Some history of The Fisherman's Rest (aka Railway Inn, Fisherman's Arms, and lately Fishermans Rest ) A small, old, proper, English Pub at Mill Lane, Titchfield, Nr. Catisfield, Hampshire

Postcard c. xxxx

Some history of

(aka Railway Inn, Fisherman's Arms, and lately Fishermans Rest )

A small, old, proper, English Pub at
Mill Lane, Titchfield, Nr. Catisfield, Hampshire

V2 last update 15/3/2026 dg

W.I.P.: Comments, Corrections & Further Info welcomed.

Click on an image to see bigger version-

Pre
1870

Located just opposite the entrance to the remains of Titchfield Abbey (Place House) , and just west of the ancient Stoney Bridge, there once was a Tannery (shown in orange on map right). It is not known if this was an offshoot on the tannery in Titchfirld village or a competitor.
On this site was built, sometime in the late 1860's?, The Fisherman's Rest.
Not known who built it. Nor whether it was built as a block of 4 cottages, or as a pub plus one cottage (as in photo in postcard above)
First licencee not clear, tho definitely operational 1868 under the Fisherman's Rest name- see press cutting .

June 1868: First press mention of the Fisherman's (an attempted murder ! )

1870s

The Fisherman's definitely called that in 1871 as listed as a place in the 1871 Census pre-amble.
Strangely there doesn't seem to be a census record listing for inhabitants of the Fisherman's

The 'Dog Kennels' was the name for the next building (called Kennel Houses on the map above. Now known as Place House Cottage.
Nos. 1 - 4 were there. So Nos 5 &6 could have been the Fisherman's building.

[ John West is listed in the census as living in Wickham] with wife Harriet and family ]

Sarah West was married to naval pensioner. Her aledged assailannt was acquited at the Winter Assizes

1871 census pre-amble

the Fisherman's

1870 Attack on Sarah West near " the the Fisherman's Rest publichouse"

1870 Sarah West case acquittal

1878 Disorderly conduct at the Fisherman's

1880s

The Fareham and Netley Railway Act 1865 proposed a line south of Titchfield which never progressed. . But in 1882 the LSWR promoted a line from Netley to Fareham taking a more northerly route than the earlier scheme, and this went ahead.
The first sod was cut early in April 1886, so it was from that date that navvies came to the area. The line opened to the public on 2 September 1889.

Sometime between July and November 1886 John West changed the name of the pub to The Railway Inn

JohnWest's wife Harriet died at the pub Aug 1885, he later married (1887) Eliz Bounds.

1881 census for the Fisherman's.

1881 census - the Fisherman's Rest cottage

1886 July Tragedy near the Fisherman's Rest

1886 Nov Charles Gooding, a navvy, charged with assaulting Jobn West, the landlord of the Railway Inn, and being drunk, and refusing to quit

the Railway Inn and the Abbey (photo acually c. 1910)

close-up

1890s

1891 census shows John , West, Eliz and, 3s (10,8,2),1D Occ Beer Keeper. No mention of the cottage.

May 1890 Man dies from effects after fall from cart. He had been in the Railway Inn about quarter to ten in the evening

Sep 1890 John West, the keeper of the Railway Inn, Titchfield, was summoned for permitting drunkenness in his house the 26th ult., and John Moody was summoned for being drunk

1898 Post Office Directory lists John West as Beer Retailer

1891 census John West the Beer keeper at The Railway Inn

the Fisherman's

1900s

1901 census lists Railway Cottage and Railway Inn - John West Inn Keeper.

1904 The Otter Hounds meet near the Fisherman's

1906 July Change of Licencee of Railway Inn to Hubert Ernest Williams. ( John West moved to Warsash and became Gamekeeper.. He died 1917 aged 72. )

1906 Oct - case over the damaged Minature belonging to landlord

1901 census

Change of Landlord

Theft from the till

1910s

1912 Nov - Licence transferred to James Hayes

1913 or 16 Name reverted to The Fisherman's Rest. Renamed by J R Fielder ?

1917 Oct - Licence transfered from the executor of the late Alfred James Hayes to Albert Alfred Smith.
Pub owned by Messrs John Fielder & Son Ltd of The Titchfield Brewery (founded in 1744, the date on many of their labels, and acquired by the Fielder family in 1852).

1911 census - The Railway Inn

False Traveller

1919 - Too many pubs in Titchfield?

Tragedy - girl drowns while father in the Fisherman's

1920s

census: Albert Alfred Smith - Farm labourer and Licenced Victualler, with wife Rose,, 2s age 54

and at F Rest Cottage Charles Mead,w, s, d a tanner (full circle from the original business on the site)

1921 census for the Fisherman's

Fraud on the Fisherman's landlord

1930s

text

Lighting your way to the Fisherman's

the Fisherman's wins darts leahue

1940s

text

the Fisherman's

1950s

the Fisherman's in the Darts League

1958 - a "Full" licence

1960s

text

the Fisherman's

1970s

!976: The building was 'Listed' as Grade II on the National Heritage List for England. -- although the record unfortunately (and does still) calls it "Fishermans ARMS" !!