Chelsea Pub history index
At 9 Royal Hospital row in 1843; then at 9 Queens road east in 1851 census until at least 1869. It is also named the Duke of York in the 1841 census.
Historical London public houses, Taverns, Inns, Beer Houses and Hotels.
Residents at this address.
1805/James Bailey, the Duke of York, Royal Hospital row, Chelsea/../../Holdens Directory
May 1808/William Murray, the Duke of York, Royal Hospital Row, Chelsea, victualler/../../Sun Fire Insurance records at the LMA
1823-24/John Forsyth, Duke of York, Royal Hospital row/../../Pigots Directory
1826/Alex McPherson, Duke of York, Royal Hospital Row/../../Inns & Taverns of London
Bell's Life in London and Sporting Chronicle 29 November 1835 :
Hood the fighting tailor, and Bryan, the Westminster star, will decide their match for £5 a side on Thursday next. All the 'nointed ones of Chelsea and Tothill street will assemble at the Duke of York, Jews row, Chelsea, on Tuesday evening, to know the 'where'.
1836/Thomas Gilbert, Duke of York, 9 Royal Hospital row, Chelsea/../../Pigots Directory
1838/Simon Mills, Duke of York, Royal Hospital row/../../Robsons Directory
1839/Jeremiah Pearce, Duke of York, 9 Royal Hospital Row/../../Pigots Directory
1841/Thomas Colbourne/Victualler/37/../Census
1841/Sarah Colbourne/../34/../Census
Benjamin Suggett was my 4 x great grandfather. *
Weekly Chronicle (London) - Saturday 23 July 1842 - Extracted from The London Gazette *
On Wednesday morning, about nine o'clock, Benjamin Suggett (sic), aged 72, one of the inmates of Chelsea hospital, was passing the Duke of York, Royal Hospital-row, when he dropped in an apparently lifeless state. He was taken into the above public-house, where the landlord, Mr Colbourne, rendered every assistance, and sent for two medical men. Mr Louth and Mr Walker attended, but in spite of their exertions the old man died in about half an hour. The deceased was an old guardsman, and had served throughout the Peninsular campaign.
Benjamin Suggitt was born about 1775 in a small village in the Vale of Pickering in Yorkshire.
He joined the Duke of York’s Regiment and in around 1802 he was billeted in Winchester where he met and married his wife, Jane Smith.
Shortly afterwards the regiment moved to London and were garrisoned variously at Wellington Barracks in Westminster, at Chelsea Barracks and at the Tower of London. The regiment formed part of the 3rd Foot Guards who provided a permanent force in London. They were on duty at the Royal Palaces and as a permanent garrison at the Tower of London; they were constantly required for ceremonial duties and other activities. Prisoners were escorted by Foot Guards and at any trial where popular disturbance was feared there was a detachment of them at the court.
Some sections of the 3rd Foot Guards were recorded fighting under Sir Arthur Wellesley (later The Duke of Wellington) in the Peninsula Wars (1808-1814) and the newspaper report suggests he was one of them. His family life suggests otherwise. Three of his seven children were conceived during the term of the war in December 1808, December 1810 and November 1813. Around 1810 the family moved into Arrow Alley in the Portsoken Ward of the City of London. Benjamin was presumed to have been part of the Tower of London garrison at this time. The date of his retirement is estimated at around 1820 when he became a Chelsea Pensioner. It is likely he then took up employment as a hatter.
In the late 1830s Benjamin moved from The City to Franklin’s Row in Chelsea opposite the gates of the Royal Hospital. This is where he was living with Jane and one of their grandchildren in 1841. This lends credence to his being an outpatient, as suggested by the RHC, rather than a resident of the hospital which was for single or widowed men. Whether Benjamin wore the traditional red uniform of the Chelsea Pensioner is to be established but the newspaper article infers that he did.
Benjamin died as a pensioner aged 65. The cause of death was recorded as "Natural by the visitation of God". He was buried aged 65 under what is now the car park of the RCH and his last residence is recorded as the 9th Ward of the Royal Hospital, Chelsea. Interestingly the death certificate records his place of death as “Duke of York’s Hospital Room” rather than “Duke of York public house”. Perhaps he was taken across the road from the pub to the hospital where life was declared extinct.
1842/J Pearce, Duke of York, Royal Hospital Row, Chelsea/../../Robsons Directory
1843/Jeremiah Pearce/../../../Post Office Directory
1846/E Mitcherson, Duke of York,9 Royal Hospital row/../../Post Office Directory
1851/John Hill/Licensed Victualler, Widow/33/Mere,
Wiltshire/Census
1851/Elizabeth Hill/Sister, Barmaid/28/Somerset/Census
1851/George Hill/Brother, Grocers Assistant/25/Somerset/Census
1851/Ann Benson/House Servant/16/Chelsea, Middlesex/Census
John Hill is at the Princess of Wales,
Charles street by the 1861 census
1856/Richard Heptonstall/../../../Post Office Directory
9 Queens road east
1861/Richard Heptonstall/Licensed Victualler/38/Hilliam, Yorkshire/Census
1861/Elizabeth Heptonstall/Wife/39/Wincanton, Somerset/Census
1861/Richard Heptonstall/Son/14/London, Middlesex/Census
1861/Thomas Henri Heptonstall/Son/13/London, Middlesex/Census
1861/Arthur John Heptonstall/Son/1/Chelsea, Middlesex/Census
1861/George Moor/House Servant/16/Mere, Wiltshire/Census
1861/Henry Butter/Nephew, Butcher/16/London, Middlesex/Census
1861/Annie Kennedy/Childrens Maid/18/Chelsea, Middlesex/Census
1860/Richard Heptonstall/../../../Post Office Directory
1865/Richard Heptonstall/../../../Post Office Directory
1869/Henry Medcalf/../../../Post Office Directory
1874/H Medcalf/../../../Licensed Victualler and Hotelier Directory
1881/Edwin Allen/Licensed Victualler/45/Shoreditch, Middlesex/Census
1881/Grace Allen/Wife/36/Lambeth, Surrey/Census
1881/Emily Allen/Daughter/19/Southwark, Surrey/Census
1881/Edwin Alen/Son/17/Southwark, Surrey/Census
1882/James Haker/../../../Post Office Directory
1884/Francis Blewitt/../../../Post Office Directory
* Provided by Ken Ripper
** Provided By Stephen Harris
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