The Royal Oak, Walkern Road

The Royal Oak was first mentioned in 1752.

The parish Vestry meetings were sometimes held here when the landlord was William Bennett. At this time, it was a wooden building standing much closer to the present day Walkern Road. It was demolished after a fire on 29th November, 1890 and rebuilt by Greene King in 1899 as the present day brick building. George Gatwood had the pub for nine years from 1900, until December, 1909 when Joseph Briars took over. 34 years later he retired from pub life.

This is a picture of the Royal Oak in 1932. Rose Briars is standing outside with two of her eight children: Millie, aged 2  (later of Millie’s Tuck Shop) and Basil, 5.