Mason's Arms

The Mason's Arms, or Bridge Inn, as it was also known was one of several alehouses that sprung up in the town following the enactment of the Beerhouse Act of 1833. Early reference to the beerhouse as the Mason's Arms was made on the 1837 Rate Books. The property appears to have been owned by the Williams family, William Williams being a stone mason by trade, hence the name, although you'll see it also bore the name, Bridge Inn during the 1860s.

Bridge End, as the name suggests was located at the bottom of Church Street, immediately to the south of Clun Bridge. These days, this is all part of Church Street, but during the mid-1800s it was occasionally known as both St George's Street and Bridge End, as the census records below attest. The Inn was at 2-4 Bridge Street.

Annotated 1901 OS Map

Listed landlords at the beerhouse were John Davies (-1859), Richard Edwards (1861-69) and William Williams (1870-).

1841 Census John Davies

Pigot's 1842 Directory - John Davies

Church Street was home to four beer houses around this time, the landlords of the Crown Inn (Richard Meyrick) and Six Bells Inn (Evan Davies) listed above John Davies on the census above...the other was the Two Chances located just below the Six Bells.

1851 Census John Davies

1851 History, Gazetteer & Directory of Shropshire 1851 - John Davies

Slater's Directory of Glos, Herefs, Mon, Shrops, & Wales, 1859 Inns
- John Davies

Two years after the directory published above the landlord had changed to a Richard Edwards, a local man, but by the time of the 1871 census he was no longer living on Church Street, and it transpires that  by 1869 he'd allowed the licence to lapse, continuing in his main trade as a butcher.

1861 Census Richard Edwards

1870 Kelly's Directory - William Williams

The 1870 directory from Kelly's above confirms William Williams, who was a Stone Mason by trade had also registered himself as a beer retailer, living near the Castle Inn on what was then known as Market Street. He had been there since the late 1850s, supplementing his income as a beer retailer, but this was at another premises, possible Bryn House and the below press release in 1870 confirms his later move to the Bridge Inn.

Eddowess Shrewsbury Journal 13 September 1871 - William Williams

1871 Census - William Williams

By the time of the 1880 directory no trace can be found of William plying his trade as a beer seller, and he does not appear on the 1881 census in the town. 

Slater's Directory of N & S Wales etc., 1880

A list of the beer retailers tends to suggest, by 1880 the licence had again lapsed and this saw the end of the Bridge Inn as a beerhouse. Of the ones listed above, Thomas Edmonds ran the Royal George Ship Inn; Charles Edwards ran the Tile Tavern and William Luther ran the Talbot (Maltings).