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Date of photo: c1890	Picture source: Leon Lemberg
The Rolts Arms was situated at 26 Scotgate. This pub was known as the Masons Arms until 1847 and is now in residential use.
The pub was in the North-West corner of Corporation Buildings, fronting on to Scotgate. It was part of a tenement development built by the Corporation in 1794, as with quite a number of Stamford buildings it incorporated a Mansard roof, designed to add further usable interior space. Alec Clifton Taylor remarked in his TV programme on Stamford that it has probably the largest percentage of buildings with Mansard roofs in the country. The bay window was added in the early 19th century. It may originally have been known as the Mason’s Arms, the landlord until his death in March 1815, it was taken over by Ann Goodwin who ran it until the 1840s when Robert Middleton took over. It became the Rolt’s Arms in 1847 as a consequence of the local Liberal Party’s campaign in the local elections of that year, it was named after John Rolt, a barrister, who was standing as the Liberal Candidate. The Liberal Party were fielding a candidate for this constituency in this election due to the dominance of the Cecil family from Burghley House who stood unopposed in many previous elections and had caused considerable anger in the local population due to their opposition to the railway coming through the town, or rather their land. Rolt lost the election which the Mercury attributed to the fact that many people did not vote for him because at this time the voting was not in secret, the secret ballot was not introduced until 1872, and in previous elections there was a history of Burghley tenants being evicted for voting against their landlords interests. The landlord from 1850 to at least 1856 was Josiah Tyler and he was selling Phillips Ales, from 1868 to 1881 the landlord was William Phillips, he died in 1881 and the tenancy was taken on by his wife Susannah, she was still the tenant in 1885. In the 1889 Kelly’s Directory it is listed as being run by Henry Bools a beer retailer. The landlord in 1901 was John Brown. It’s uncertain when it actually closed but the brewery at the time of closure was All Saints Brewery Company of Leicester.
Leon Lemberg (September 2023)
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Other Photos
Date of photo: 2018	Picture source: Leon Lemberg