The Royal Oak - Woburn - Bed's - Pictorial Pub Signs on Waymarking.com

London Road, Woburn
The Royal Oak was previously known as the Red Cow. It is a Grade II Listed building and the Department of Environment date it to the 17th century with later reworkings. The first mention of it in a document held by Bedfordshire & Luton Archives & Records Service is 1774. At that time the public house| was a copyhold| property, that is held from the Manor of Woburn Abbotts, rather than freehold. on 27 October Henry Land was admitted tenant. He was the son of Ann (née Shefford), late wife of Rev.Henry Land of Tiverton [Devon], who had been the previous tenant. Land sold the pub to Woburn solicitor Richard Ambrose Reddall in 1796 and he held it until his death, when his wife Ann succeeded. She leased the place to George Higgins, the Bedford brewer, in 1862. By 1868 the Red Cow had changed its name to the Royal Oak and passed to Henry and Charlotte Land on the death of Ann Reddall - the entry reads "messuage formerly called the Red Cow, now called the Royal Oak…a cottage, then lately divided into two tenements in occupation of George Kemp in Cock End; a small piece of ground at the rear of the premises firstly described [i.e. Royal Oak] with barn converted into a brewhouse now or lately in occupation of Edward Harnell".

Charlotte Land died in 1870 and her half of the property went to John Land. Henry died in 1873 and his half of the property was devised to his nephew William John Land. William Henry died in 1875 and was succeeded by his executors. John Land died in 1879 and was succeeded by Jane Wickett who sold her half to William Henry Land's executors who enfranchised (i.e. converted it from copyhold to freehold) in 1888. The public house was then sold to Higgins & Sons in 1893 who were taken over by Wells & Winch in 1931 who merged with Greene King in 1961, adopting the Greene King name in 1963.

In 1927 the public house was valued for rates under the 1925 Valuation Act. Its rent was £42/18/10 per annum, comparatively high compared to other pubs in the district, though rent included a small field which accounted for £10 of the total. It was, the valuer noted an "Old fashioned place. Small bars. Long narrow house". It consisted of a small bar with two pulls, bar parlour, small taproom, kitchen and scullery downstairs with two cellars beneath and four bedrooms upstairs. Outside were a large barn with loft over, a woodshed and two closets. Trade consisted of six dozen half pint and six dozen pint bottles and two barrels of beer and up to one gallon of spirits per fortnight. Gas was supplied throughout the ground floor and mains water was laid on.


The Royal Oak has suffered two fires in its thatched roof in recent years, one in March 1985 and the other, more seriously in January 2006 . The Royal Oak remains a Greene King public house.



List of Sources Held at Bedfordshire & Luton Archives & Records Service:

Date of first pub on site: 1774c Name of Artist: Not listed Date of current sign: Not listed

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