Bedford
The Bridge Hotel

Places > Bedford > Hotels, Inns and Public Houses > The Bridge Hotel

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The Bridge Hotel in St Marys was originally the home of the Nash family of brewers. George Peregrine Nash was Mayor of Bedford in 1832 and his son William Joseph Nash was twice Mayor in the 1860s. 

In about 1890, a few years after the death W.J.Nash the house became the Bridge Hotel and a hall used for boxing and wrestling was built at the rear. In 1891 the large private garden between the house and the river was thrown open to the public as St. Marys Gardens.

In 1970 the name of the hotel was changed to the Anglers Inn although in 1976 the name was changed back to the Bridge Hotel. In January 1977 a fire gutted the hotel and the building was finally demolished in January 1980 to enlarge the site of Mander College of Further Education. 

Sources

• The Newspaper Cuttings Collection, Local Studies Library, Bedford Central Library

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The Bridge Hotel, Bedford by Bedfordshire Libraries, 2012

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Page last updated: 22nd January 2014