Blue Pig, 33 Gosford Street
The boar was the heraldic emblem of Richard III but I can't say why this one is blue. It could also be a reference to the old custom of serving a boar's head at feasts, especially Christmas. The pub was often referred to as the BLUE BOAR.
In 1756 two soldiers were billeted here. In 1774 there was an auction at the house of Thomas Wilday, the Blue Boar, Gosford Street. In the 1860s Blondin, the great tightrope walker visited Coventry and walked from the top of the Sydenham Palace to the fields behind the Blue Pig. By 1907 it was closed together with the Sun Dial, Lord Street, in consideration of a new license for the Albany Hotel, Albany Road. Note the longevity of Thomas Gardner, licensee for at least 36 years and the fact that he was also a maltster. | |||
LICENSEES:1774 Thomas Wilday 1822 - 1823 Robert Riley 1835 - 1872 Thomas Gardner also a maltster 1872 - 1874 Jane Gardner (wife of Thomas) 1879 George William Gardner 1881 Edwin Benford 1886 - 1893 William Attenborough 1894 - 1905 Joseph Haycock | |||
 Street plan of 1851 | |||