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Obed Arms pub outing, early 1900s

I am not sure about the date of this photograph but I think is around 1905-15. My Grandfather, Albert Spencer Wickham, b. 1880, is in the front row standing fourth from right, between the man with the banjo and the first man sitting down. The poster in the centre window is advertising the Obed Arms, Slate Club and Friends Annual Outing. So was this the day of the outing?

Do you recognise anyone here?
Does anyone recognise anyone else in the photo? I have been trying to read the cap tally of the naval rating and can only hazard a guess that it might be HMS Canada, which would date the photo after 1914 to go with the medal, which looking at his age would be WW1. He also has one good conduct stripe, denoting at least 4 years service.

Do you know anything about the pub?
We note with great interest, the man in the light suit sitting and his very large pipe bowl. What on earth did he smoke? My father, now just turned 93, was born in 1913 in Dinapore Street which is where the family were living. Sadly both pub and street are no longer. The photo was taken by Stanley Mann of 27 York Place, Brighton.  It would be really wonderful to get some more information about this photograph – can anyone help me?

Obed Arms pub outing
From the private collection of David Wickham

Comments about this page

  • I was born in Dinapore Steret in 1942. I think at either number 1 or 2, it was on the lower side coming in from Richmond Street and my mum’s family also lived for a long time at number 14. When the street was damaged by the bombing, we then moved to Sussex Terrace where we were bombed out again. There were 3 pubs in Dinapore Street, one both ends and one in the middle, but that one closed down and was used as a doss house (my mum’s words, not mine). When the houses were bombed, they found one old lady sitting on a toilet, nude, in the middle of the road, but I think she died shortly after. There were quite a few casualties in that raid. Mum said they were trying to bomb the railway station.

    By Patrick Collins (Catswhiskas) (25/11/2006)
  • There was a run of correspondence in the B&H Leader earlier this year around this pub. It was in Albion Hill and was listed in local directories as a beershop. I think it survived until the 1950’s.

    By Geoffrey Mead (27/11/2006)
  • According to my mum Winnie’s old diary, the other pubs in Dinapore Street were The Gun Tavern in the middle of the street, run by two old ladies until it closed.  The other was The Live and Let Live on the Richmond Street end. I should imagine opposite was Breed’s fish and chip shop. Both pubs were always full she wrote, even though the locals were strapped for cash, they could always find a penny or so for a pint or two. Sounds familiar?

    By Patrick Collins(catswhiskas) (27/11/2006)
  • The Live and Let Live was a beer house only. The landlord, who l remember as Fred, owned a few properties in the area. The best thing was when he got to know you and he would get the real stuff from under the counter – better than light and lime. I remember it well.

    By Leslie Dean (15/01/2007)
  • At some sage members of my family were landlords of the live and let live, I don’t know to much about them thought.

    By Patrick Kite (18/09/2007)
  • I lived at 24 Dinapore Street, also known as the Gun Tavern, when it was a house when I was born in 1947 for about 12 years with my Mum, Dad, sister Carol and brothers Pat, Harry and Malcolm.  Then we moved to Whitehawk.

    By Roy Sargeant (29/01/2008)
  • By the looks of the buttonholes of all the men in the photograph, the outing was held on Oakapple Day!

    By Roy Grant (12/02/2008)
  • I would like to know if anybody has any old photos of Dinapore Street taken from Albion Hill end?

    By Malcolm Sargeant (22/02/2009)
  • We have a photo of an outing from the Obed Arms which has my great-great grandfather Richard Harris in it – I’m not sure if it is the same photo but will dig it out in case they were on the same trip.

    By Sandra Mills (27/07/2013)
  • The ‘Live & Let Live’ pub was run by my grandparents, Fred and Beatrice Hatton until it closed in the 1960s when it was demolished. It only ever had a beer licence but as others have remarked my grandfather used to have spirits ‘under the counter’. In the bar was a picture of the customers before going off on a pub outing just like that above. The public bar end of the pub had bench settles and a dart board and in the saloon bar end there were tables and chairs a cribbage board, shove ha’penny board and an open fire. A door at this end of the pub led straight into their living room and just inside was a piano which my grandfather used to play and sing to entertain the customers. He did own a few properties in the area including the house we lived in 39 Dinapore Street.

    By Ian Lamb (20/07/2014)
  • Ian, do you have a copy of the picture?  I would love to see it, other people too, I bet.  I remember the pub well.  My family were customers - I was too young to drink in there but spent many a happy time playing on “the railings”. 

    Regards

    By Suzie S (21/07/2014)

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