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Pub Preservation
by Mark Hoile
North London readers will no doubt recognise the accompanying picture of a well-known landmark in Harringay – The Salisbury Hotel. The pub has come to the attention of the local branch over the last few months, following a quick and unexpected closure in late summer. The branch had an immediate concern over the future of the pub, since little or no information was available regarding potential plans, for the Grade II * listed building.
The Salisbury was built in 1899 by a North London builder, John Cathles Hill. He was not a publican or brewer but along with its sister pub the 'Queens Hotel' in Crouch End which was featured in an earlier edition of the Full Pint, the Salisbury was intended to serve the local neighbourhood which had been partly developed by Hill.
The pub itself is truly remarkable with a palatial interior rich in interesting features. Three bar rooms are set around a large central servery, constructed from superb joinery and unusually with a stone trough at the base. Complemented by plaster and tiling work, some in Art Nouveau style, glass and mirrors by Cakebread Robey also feature heavily. The large corner-sited building also contains a restaurant and concert room on the first floor, now disused. The top floor contains many small bedrooms with distinctive period features. Outside, ornate ironwork, marble columns, and elaborately tiled mosaic floors give an indication of the interior.
Information received to date indicates that the current work will be completed in time for a grand re-opening at Christmas. The new owners have made extensive efforts to ensure that original features are restored when possible, to reinstate the pub's former glory. The work includes the demolition of the toilets situated at the front of the building, which were a subsequent alteration and the restoration of the original floor tiles, and ceiling.
The reopening of the Salisbury Hotel in Green lanes will be a welcome addition to the local area, and if the promised works are fully completed the building will be truly outstanding.
Mark Hoile,
North London Branch Pub Preservation Officer
Reproduced from the Full Pint, Issue 18.
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