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Market Square
1 Market Place
  
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From the Kentish Post or Canterbury News-Letter, February 20 to 23,
1751. Kindly sent from Alec Hasenson.
Notice by an oculist that he may be found at the Antwerp Tavern, near
the Market Place in Dover.
An oculist, by the way, is a physician who treats diseases of the
eyes; an ophthalmologist.
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From the Kentish Gazette, December 17-20, 1777. Article kindly sent from
Alec Hasenson.
Notice: Elizabeth White, widow of John White, acquaints the public that
she continues to keep on the business of the Antwerp, Dover.
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Information taken from John Bavington Jones' book "A Perambulation of
the Town, Port and Fortress of Dover", 1906. (Reprint in The South Kent
Gazette, June 13th, 1979.
The old City of Antwerp Hotel, on the north side of the
Market Square, which was demolished as part of the Cannon
Street widening scheme in 1898.
The Antwerp Hotel, at the Cannon street corner, was much used by the
old Dover Corporation as a place where they refreshed themselves and did
business, and the Court of Lodemanage was held there at the time of the
Duke of Wellington's Wardenship. These tenements having all, as far as
in known, been devoted to trade or domestic purposes, nothing of note is
left on record respecting them, except the interesting fact that on the
steps of Igglesden's original shop David Copperfield was represented as
sitting to rest when weary with searching for his aunt, Betsey Trotwood.
Those steps, and the old frontage disappeared in the transformation of "Igglesden's
Corner." The entire aspect of the northem side of the Square was changed
by the building of Lloyds Bank in 1905. In removing the old buildings
there was found in a heap a large quantity of human bones, supposed to
have been collected from tombs in St. Peter's Church, and they were
re-buried, with an appropriate religious service, on the western side of
St. Martin's Churchyard.
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From the Dover Express and East Kent News 11th October 1963.
THIS VIEW, from the
Market Square, shows Cannon Street as it was before
its widening in 1898.
A horse and cart and Seven pedestrians... compare it with the Cannon
Street of today.
The City of Antwerp Hotel (now the offices of Messrs. Worsfold and
Hayward) and the Commercial Hotel have long since disappeared.
It was hereabouts that a
chalk receptacle containing a human head was discovered
during excavations.
It was thought to be the head of William de la Pole, the Duke of
Suffolk, who was banished in 1450 because of his mismanagement of the
war in France.
The people were so enraged at this lenient sentence that
they intercepted the Duke's ship when it was passing through the Straits
and beheaded him.
An ancient chronicle gives this vivid account of the affair:
"And the Friday of the 7th day of May, 1450, he took his ship at Ipswich
and sailed forth into the high sea where another ship called the
Nicholas of the Tower lay wait for him and took him.
"And they on board granted him the space of a day and night to shrive
himself and make himself ready to God.
"And then a knave of
Ireland smote off his head on the side of the boat
and the body, with the head, was cast to the land at Dover."
The
old Antwerp Hotel, says Mr. J. Bavington-Jones in his book "Dover," was
"much used by the old Dover Corporation as a place where they
refreshed themselves and did business." |
This was a free-house but was supplied by Gardner. As the church of St.
Peter disappeared from the Market Square, this hotel materialised on the
site. That could have been at any time after 1600, although some parts of
the church still remained in 1611. We do know that the hotel was well
established by March 1799 and from an article that appeared in the Kentish
Gazette, December 1777, gives mention to the death of the licensee, John
White. In 1823 the address was given as Market Place.
In the 1847 Bagshaw's Directory, the establishment was given as
Commercial and Posting.
The stables covered the ground where Castle Street now enters the Square
and they were, purchased by the town, for £3,100 in July 1837. The opening
into Castle Street had already been made in March of that year whilst
negotiations proceeded. Other stables must have taken their place but I have
no knowledge where. They were certainly rebuilt in 1881 and supervised by
Williams of 18 Church Street. In 1901 they show at 61 Castle Street, managed
by Laslett and an Antwerp Garage was demolished in Castle Street in October
1964. I do not know of any association.
In 1882, coaches ran to the hotel from Denton every Wednesday and
Saturday, returning the same day. Coaches from Sibertswold ran only on
Saturdays to this address.
The widening of Cannon Street in 1892-3, called for the removal of this
property and it disappeared in 1893, the licence passing to the town.
Compensation of £7,046.4s.5d. was made to the owner and £1,791.7s.9d. to the
lessee. The tenants were offered and accepted £1,600, and Mr. Spicer
received £1,845.
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The early Saxon monumental slab found in 1810. Broken in two it had
been used as the foundation for a pillar of St. Peter's Church.
It was found in the year 1810, when excavations were being made for a
cellar at the old Antwerp Hotel which stood on the Cannon Street corner.
At the same time the foundations of the church of St. Peter, which
formerly stood on that spot, were disclosed. The base of a pillar was
found to be resting on two large fragments of stone, one on the other,
and when they were removed it was found that the two pieces
corresponded, and when placed together formed an entire monumental slab,
having a cross on it, and a Runic inscription on the cross. The fact of
this memorial stone having been found broken in two pieces, and placed
merely as two pieces of building stone under a pillar of St. Peter's
Church proved that the memorial existed before the church.
Information taken from John Bavington Jones "Perambulator of Dover"
1906.
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Above shows a watercolour by Fred Kennett of the Market Square in
about 1895. The City of Antwerp Hotel is shown on the left next to what
was Worsfolds and Haywards the estate agents and auctioneer for many
years. Next to that is the narrow frontage of the "Garrick's Head". |
LICENSEE LIST
WHITE John Up to December 1777 dec
WHITE Elizabeth December 1777+
LUCKETT 1805
CHITTENDEN David 1811
CHITTENDEN Mrs D. 1819
HUNTLEY William Slaughter 1823-39
  
(?? HUNTLEY
)
HUNTLEY Mrs Susannah 1838?-60 end
 
STOKES John 1860-82
 
FOX William Henry 1885-91+
 
SPICER 1893 end
From the Pigot's Directory 1823
From Batchellor's New Dover Guide 1828
From the Pigot's Directory 1828-9
From the Pigot's Directory 1832-33-34
From the Pigot's Directory 1839
From the Pigot's Directory 1840
From Bagshaw Directory 1847
From Melville's Directory 1858
From the Post Office Directory 1862
From the Post Office Directory 1874
From the Post Office Directory 1882
From Pikes Dover Blue Book 1889
From the Post Office Directory 1891
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