The Norton Arms - Norton

      (Researched and written by Mervyn Edwards 2003)
For much of the 19th century, the Norton Arms was known as the Cock, and it appears under this name in White's Directory of 1834, at which time it was kept by John Cope. The lodge of Oddfellows of the Manchester Unity were one of the local societies whose gatherings were held at the Cock Inn. In June, 1846 it was reported that the lodge's members met at the public house before proceeding to Norton church to hear a sermon by the Rev. R. Lloyd. Afterwards, they returned to their lodge room at the Cock Inn, where a dinner was accompanied by several speeches. White's Directory (1851) lists Enoch Baddeley as the licensee of the Cock.

The inn served a largely working class community, with many inhabitants being involved in the local mining industry. Unfortunately, there were often scenes of violence at the Cock Inn in connection with the mining fraternity. For instance, Thomas Holdcroft, a miner residing at Nettlebank, took exception to police constable Bradshaw's visit to the inn in 1864. He began to curse the officer and was therefore ordered out by the landlord. However, he became violent and struck the officer several times. He was later fined £5 and costs, or in default, two months imprisonment. In 1867, Joseph Unwin, a butcher by profession, was present at the inn. He was attacked, allegedly without the least reason, by Adam Clewes, a collier and returned convict, who “took his stick from him, threw him down, and kicked him”. Surgeon Shaw reported that Unwin had broken a rib in two places and was much exhausted.

In some instances, the weakness of licensees may have triggered unpleasant incidents. For instance, in 1873, landlord Samuel Tomkinson was charged with permitting drunkenness in the Cock. Moses Mayer, Joseph Chadwick and Adam Clews (presumably the aforesaid) were all found to be intoxicated by police constable Cope, and two of them were supplied with drink in his presence. The case was ultimately dismissed, on account of the officer's credibility having been damaged by his having been reported to the Chief Constable five times and “removed to various parts of the county in consequence”. However, there was no question of the licensee's culpability in respect of an incident which occurred at the pub in 1878. On one particular Saturday morning, landlord Thomas Holdcroft had returned to the inn, and the company of his wife. Evidently the worse for drink, he pestered her for some money. Police constable Boulton arrived at the Cock on the Saturday afternoon and “on entering he saw prisoner hit his wife with his fist, and then follow her into the kitchen, where he again struck her and kicked her. Prisoner next followed his wife into the bar, and witness went between them to prevent a further assault. Witness prevented prisoner going upstairs, when prisoner turned round and struck him violently in the face”. Holdcroft was fined 10s. and costs for being drunk on his own premises, 20s. for assaulting the police officer, and 20s. for assaulting his wife”.

In 1874, a coroner's inquest took place at the Cock Inn, touching the death of William Biggerton, who, in digging the foundation for the new rectory at Norton, was stuck a fatal blow by a portion of earth falling on him. The crushed corpse was retrieved ten minutes later. In 1877, Thomas Clarke was fined 5s. and costs for having left his horse and cart out on the public highway in Norton with no-one in charge. A police constable testified that the defendant was drinking in the Cock Inn.

The name-change from the Cock to the Norton Arms took place around 1880. Kelly's Directory (1880) lists the Norton Arms as being kept by J. Kent, though Keates' Directory (1882) gives us the Cock Inn kept by James Kent. At the time of the coroner's inquest in connection with the Whitfield Colliery disaster (1881) the inn was referred to as the Norton Arms, as indeed it is in trade directories from 1884 onwards. The colliery explosion on February 7th accounted for the lives of 24 men and boys and sent shock waves around the community.

The inn is also referred to as the Norton Arms in October 1880, when Lord Norton himself opened a coffee club room within the building itself. He “spoke of the spread of coffee and cocoa houses in the country as a good sign, and said there was no reason why a man who preferred a cup of coffee to a glass of beer should not have every facility for getting it. At the same time he had no wish to restrain persons of different tastes from enjoying their glass of beer or spiritsome liquors, and while he admired those who abandoned the use of intoxicants solely for example's sake, he was not prepared to do the same. He remembered, during one of his election contests in North Staffordshire, some one coming to him and offering him a hundred votes if he would promise to advocate total abstinence in the House. He said, ‘I really cannot give up a glass of sherry...’ He thought there was a more rational way of promoting temperance than abolishing drink”.

Lord Norton (Charles Bowyer Adderley) died in 1905 and the pub (Lot 27) and neighbouring land was put up for sale in 1906. It was described as “An Old Established, Well-known and Substantially Built Fully-Licensed and Free Hotel” which had been for many years past “in the occupation of Mrs. Elizabeth Adams as annual tenant”. Particulars describe the numerous rooms inside the building and refer to the freehold dwelling house and shop (”the Norton-in-the-Moors Post Office) adjoining.