Background
Our pub was built around 1846 by Joe Sidebottom. He was one of three brothers who founded and developed the Broadbottom mills and lived across the road from the pub in the Harewood Lodge until his death in 1849. The building started life as a beer house under its original name, the Griffin Inn. One of the early landlords was Thomas Reid, who died in 1859 probably followed by Josiah Denman, reported to be the Landlord in 1860.
By the late 1880’s the Griffin was owned by the Chesters Brewing Company, with their signage evident in a picture of Market Street from the 1900’s. It is reported to have been the meeting place of the Blooming Lodge of Oddfellows and home to the local branch of the Royal British Region.
Through mergers and acquisitions the pub passed to Whitbread around 1967.
In the 1990s, the pub was run by a Canadian (can anyone remember his name?). His main food offering was amazing barbecue chicken wings!
Sources: “Broadbottom 1795-1975” by Mollie Sayer and “Wright Cooper’s Broadbottom” by Malcolm Butcher, both published by Broadbottom Community Assoc, other info from old friends the web.
Around 2001 the pub passed to Enterprise Inns who gave the pub a makeover and renamed it the Harwood Arms. It was sold to the current owners, the Wild family in 2013, their dedicated approach has rejuvenated the Harewood, beginning first with the removal of Sports TVs and then gradually transforming the décor and ambience to create the success it is today.
The question is: Can we succeed as a community to raise the funds to buy the pub, and write the next chapter in the story? We’re certainly going to give it our best go!!
If anyone has anything to add or correct, please do let us know. It’d be great to get a list of landlords and dates, and some more pics from past and present.
The Green Mill Brewery began its life in Rochdale in 2007, initially in the Queensway Snooker Club, and from 2010 in the Cask & Feathers, before the move to the basement of the Harewood in 2013.