| Description | (1) Abraham Keymer the Younger of Commercial Street, Shoreditch, victualler
(2) Robert Entwistle of Limes Villa, Saint Thomas's Road, Hackney, victualler
For £3000 for the Tavern and plot of land on corner of Wheeler Street and Commercial Street.
Includes plan of building including internal wall structure, hand coloured. |
| AdminHistory | The Commercial Tavern in Spitalfields is a licensed premises built by Abraham Keymer (1795-1879) in 1865. The site in Commercial Street was leased to him in February 1865 by the Commissioner of Works for 80 years from Michelmas 1863 at a peppercorn rent for the first year, then at £50 p.a. (1). Its Victorian character is manifested in a round-edged building of white brick, with painted stucco dressings (2). It was declared a Grade 2 Listed Building on 27th September, 1973 (3).
As Keymer prepared to open the Commercial Tavern, he appealed, successfully, against the refusal of the Justices of The Tower Division to grant it a licence. The original application had been opposed on behalf of the Royal Cambridge Music Hall (4) which opened in 1864 at 136, Commercial Street, close to the Commercial Tavern at no. 142 (5). It was destroyed by fire in 1896. When it was rebuilt and reopened in 1897, it boasted eight entrances in Commercial Street.
Various sources record Keymer's career, including in the licensing trade. He is listed in the Post Office Directory (1866 and 1869) and census returns. He was a member of the Vestry of St. Matthew's, Bethnal Green, East Ward (6). He is mentioned in the local press when he transfers the licence of the Commercial Tavern to Thomas Hoare in 1873 (7).
Commercial Street evolved from c. mid-19th century. Its Spitalfields location once housed over seventy licensed premises, some older than Commercial Street itself, and many since demolished. In 2016, the freehold of the Commercial Tavern was sold to independent London-based pub and bar group Barworks in excess of £4.6m (8). The new owners manage an estate of similar outlets in the London area (9).
Sources of information:
1. '142, Commercial Street ' (british-history.ac.uk)
2. East London Beer and Pub Directory 1991 (pubwiki.co.uk)
3. 'The Commercial Public House, Tower Hamlets' (historicengland.org.uk)
4. 'Public House Licensing Appeals': p.2 in East London Observer, 20th May,1865 (BNA)5. 'The Royal Cambridge Music Hall' (arthurlloyd.co.uk)
6. Report of The Medical Officer of Health for Bethnal Green, year ending 25th March 1862 (wellcomelibrary.org)
7. 'Tower Hamlets Transfer of Licenses' : p.6 in East London Observer, 4th October 1873 (BNA)
8. 'Barworks Acquire The Commercial Tavern': Press Statement 31st March 2016 (fleurets.com.);
Fleuret's - London-based chartered surveyors specialising in the hospitality industry
9. barworks.com |