96 High Street, Stourbridge, West Midlands, DY8 1EQ
The inn on this site dates from the early 19th century. Thomas Biven is recorded as landlord of the Chequers Inn in the local trade directories of 1829, 1830 and 1835. The name ‘Chequers’ is an ancient one, said to have been used in Roman times. It may also derive from the ‘chequers’ (or small brown berries) from the ‘wild service tree’ which were used to flavour beer, before the introduction of hops.
Text about the history of Stourbridge Canal.
The text reads: The Stourbridge Canal, from Stourton Junction to the Dudley No.1 Canal, provided an essential line of access from the south west and the Severn to the Birmingham Canal Navigations. It was completed in 1779 and brought coal and other supplies to a glass industry that had thrived around the Stourbridge area since the arrival of the Huguenots. A glass-making cone, one of only a handful now left in the world, lies alongside the flight of 16 locks leading to Brierley Hill.
A photograph of Stourbridge Public Library, 1965.
A photograph of Stourbridge, High Street, 1931.
Photographs of High Street, 1904 and Red Hill, 1905.
External photograph of the building – main entrance.
If you have information on the history of this pub, then we’d like you to share it with us. Please e-mail all information to: pubhistories@jdwetherspoon.co.uk