Around 1800 cloth shearers known as croppers, suffered many job losses. Linked with Luddite history, the inn was a drinking place for many of these croppers from around the area.
A secret group known as the Luddites was formed to forcibly protest against the introduction of mechanisation that would replace the jobs of dozens of men.
The men would gather upstairs during the evenings after work to share information on mill owners who were planning to install machinery and thus plan their attacks and retaliation.
