Crown, Birkenhead

Large Victorian 3 storey corner pub with a glazed stone frontage and mosaic 'Crown Hotel' floor in the left hand door. Has a layout similar to the Stork and the Lion, but much plainer. The bare boarded vault and servery are separated from the other parts by an L-shaped corridor. The bar on the corner is dominated by a spectacular mirrored bar-back with carved pillars and decorative capitals, with a central pediment with carved wood decoration and clock; what makes it particularly special is a glazed gold-coloured fascia, starting on the left-hand wall and running along the bar-back, with decoration and elaborate lettering which reads: 'D.HIGSON. WINE MERCHANT & SPIRIT MERCHANT.' (on the return) and 'BREWER. CHEAPSIDE BREWERY. LIVERPOOL' on the bar back fitting. Higsons occupied the Cheapside site until 1912. Having a fitting under which customers can walk is a very rare feature in a pub. There is also a massive original bar counter with match strikers on the bar front and an original water tap on the left end of the bar counter top. There is some original fixed seating on the front wall side. The corner entrance is now blocked up and there was a small snug on the right now combined with the public bar - look for the markings on the counter to indicate where the partition was situated until removed in the 1970s.

To the left of the servery is large room (now used for pool) which has the kind of wide opening that characterises other Merseyside pubs (e.g. Primrose, Liscard; Guest House, Southport; and Volunteer Canteen, Waterloo). This room retains original Victorian benches all round with carved bench ends, bell pushes in a wood panel above but the brick and part marble fireplace is more recent. The rear passage has a small square hatch, and off the corridor at the back is a separate snug with original Victorian benches all round. Pub is getting a bit scruffy and would benefit from some attention.