George Inn (no longer exists)

The George Inn features strongly in the first century of the Quakers in Uxbridge. It was there that people met in the dangerous days when holding a meeting for worship might make you liable for heavy fines or to go to prison. It was owned by Quakers, which seems incongruous now, when so the Quakers are associated with abstinence or moderation in alcohol.

Uxbridge had a huge number of pubs in the 17th and 18th centuries, and was associated with milling and brewing.

In 1831 the Mirror published an engraving of the back of the George Inn, and said:
"The George Inn still remains, though it has been greatly diminished, A portion has been taken off either end in the man street, and converted into two good dwelling houses with shops; the one in the eastern end is now occupied by Mr Handy and that on the western by Mr Basset. The whole is still under one roof. The interior has been much altered. The panelled wainscotting and some old carving formerly to be seen in several rooms, is removed. This estate if the property of Samuel Salter, Esq of Rickmansworth, Herts. The house was considerably larger than now appears. There still remains, notwithstanding all the alterations that have been made, one spacious room which was formerly used for many years as a dissenting place of worship, and the county court is still held in it. Though the inn appears now but as a second-rate house, yet, a very slight inspection of the premises would show that they were able to afford ample accommodation to the Parliamentary commissioners. Here is at the present day stabling for upwards of sixty horses. Many of the rooms are turned into corn lofts, and the whole apearance is materially changed from what it must have been at the time of the treaty.

"It appear therefore, that at the Treaty House the parties met. The present George Inn was the place where the Parliamentary Commissioners sojourned; the abode of the King's Commissioners exists no longer as an Inn.

"We have extracted these particulars from a very respectable history of Uxbridge, published there a few years since. To the same source are we indebted for the original of the first engraving. The second is from a sketch by a zealous correspondent at Windsor. We visited Uxbridge a few weeks since, and found all accommodations of the George Inn to the letter. There is, however, a sad lack of carved and panelled work in the premises. The large room before spoken of as the rendezvous of the County Court is also appropriated to still more social assemblages. There scores of jovial souls meet ever and anon (for Uxbridge, like every other country-town, has its choice spirits) to quaff away their cares, and blow adrift life's troubles in a cloud of smoke.

"We ungratefully forget whether Uxbridge is famed for ale; we know it is for malt, but then the River Colne and the Grand Junction Canal are hard by. The obliging person who showed us the large room said something too about Harmonic Meetings: it is to be hoped the Parliamentary Commissioners were as harmonious there as are the occasional occupants in our times."
(from The Mirror of Literature, Amusement and Instruction, Saturday Novermber 5, 1831.)

By the time that the London and Middlesex Archaeological Society visited Uxbridge in 1861, the George was still standing but ad been much altered. George Eves wrote in his paper for the Society that: "Uxbridge has always been noted for the number of its inns: Camden says in his time this town was "full of inns". There are still twenty-one left...." He continued: "The George Inn still remains but much altered. The outside staircase in the yard was removed about three years back: I have a print of it lent me by Mr Hutson, shewing the yard, stairs and entrance from the street; it is taken from a sketch made by Sir W. Ross, the artist, who was a native of this town; his father lived in a house that adjoined the church...."