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The land on
which the present building is sited was
owned by the Earl of Derby and the Stanley
family.
In the XIV century an ancestor of the
Stanley’s, Sir Thomas Latham, lived in an
area of Lancashire also owned by them close
to Lytham-St-Annes. He had one daughter
Isabel, but no son to carry on the line.
A serving wench is said to have borne him an
illegitimate son, and to enable him to
present the baby boy to his wife for
adoption, he arranged for the child to be
left at the base of a tree in which there
was a birds nest, which Sir Thomas had been
observing.
The baby boy was duly adopted but in spite
of the success of his plan, when Sir Thomas
died, he left all his estate and wealth to
Isabel his daughter.
The daughter eventually married Sir John
Stanley and in memory of her half brother
persuaded him to include in the family coat
of arms, “The bird and bastard”.
This name persisted until propriety required
it to be refined as “The Eagle and Child”,
although many locals still refer
affectionately to the pub as “The Bird
____”.
There is another pub known by this name,
appropriately being in a village near
Lytham-St-Annes. The first recorded of these
licensed premises shows that an inn has
existed on this site since 1492, the present
property dating back to 1820.
The 23rd April was the recorded
date of birth of the illegitimate child, and
is therefore the true birthday of the Eagle
and Child.
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