| Schooner Hotel | |
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| General information | |
| Location | 8 Northumberland Street, Alnmouth, Northumberland, England |
| Coordinates | 55°23′14″N 1°36′44″W / 55.38722°N 1.61222°W / 55.38722; -1.61222 |
| Inaugurated | 17th century |
| Website | |
Official website  | |
The Schooner Hotel & Bar is a Grade II listed 17th century coaching inn and hotel located at 8 Northumberland Street in the coastal village of Alnmouth, Northumberland, England. The hotel lies on the main High Street and is recognizable by its whitewashed walls and black painted shutters. In the 19th century the 32-room hotel had a considerable reputation with a clientele of people such as Charles Dickens, John Wesley, Basil Rathbone, and King George III of Great Britain.
The Schooner has been in decline for a number of years under the current owners, leading to unprecedented legal action by the Trading Standards department of the local county council.
Architecture
The Schooner Hotel became a Grade II listed building on 31 December 1969. It is a whitewashed building with black shutters, originally built in the 17th century. It was extended in the early 19th century and again towards the end of the 19th century. It is built from tooled squared stone, three storeys high (excluding the cellar), and has 5 + 3 bays. The older section on the left has half-glazed doors with from the 20th century with an old segmental-headed arch at right end. The roof is made from Welsh slate roof, with 2 chimney stacks rebuilt in yellow brick. In the 2010s the rear portion of the hotel was renovated and turned into six separate properties; 3 apartments and 3 townhouses. The land behind the hotel that used to contain the Alnmouth Squash Courts is scheduled for further development into 7 houses. The first request for 8 houses was rejected due to insufficient information about contaminated land and archaeology. The second application was approved.
Haunting
Sixty individual apparitions and more than 3,000 sightings have been recorded, making it (according to The Poltergeist Society of Great Britain) the most haunted hotel in the country.
References
- Woodworth, David; Hobbs, Guy (January 2006). Summer Jobs Britain: Including Vacation Traineeships. Vacation Work. p. 252. ISBN 978-1-85458-344-4.
- Watson, Godfrey (1976). Northumberland villages. Hale. ISBN 978-0-7091-5548-5.
- Burke, John (1986). AA 250 tours of Britain: maps and easy-to-follow route instructions for day and weekend drives through England, Wales and Scotland, with descriptions of the natural wonders and man-made attractions to be seen on the way. Automobile Association (Great Britain), Reader's Digest Association, Drive Publications. ISBN 978-0-903356-35-0.
- "Schooner Inn". Haunted Hotel Guide. Retrieved 4 July 2011.
- https://www.northumberlandgazette.co.uk/news/politics/council/court-action-taken-against-northumberland-hotel-following-customer-complaints-3249721
- ^ "The Schooner Hotel, Almouth". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
- Daniel, Brian (15 April 2011). "Former Alnwick councillor in plea for more time on Schooner Hotel plans". journallive. Retrieved 5 January 2017.
- "Homes proposed for the centre of Northumberland village". www.northumberlandgazette.co.uk. Retrieved 3 November 2017.
- "Second bid for new homes in Northumberland village". Retrieved 24 October 2018.
- "Narrow approval for homes in centre of Northumberland village". Retrieved 24 October 2018.
- "Decision due on new homes in Northumberland coastal village". Retrieved 24 October 2018.
- Millar, Aaron (25 October 2014). "Hauntingly good hotels". Express.co.uk. Northern and Shell Media Publications. Retrieved 23 April 2015.
- "Spectral six-year-old made my blood run cold!". northumberlandgazette.co.uk. Retrieved 23 April 2015.
- "The Schooner Hotel, Alnmouth". Northumberland Gazette. 14 February 2008. Retrieved 4 July 2011.