Nothing sticks in the memory quite like old pubs we used to visit but which are now long gone.
It could be because it was where you had your first alcoholic drink, because of the characters you met there, or a particular landlord or landlady. Maybe it was where you first met your future partner, or had some particularly memorable nights. Whatever the reason, the nostalgic memories of good times come flooding back at the mention of these evocative pub names from the past.
We asked ECHO readers to nominate their favourite pubs from the past, and received many hundreds of replies. All these vanished watering holes bring back memories of when there was a pub on virtually every corner, and when - for many people - they were the main place where they spent their leisure time. Here are just a selection:
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The Eagle & Child, Page Moss
The East Prescot Road pub closed in the mid-1990s, after a major disturbance and three arson attacks. Its notorious local reputation made it the butt of much Scouse humour. Sharon Wilson Parkinson said: "I heard someone say they used to have sawdust on the floor to mop up the blood," while John Sharkey said: "I always remember the old joke about the lion who escaped from the safari park. He was found badly mauled in the Eagle and Child car park."
In March 1996, police surrounded the pub after an arrest and the recovery of a gun on nearby waste ground. They were pelted with eggs by a crowd of around 200 people.
Five months later, the pub was targeted by arsonists three times in a week - all but destroying it. A McDonalds restaurant now stands on the site.
The Bow and Arrow, Page Moss
This pub was on the corner of Yew Tree Lane and Princess Drive. It closed in 2008 and later became Jumbo Chinese restaurant.
Martine Bradley said: "I met my kids' dad in Bow & Arrow, wouldn’t say it was my best move but I got two amazing kids out of it."
The Wellington, Dingle
Prince Charles famously enjoyed half a Guinness at this pub on Mill Street, Dingle after re-opening The Florrie nearby in January 2013.
Dick Jennings, Dingle
Another of the lost pubs in Dingle, this one was on the corner of Hill Street and Mill Street.
The Griffin, Bank Hall
You would have found the Griffin pub on Derby Road/Bank Hall Street, Bootle. Jennie Wilson said: "The Griffin at the bottom of Bank Hall on a Friday night was a brilliant night or the Sandhills."
Non Pareil
There were many votes for this unusually named pub in Summerseat/Marshall Place in Vauxhall .
The Sandon Lion
The Dock Road/Regent Road area has lost many a pub over the years, such as this one.
The Belle Vue
The Belle Vue is another old Wavertree Road watering hole.
The Farmers Arms
Also known as the Ponderosa, the pub was on Park Road in Dingle and closed in 2005. It was one of the famous pubs of Toxteth featured in historian John Harrison's The Lost Pubs of Liverpool 8 DVD.
Sharon Jennings said: "The Royal Oak, Corrins, Black George's, The Farmers, The Jolly, The Knob Hill to name a few, all on our near Park Road Dingle. You didn't even have to go to town..."
The High Park
Sadly many of Dingle's most fondly remembered pubs - all on our near Park Road - have now closed.
The Legs of Man
The Legs of Man was a popular pub on the corner of Lime Street and London Road, next to the Empire Theatre.
In its heyday, it was a regular haunt of Empire actors, theatregoers and lawyers working at Liverpool’s main courts at St George’s Hall.
Despite fierce opposition the pub was demolished in 1999 to make way for an extension to the Empire.
Coopers Emporium
Part of Kingston House, on the corner of The Strand and James Street, the pub was demolished in 2010.
Penny Farthing
The old Penny Farthing pub, close to St George's Hall and Lime Street station, was once an unmistakable sight on a key gateway in the city centre. Lee Hall said of it: "I have heard so many stories about that place it should have a plaque there."
By 2016, the old Penny Farthing
had been left a blank canvasfor the redevelopment by the Royal Court.
By 2017, the pub got a new lease of life as a restaurant, Courtyard Bar & Kitchen. After being completely renovated, the old pub became completely unrecognisable.
The Moonstone
The Moonstone was one of a number of pubs situated in St John's precinct in the city centre - others were The Sportsman and The Star & Garter.
Kirklands
When Kirklands opened on Hardman Street in 1975, it heralded a new era for Liverpool's night scene, quickly establishing itself as the place to be for a night out in the city.
The bar continued to run in the 1990s, but closed its doors for good in 1999, bringing to an end an era for Liverpool's clubland that still retains fond memories for many.
It was re-opened in March 2004 as The Fly in the Loaf.
The Mulliner
The Mulliner, on Smithdown Road, was once part of the famous Smithdown Ten pub crawl and a favourite with students.
It was put up for sale in 2013 and later demolished.
The Royal Hotel
Another long-lost Smithdown Road pub, this building was turned into student flats.
Berkley Arms
This pub was on Upper Stanhope Street and closed in 1982.
The Mersey Beat
The Mersey Beat was built in the 1960s, during the thriving Merseybeat era. The popular pub was located on Park Street in L8. However, the pub had to close down in the 1990s due to subsidence.
The Poets' Corner
On Park Hill Road in Toxteth, this pub closed in 2008.
The Pensby
The Ridgewood Drive pub was demolished in 2016 after a bitter battle between Wirral Council planners and the Government.
A proposal to bulldoze the local landmark and erect a 60-bedroom care home in its place was rejected the council in 2015, but the decision was later overturned on appeal.
The Pensby also made headlines in 2013 after a 538-plant cannabis farm was discovered upstairs. It re-opened under new management in 2014 but closed after just 10 months.
The Observatory
The Observatory was on Oxton Road in Birkenhead. After closing, the building was turned into a newsagents.
Great Eastern
The New Ferry pub closed in 2007 and was demolished in 2010 to make way for housing.
The pub was built in 1862 with a number of panels from Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s SS Great Eastern, which was broken up for scrap at Rock Ferry in the 19th century.
But English Heritage said it was unsuitable for listing because no artifacts from the ship remained and significant alterations were made.
One O'Clock Gun, Beechwood
The former pub was named for the cannon once fired from the river wall at Morpeth Dock, Birkenhead, to give ships a time check.
Hotel Victoria, New Brighton
The original Hotel Victoria was founded in 1837 and replaced with the landmark yellow and red brick building in 1896.
It closed its doors suddenly in 2004 and the buildings were later demolished and replaced with flats.
Hotel California, Birkenhead
Rubble, fire damage and decay are all that remain of one of Wirral's landmarks, the old Hotel California.
Every window is now smashed and just a husk of the building is left since the former rock music venue closed in 2018.
Former manager Katie Sutton previously told the ECHO: “It’s got to be the most well-known pub on the Wirral over the past 150 years or so and in a national and worldwide sense due to the many nationalities working in the shipyard opposite.
“There’s so much history here, when you think about where it is by Cammell Laird.
“All the people coming out of the shipyard knew this place.
Lacy's Bar, New Brighton
Also known as Darcy's, Lacy's closed in the early years of the new millennium and fell into disrepair. It was bought up by JD Wetherspoons in 2015 who owned the site next door.
In 2016, they sought planning permission to extend the pub on the ground floor and create four "high-end" two-bedroom apartments, which would be in the rear ground floor and first floor of the building.
The Red House
The Red House pub in Old Swan is now a branch of Costa Coffee.
The Talbot
This attractive pub with a blue-painted frontage was on Derby Road in Bootle
The White House
This former Berry Street pub is probably better known as the building Banksy adorned with a giant cat.
It appeared on the corner of Duke Street and Berry Street in 2004 as part of the Biennial arts festival. The building was later turned into Petit Cafe du Coin.
The Pontack
The Pontack pub was on Christian Street, Vauxhall.
The Green Dragon, Whiston
The Green Dragon was knocked down in controversial circumstances in 2019, but the developer did not ask for planning permission. A lawyer for the company told the ECHO at the time the building was unlikely to ever trade as a pub again and had become a magnet for vandals.
The Copplehouse, Fazakerley
Cheryl Wilcox said: "So many good nights. Still can't believe it was knocked down so they could build an Aldi."
The Stanley, Old Swan
The former pub in Prescot Road is slowly being reclaimed by nature., after being in a state of disrepair for years. Before it closed its doors, it was popular with abattoir workers who would head in for a pint after work.
Debbie Wilcock said: "The Cattlemarket, the Stanley and Dixies on Prescot Road. Some of my best memories in those pubs."
The Quiet Man, Huyton
The Quiet Man pub once stood on Longview Drive. Now demolished, a care home was later built on the site.
The Falstaff, Gateacre
The Gateacre Park Drive pub was already unoccupied when it was gutted by fire, thought to have been started deliberately, in September 2014. Chris Doughty said: "The Falstaff & The Grange Manor in Gateacre…. The best."
The Pegasus, Speke
The Pegasus, or 'The Peg' situated on Hale Road where it meets Western Avenue, was a popular meeting place for many years. Sadly, it was demolished to make way for new buildings and hotels to serve Liverpool John Lennon Airport.
The Mill House Pub (formerly The Flying Saucer)
Formerly known as The Flying Saucer, Mill House was described in The Merseyside Pub Guide as "a classic 50s estate boozer".
Situated on Alderwood Avenue, the Flying Saucer was the place many locals described having their first pint.
Although it was called The Flying Saucer for many years - with some suggesting it was given the name due to the mysterious objects that would often go flying across the room - it was later known as Mill House.
Still sporting the Mill House signage but no longer a pub, the building is now a day nursery.
The Noah's Ark
The Noah's Ark pub/social club was situated on Ganworth Road, close to what used to be Speke's main shopping area known as The Parade.
Despite its unremarkable appearance, 'The Noah's' was a popular place to socialise in the 1960s through to its closure in the 2000s.
The building itself still remains and is now home to Speke Baptist Church who bought the building in 2009.
The Dove and Olive
The enormous Dove and Olive pub was situated where Hale Road meets Dungeon Lane, and was undoubtedly an impressive and stately looking public house.
As well as a bar, 'The Dovey' had a large lounge complete with a dance floor, and remained popular with private parties up until its closure.
The Green Man
The Vauxhall Road pub was where one of the most memorable moments in Alan Bleasdale's 80s drama Boys from the Blackstuff was filmed - where a character simply known as Shake Hands terrorised fellow customers with his crushing grip. The boozer was demolished to make way for new residential flats.
Dog & Gun, Croxteth
The Dog & Gun in Carr Lane East was closed down after gaining an unenviable reputation as a crime haven. It was stripped of its licence and later demolished. Darryll Wilson said: "Dog and Gun, The Brewer's Arms and The Sefton, all in Carr Lane East, all gone."
The Eagle Vaults
The Eagle Vaults is one of several vanished boozers along Scottie Road. Proposals to convert it into an eight bed house in multiple occupation (HMO) were rejected by city planners last year.
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