Trent Bridge Inn facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Trent Bridge Inn |
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| General information | |
| Location | 2 Radcliffe Road |
| Town or city | West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire |
| Country | England |
| Coordinates | 52°56′14″N 1°08′03″W / 52.9372°N 1.13408°W |
The Trent Bridge Inn is a famous pub in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. It's well-known because the Trent Bridge Cricket Ground started in a field right behind it. This land was also the first home for the Notts County Football Club. Today, the pub is run by Wetherspoons.
History of the Trent Bridge Inn
The Trent Bridge Inn was around even before the famous cricket ground existed. It was located just outside the city of Nottingham. This made it a good place for travelers to stay overnight before going into the city the next morning. The Musters family, who owned a lot of land in West Bridgford, owned the inn. At that time, West Bridgford didn't have any pubs, so the Trent Bridge Inn was a special place.
The inn played a big part in creating the cricket ground. This new ground was set up to compete with another one owned by the city council. The first cricket match here was organized in 1838 by William Clarke. He was the captain of the Nottinghamshire cricket team. William Clarke had married Mary Chapman, who was the landlady of the Trent Bridge Inn. They arranged for the land behind the inn to be used for cricket. Back then, it was hard to build outside the city until a law changed in 1845. The Clarkes cleared the land and put up a fence. Cricket matches were then held here instead of the old city location. Players could even stay at the inn during their games.
At first, the cricket matches didn't attract many people. William Clarke tried different ideas to bring in more visitors. In 1845, Clarke decided to move to London. There, he started the All England Eleven, which became a famous touring cricket team across the country. John Chapman, who was Clarke's stepson, took over managing the pub and the cricket ground for a while. However, he and the next manager didn't have much success.
In 1861, a new event called the Easter Colts Trials began. Twenty-two young players were invited to play against the main team. This match was organized by John Johnson, a local lawyer. Since 1859, he had helped make the cricket club strong again. He set up a committee and built the first brick pavilion. This new match attracted many people who wanted to see the best batters and bowlers. Out of the first 22 players, seven went on to play professional cricket for Nottinghamshire.
Richard Daft was a well-known cricketer at Trent Bridge. He even ran the inn for a time because he was a partner in the Radcliffe Brewery. He is remembered for being the club captain for ten years.
In 1883, the land nearby was also used by the Notts County Football Club. They built a football ground on the eastern side. However, by 1895, they moved grounds many times until they found their current home in 1910. After the First World War, the Musters family sold the Inn and the cricket ground to the cricket club. The club only owned the inn for a short time. They sold it to a brewery for more money than they had paid. But the inn was given the right to always supply food to the cricket ground.
Later, the pub was bought by Wetherspoons. They spent a lot of money, about 3 million pounds, to make it new again. It reopened on May 24, 2011, and now has four bars.
Notable Features
On the outside of the building, there is a special mark called a bench mark. This mark helps record the pub's exact location for surveying purposes.
