Bell, Waltham St Lawrence

This fine, timbered building originated as a house around 1400. It passed into the hands of the village in 1608 under the bequest of Ralph Newbery, a local boy who made (very) good as a publisher in London. It is said to have become a pub in 1723 and revenues from it still benefit the village.

The best room is the carpeted lounge (note the interwar entrance doorway) on the right with exposed arched roof trusses, a fielded panel bar front (possibly 1930s) and shelving, some from same period and some more from only around 1990. The rear wall has some Jacobean fielded panelling with a lozenge pattern. Old wood surround and 1930s brick fireplace with a three bay carved Jacobean panelled mantelpiece. Just inside the room on the left there is a short bench attached to very old dado panelling and more on the front wall and around to the fireplace on the right. The baffles near the fireplace appear loose so possibly imported?

There is one of a number of very old oak doors at rear and beyond is a part brick part tiled passage with a stble door entry to the servery for staff.

Left of this is the main bar with a bare wood floor where the bar counter front looks to be an interwar. There is a small piece of the inter-war bar back but the top section has shelving dating from around 1990 and fridges have replaced most of the lower part. There is old wood surround and brick fireplace with ancient fireback and a log fire.. The bay window has exposed brick and some modern benches.

Front door leads to a passage and on the right is a ‘Bar’ door, but this is no longer in operation as entrance to the left hand bar is from a widish gap at the end of the passage. On the left of the passage is a latch door – open it and up a step you will find a very small, carpeted room with just one large table ready for diners. The rear wall is of very old timbers and includes two cupboards in the upper part.

The corridor leads to a plain bare wood floor room at the rear, which looks as though it is a relatively new addition to the public areas with a post-war brick fireplace and a glass topped well: here you can see a copy of the deeds.