brown building to the right ? (next door to Woolworths white building just in view). If so, by the time this photo had been taken by Phyllis Nicklin on 12/9/1959, the ground floor was retail units (Curtess Shoes, Timpsons) These views were the last day of market trading before redevelopment. If it was the former Spread Eagle Inn, it had substantial premises, which would clearly have been altered or rebuilt since the 1760s.The sec9nd Phyllis Nicklin photo shows the street level retail premises.


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In August 1889 it was reported in the Birmingham Daily Post that Frederick Bedson of the Spread Eagle on Spiceal Street was refused a licence for music and dancing because he had altered his licensed premises since the previous annual meeting without the permission of the justices. Permission of the committee was necessary before alterations were made. I wonder if this brought about the end of the Spread Eagle ? And thereafter became the Criterion as Mike points out in post #4 ?

By 1904 there was a Criterion at 14 Spiceal Street run by Fred Hyde

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The former Spread Eagle Concert Hall was, by 1901, being used for storage. So, according to the press cutting, the former concert hall was located on the first floor above the old stables

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Source : British Newspaper Archive
 
Woolworths was 8-14, so the Spread Eagle would have been on part of the site of woolworths
 
That's helpful Mike. The first Bull Ring Woolies was built in 1921. It was subsequently extended in the 1930s. I wonder if the original 1920s section of the Woolies building or the 1930s extension swallowed up the Spread Eagle/Criterion ?

Of course this early Woolies disappeared completely when the 1960s Woolies was built further up the street.
 
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I should modify my earlier post. The spread Eagle did change to the Criterion in late 1880s, but between the 1910 and 1912 Kellys it reverted to being called the Spread Eagle. McKenna (not always reliable -it does not mention it ever being the Criterion) states it was demolished 1929, when Woolworths was built
 
mikejee said:
I should modify my earlier post. The spread Eagle did change to the Criterion in late 1880s, but between the 1910 and 1912 Kellys it reverted to being called the Spread Eagle. McKenna (not always reliable -it does not mention it ever being the Criterion) states it was demolished 1929, when Woolworths was built
Click to expand...
mike on another thread im sure it says the spread eagle closed in 1940 but i will have to check that

lyn
 
In 1905 it was referred to as the Criterion, Spiceal Street- see cutting below. An interesting snippet about stage scenery (Source : British Newspaper Archive)

The Spread Eagle was in "Spicer" Street in 1750 - Spicer Street was an earlier name for Spiceal Street.
 

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There was a Criterion Hotel nearby in Edgbaston Street just before WW1. Could this be the same place as the former Spread Eagle but with an entrance via Edgbaston Street ? Or is it a completely different building ?
 
If the Spread Eagle/Criterion was located on the later Woolworths site, it would have been demolished at the latest by February 1924 (if not before). I've added a thread about the Woolworths Spiceal Street building to a thread here which illustrates this finding

Early Woolworths shops in Birmingham

An unusual angle in this 1930s photo, showing Woolworths directly ahead. There’s a dispensing Chemist on the corner (right): Boots possibly ? Viv.
birminghamhistory.co.uk birminghamhistory.co.uk
 
viv see post 1 on below thread...not sure if the info is correct but it does say that the spread eagle closed down in 1944

lyn

Lost Birmingham Pubs

This is a list of pubs around the Bull Ring and the licencees. GRAND TURQ, 34 Bell Street corner of Lease Lane. Manager;T.F. Fletcher 1924 T.P. Collier. 1944 BLACK SWAN HOTEL, 5, Bromsgrove Street. Manager; Mrs E.B. Evans.1924 N.F. McCoy. 1944 AUSTRALIAN BAR. 48 Bromsgrove Street. Not...
birminghamhistory.co.uk birminghamhistory.co.uk
 
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It's a strange list Lyn. Virtually all of them have dates of 1924 and 1944 on that list. That can't be right. Maybe it was a survey ? I think in the case of the Spread Eagle, the date of 1924 is the correct one. The 1924 newspaper cutting I've posted in the Woolworths thread talks about demolition work at that date.
 
The Spread Eagle is not listed in any Kellys from 1932,, but is listed in the 1934 edition (Woolworths is not listed in the 1934 edition)
 
That's odd. The Woolworths extension was being built in 1924 according to this report. Maybe it took a long time to complete. And/or maybe the old Spread Eagle/Criterion building wasnt demolished at the time of the extension - but that doesn't make sense to me if the SE was on the Woolworths site. Very confused !
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The Woolworrth Museum site shows the extended Spiceal Street Woolworths as being completed by 1933. It would therefore be impossible for the Spiceal Street Spread Eagle/Criterion building to exist beyond 1933.

I wondered if the old Spread Eagle Concert Hall building at the rear of the Inn/Hotel remained when the SE/Criterion was demolished and the Woolworths exension was built. (At one time the old concert hall was rented out as a warehouse. One of the SE landlords couldn't get a renewed licence because he'd made some modifications without the licensing committee's approval) Perhaps that old associated building explains later references popping up.
 
During the course of this thread I've written up some notes from newspaper reports about the Spread Eagle. It might be of use to someone. The inn existed in 1742, and my guess is it went further back than that as it appears to be well-established by the 1740s. Over time it's been known as the Spread Eagle Inn, Spread Eagle Tavern, Spread Eagle Hotel, Spread Eagle Vaults, Peters, and possibly the Criterion.

It's unclear what happened to its former concert hall/warehouse/stores/stabling at the rear when the Woolworths store extension was built over the site. Was all that area at the rear (Spread Eagle Yard ?) also demolished at this time ? Maybe that will come to light in time


Spread Eagle inn timeline
1742 soap on sale at the Spread Eagle Spiceal Street
1743 John Sorrell who'd kept the Spread Eagle Spiceal Street moved to the Angel Coleshill (St?) SE was a good business to be let
1746 - 1749 Thomas Everitt keeper

1801 a warehouse at the Spread Eagle was robbed
1808 fish machine wagon leaves the Spread Eagle every Tuesday and Saturday
1816 James Gray kept it
1837 Henry Bliss, premises much altered with all conveniences for commercial gentlemen. Market dinners every Tuesday
1845 Spread Eagle to let : an old established inn with a spirit shop, warehousing, large yard, stabling for 100 horses. The last 9 years in the hands of Mr H Bliss
1853 concert hall referred to as Midland Counties Concert Hall
1854 sale of the Spread Eagle Midland Counties Concert Hall (1200 persons), spirit shop, dwelling house, large yard, and stabling. Mr H Hudson retiring due to ill health
1858 fire at Spread Eagle Concert Hall

1861 application for music and dancing license for the Concert Hall hours 7-12 by George Dutton
1863 licence application for Spread Eagle 60ft Concert hall, licence needed every night of week, 7-11 pm. Has no licence to sell spirits and beer (licence belonged to Spread Eagle Inn)
1863 George Dutton applying for music only licence for 18 ft × 32ft room (liquor shop), every night 7-11pm except Sunday
1865 a sixth share offered in the Spread Eagle Inn, liquor shop, the Concert hall, sheds and yards (with gated rear entrance)
1866 Spread Eagle Concert Hall stage, scenery, grand panorama for sale
1866 Licence transfer from George Walter Dutton to Alfred Peters
1866 Spread Eagle Liquor Vaults contents auction including all house and brewing contents. Alfred Peters now taken over SE and was rebuilding premises

1872 Mr Wivel applied for 6 day licence to sell 5-6am on Thursday, Friday and Saturday to persons attending/ with business in the markets
1874 transfer of licence from Frederick Wiwel to Thomas Hanson
1874 Spread Eagle Vaults - known as "Peters" - bought by Granger (named after Alfred Peters (?) licensee 1866)
1878 auction of Spread Eagle Liquor Vault as Mr Granger giving up business. Includes previous large sums invested in rebuilding. Sale includes stabling in the yard for 24 horses, vaults, warehouse and stores. Stores are rented out

1882 Geoge Newman, barman at Spread Eagle violently assaulted by Edwin Jones, commercial traveller
1886 John Hannah licensee of the Spread Eagle Vaults
1888 auction of effects and lease of the profitable Spread Eagle Vaults - the late John Hannah, keeper for the last 9 years
1887 concert hall at the back of the Spread Eagle Tavern now referred to as the Midland Counties Concert Hall
1889 Frederick Benson refused music and dancing licence as he'd previously altered premises without permission

1901 building at the rear of the Spread Eagle ( formerly used as the Concert Hall) now belongs to Field and Bennett. Now occupied by Southall Brothers and Barclay
1904 the address of 14 Spiceal Street references the Criterion and Fred Hyde (was he in the theatre/broadcasting business?)
1924 Spread Eagle manager listed as Samuel Rich
1924 demolition work reported on the site
 
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