The History of The Grosvenor - researched by Vivien Boyes and Richard Carter MA

At the beginning of 1904, when The Grosvenor public house was being planned, the surrounding area was in the midst of an unprecedented change from a rural to an urban economy. The first houses had appeared in Grosvenor Road by 1881. Many of the early residents were carpenters, painters and plasterers born outside the area who were moving in to exploit the new building boom.

The freehold for the parcel of development land which included the south east of section of Grosvenor Road and much of Oakland Road belonged to two brothers, John and William Seward. In 1901, the Seward brothers granted The Royal Brewery in Brentford a 21 year lease on the

Grosvenor Stores on the corner of Oaklands Road and Grosvenor Road. The Royal Brewery in-turn granted a lease of “Land, Home, Shop and Stables” to J.J.Barry for 14 years from 25th March1901 at £50 per annum. The brewery, which had been founded in the 18th Century as the Red Lion Brewery, already operated a number of public houses and off-licences in the Brentford area and were keen to expand. The Grosvenor Stores was situated at the end of a parade of shops which included a butchers and a greengrocers and it appears to have operated as an off licence and general store.

The area experienced an even larger population leap between 1901 and 1911, by which time there were over 19,000 people living in Hanwell. The area surrounding the Grosvenor Stores was part of this rapid development. Although the Royal Brewery had been leasing the Grosvenor Stores for only three years, they saw an opportunity in this economic boom and began to discuss the conversion of their off license into a public house.

The negotiations, begun early in 1904, were complex. At the time, the Temperance movement in Britain was exerting strong pressure on licensing authorities to curb drunkenness by reducing the number of licensed premises. So, when the Royal Brewery were granted a provisional license for the Grosvenor on 3rd February 1904, it was granted on the condition that they surrendered the licenses on three existing premises.

Seen in this framework, The Grosvenor, with building costs of £1,500 for just one pub, was obviously a particularly significant project. So, while there is no note in the Royal Breweries archives of the architect for this conversion, it is possible that the renowned West London pub architect of this era, Thomas Nowell Parr, may have been responsible. He undertook a number of commissions for the Royal Brewery at that time. He was certainly the architect for The Forester public house in nearby Leighton Road W13, which was also built by the Royal Brewery and completed five years later.

On 30th June 1904, the brewery surrendered the lease that they held with William and John Seward on the Grosvenor Stores and signed a 99 year lease with them on the new public house at £100 per annum. The first landlord was Joseph. Born in Ipswich, Turner had moved to Hanwell by the time he was 13, his family living in a cottage on the gravel pit owned by the Seward family. His father, a carpenter, was perhaps attracted to the area by the work provided by the growing building boom. By 1881, Joseph too had entered the construction trade as a paper hanger before becoming landlord of the Three Feathers in Ealing High Street by 1901. He was still at the Grosvenor on the 1911 Census, living there with his wife and son and three live in staff, a barmaid, a cook and a potman.

More Recent & Noteworthy History

The pub’s more recent history needs further research but a few anecdotes have emerged.

Frank Davis was landlord of the Grosvenor for many years during the 1930’s. He was also the managing director of Brentford Football Club and the vice chairman of the Football Association.