The Elephant & Castle - Old Amersham. Bucks - Pictorial Pub Signs on Waymarking.com

Possible origin of this sign is the coat of arms of the Worshipful Company of Cutlers who of course used ivory for their knife handles. Another suggestion arises from the marriage of Edward I to Eleanor of Castile. Her title in Spanish was "La Infanta de Castile", hence Elephant and Castle.


An interesting note about the Elephant & Castle has been supplied by Phillip Troth of Amersham "the Elephant & Castle used to have a spring rising in the cellar - it helped to keep the cellar cool in the days when it was part of Whitbread Wethered and served beers brewed in Marlow.

The castle here is actually a howdah on the back of the elephant, in India a seat traditionally used by hunters. The public house called the Elephant and Castle was converted about 1760 from a smithy that had had the same name and sign.
This had connections with the Cutlers’ Company, a London craft guild founded in the 13th century which represented workers who made knives, scissors, surgical instruments and the like. The guild used the same emblem. The link here is the Indian elephant ivory used for knife handles, in which the Cutlers’ Company dealt.

In days of old, pub signs were necessary because very few people could read. In the late 1300s, Richard II passed a law that all ale houses should display signs so that the ale connor would be able to recognize them instantly and carry out his inspection. Incidentally, Shakespear's father was an ale connor.

history ;
Elephant and Castle (97 High Street)

1728 Amersham Rectory Quit Rental
Ed Child sen or Jos Nash 1s 9 1/2d
Wid Todd & Mrs Tanner 1s 9 1/2d

1729 Amersham Rectory Court Rolls

..... Hunphreys who held freely of the lord of the manor two messuages or tenements now in three tenements in the possession or occupation of Joseph Nash ....Todd widow and Henry Hobbs at 3s 7d rent has alienated the same to Thomas Todd

1735 Amersham Rectory Quit Rental
Thos Todd Humphreys: Jos Nash John Todd & Rich Wid Todd & Wid Tanner 3s 7d
1743 Amersham Rectory Quit Rental
Rich Todd: Joseph Nash John Todd & Rich Todd 3s 7d
1761 Amersham Rectory Quit Rental
Mary Parsons: Jos Nash Jos Climpson & Eliz Todd 3s 7d
1771 Amersham Rectory Quit Rental
Mary Parsons: Jos Nash Wm Gates & Eliz Todd 3s 7d
1783 Land Tax Mrs Mary Parsons: James Line 8s 0d
1785 Amersham Rectory Quit Rental
Mary Parsons: James Line Wm Berry & Thos Humphreys 3s 7d
1792 Directory Priest, Francis grocer
Priest Francis cordwainer
1800 Land Tax William Statham: Francis Priest 8s 0d
1810 Amersham Rectory Quit Rental
Wm Spratley late Wm Statham part of 3s 7d: himself late Francis Priest jun 1s 0d
John Statham late ditto: William Berry Daniel Hatch late John Salter & Benj Hoare late Wm Clarke 2s 7d
1830 Beerhouse licence
1831 Land Tax William Spratley: self 8s 0d
1847 Directory Spratley, William beer retailer & butcher, High street
1869 Directory, Dumbarton, Henry butcher high Street
1872 Owner: Wethered Occ: Henry Dumbarton
1883 Directory, Dumbarton, Henry butcher high Street
1903 Directory Dumbarton, William Henry butcher High Street and Childs Farm Woodrow
2000 Still a pub

Name of Artist: unknown Date of first pub on site: 1830 granted a license for beer Date of current sign: Not listed

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