1 & 1A Cornmarket
Left: No. 1 Cornmarket in about 1915, with 1A at the far left
Below: No. 1A Cornmarket in 2009
No. 1/1A Cornmarket was the Jolly Farmers pub until the 1880s
In 1903 the part of the old pub building that stood on this corner of Cornmarket was demolished to make way for the final section of the Lloyd’s Bank building (most of which faces the High Street).
Nos. 1 and 1A remained separate shops at ground-floor level, however, until Lloyds Bank expanded into them in the late 1920s.
Neither of these numbers now exists, as the bank has completely taken over both premises.
Below: 1 and 1A Cornmarket in 2009
On entering Cornmarket from Carfax, the Jolly Farmers was immediately on the right at No. 1. By 1872 it was renamed the Original Jolly Farmers (presumably to distinguish it from the newer pub of that name in Paradise Street). It was a small pub, not much more than a beerhouse: the landlords were not subject to a university wine licence, and the censuses show no live-in servants.
In 1887 the Jolly Farmers pub “died out as an acting house for want of trade”, as there were “13 other such houses” in Cornmarket. It first became a jeweller’s shop and then a stationer’s, but the licence continued to be renewed for two years. Jackson’s Oxford Journal records a dispute over the licence, which was eventually resolved in October 1890, when it was transferred to 1 Donnington Road.
In the censuses
1841
No. 1: Edward Sutton (40), whose main trade was that of a tailor, lived here at the time of the 1841 census with William (15), Matilda (10), and Mary Sutton (5). Also in the house was Fanny Midwinter (5), probably his niece (see 1851 below), which implies that he was the brother-in-law of the previous landlord, Edward Midwinter.
1851
Edward Sutton (54), now described as “tailor & publican”, is still here with his wife Matilda (54), daughters Elizabeth (24), Matilda (21) and Mary (17), and his son Edward (19), a tailor. Also in the household are Sutton’s nephew Thomas Sutton (21), who is a a tailor; his niece Mary A. Midwinter (25), who is a dressmaker; a draper’s assistant William Brown (25); and four other lodgers.
1861
Miss Mary Burton (55) is now the Publican living at this pub, along with two lodgers: a tailor and a college servant.
1881
No. 1: Thomas Bing (40, born in Canterbury) is the Publican, living at this pub with his wife Oxford-born wife Sarah (25) and daughter Clara (3).
No. 1A: Abraham Zacharias (62), born in Prussia, is a silversmith here, living above the shop with his London-born wife Leah (64) and his children Rosa (31), Joel (29), Esther (28), and Theresa (26). Joel was a china and glass dealer at 27 Cornmarket at this time.
Occupants of 1 and 1A Cornmarket in directories etc. |
||
Date |
No. 1A (left) | No. 1 (right) |
Until 1880s |
Jolly Farmers Landlords (not subject to 19C university wine licence): |
|
1890–1902 |
A. C. Vivian, Stationer |
Smith & Co (“The Creamery”) |
1903 |
Rebuilt 1903 |
|
1911 |
H. Samuel, Jeweller |
|
1921 |
Clifford (Thomas) Son & Cole Ltd |
|
1928 onwards |
Not listed: part of Lloyds Bank in the High |
|