This is a newspaper article written by S.P.B.Mais, following a visit to some Oxfordshire village inns. The Elephant and Castle in Bridge Street; The Malt Shovel in Lavender Square; The Horse and Groom in Black Bourton (now The Vines) and The Plough at Alvescot are all mentioned. The writer says by far the most interesting character was 85 year-old Mr. John Kent of The Malt Shovel, Lavender Square, Bampton. At that time Mr Kent had been landlord for 34 years and had an abundance of fascinating stories to tell.

Newspaper article in Oxford mail mentioning local pubs. In Bampton, The Malt Shovel and Elephant and Castle; The Strickland Arms in Ducklington and The Horse and Jockey in Black Bourton, The Plough at Alvescot, and the Lamb at Filkins. John Kent, 85, was the Landlord of the Malt Shovel for 34 years, he originally came from Suffolk and was a gamekeeper in Lincolnshire and Bradwell Grove. The Malt Shovel was in Lavender Square and there is an inscription on the chimney showing the date of 1659. It used to be a Malt house. The Elephant and Castle in Bridge Street was about 350 years old and had a thatched roof at this time (1957), the landlord was Clarence Dalton, ex RAF, who had another pub in London, The Prince of Orange at Greenwich. In 1957, the Landlord of the Talbot Hotel, an old coaching inn in Market Square, was a Mr Flood, and the inn itself was about 500 years old. The New Inn (now Morris Clown) was also a coaching Inn and the landlord was W.F. Wagner. The landlord of the Horse and Jockey at Black Bourton was Mr Alan George Burgess and the landlord of The Plough at Alvescot was Mr Leonard Killick, and the landlord of the Lamb at Filkins was Cyril Clements.

Mr & Mrs Harry Sollis owned and ran the Swan Inn in Buckland road for many years. In the last few years, Mrs Sollis ran it as a widow. Emmie Papworth, nee Bishop was a relative and adored Mrs Sollis; Emmie is seen with her in two of these pictures and her son Tom is with them in one of them. Mrs Sollis eventually sold The Swan by auction October 1st 1964; it was bought by Tim Tomlins.

1950 Morris dancing in front of the Elephant and Castle on Bridge Street

Bampton Morris dancers c1924/5 outside the Elephant & Castle.

The sign over the pub door says Posting House, Horses, Carriages, Brakes. Personal attention given, Albert Townsend. The 3rd and 4th lines are hard to read which is a pity but it looks like 'For Hire All Trains Met On The Shortest Notice.

On 23rd September 1935 the Townsend family moved across the road to Castle View and made a farm of it having much more room to fatten more pigs.

Horse Shoe, 1910. Two ladies and a dog in the doorway

Picture postcard across the east end of the Market Square showing part of the Town Hall, The Drapers, The Talbot and Hythe House. It is addressed to Mrs W. J. Johnson at Syringa Cottage in Aston post dated September 28th 1905

Five handwritten Indenture Legal Documents relating to the sales and mortgages of the Swan Inn and adjoining land dating from 1823 to 1831, Also mentions Turnpike Gate and Kents Weir Gate.
Named in the documents are
John Wright
Rachel Bradshaw Clinch
Mary Vines
William Walcroft
Edward Fisher
Thomas Breakspeare
Edward Fisher
John Roberts
William Hanbury
Henry Whitaker
James Ward
Jonathan Arnatt

Arthur Hill and Mr Fred Lomas crossing a very quiet High Street. Arthur Hill had the little antique shop, now the hairdresssers, next to The Horseshoe. It was stacked to the ceiling , with just a small path through to view the many antiques. Arthur would often refuse to sell items, particularly if they were in the window. Fred Lomas, in his later years, was the guard at The Midland Bank, opposite Arthur's shop. Duttons at this time was a greengrocers, delicatessen and pharmacy.

This post card shows a picture of Jean and Peter Elliot who owned and ran the Talbot Inn in the Market Square on the left and Maurice and Rene Wiggins who ran the Horse Shoe Inn seen on the right.