Raising the roof at The Anchor
11:15am Tuesday 3rd June 2008
THE mention of The Anchor inn at the Top of the Town in a recent news report has led to some enquiries as to its location.
This 17th century building was erected around an old cottage in London Street, almost opposite the Deane's Almshouses, and was originally called The Chequers. It is believed to have been built in 1605, a few years after a disastrous fire swept through the street.
The original roof of the medieval cottage was left with its oak beams and another roof was fitted above it. These two roofs remained until 1985, when renovations to the building revealed this strange sight and, when the new roof was fitted over these, the builders were able to say that the place had three roofs!
But going back to its early days, the building was designed as a home for a small family, while behind it there was built a stable for the owner's horse.
When it was enlarged and became the Chequers tavern, the stable was also made larger. This was confirmed by the older wood when the stables were demolished in 1966.
The name of Chequers came from the heraldic emblem of the Warenne family of Normandy, in France. Later on it was given to a road between New Road and Goat Lane, in Basingstoke.
After the Battle of Trafalgar, in 1805, the inn was renamed The Anchor. By then it was being dominated by the construction of the Red Lion Hotel from a building that was originally just two storeys.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, The Anchor gained more business as a result of the arrival of the stagecoaches that travelled through the town between London and the West Country, and to Southampton and back.
London Street was the main road through Basingstoke and it was here that the shops and banks were built with the aim of acquiring business.
This trend increased when the motor car arrived in the early 20th century. On reaching Basingstoke, drivers were only too glad to have a drink and The Anchor was one of the first inns they came to.
In those motoring days, the White Hart, in London Road, was often full, so The Anchor was the next one.
Over the years, there were many proprietors at The Anchor. One of the longest-serving landlords was Alfred Hockley, who took over in 1929 and retired from the position in June 1965. He died in the following December, after working in the inn for 36 years.
In his last few years at The Anchor he was to see London Street made into a one-way street, and in September 1962, during decoration work on the inn, a painter set the outer woodwork alight with a blow-lamp. Seeing smoke coming from a crack in the window sill, he went into the bar but could not find where it was coming from, so he called the fire brigade. When they arrived, they cut away the woodwork inside the bar and found a wall-strut smouldering. Water was sprayed onto the section of wall, which partly flooded the bar floor.
In 1976, London Street was pedestrianised, which took all the traffic away from the area, but The Anchor was still able to conduct business with its regular customers.
Within a few years, though, the emergence of new bars along the Top of the Town and the new shopping centre extending down to the lower part of the town saw many popular shops and stores close, and the brewers Whitbread Wessex Company decided to close The Anchor on September 3, 1983.
In 1985, the main part of the building was demolished, but the façade was retained and it was during this work that the two roofs were found.
In the following years the building was converted into offices and became Anchor Court.
In 2004, a scheme was submitted to convert the rear of the new property into 19 apartments, which would be on two floors.
In recent years, like other parts of Basingstoke, London Street has changed so much, with new shops and offices replacing those that had been there for decades.
As one elderly local man said recently: "If it wasn't for the Red Lion Hotel, the Deane's Almshouses and the London Street church, I would have thought that I was in a different town!"