This week I continue the tale of my extensive visit to the 2025 Lancaster Live festival. The White Cross pub is situated in a refurbished cotton mill warehouse that was owned by Storey’s Cotton Mill who sensibly obtained a strategic and geographical position next to Lancaster Canal. They used to store oilcloth, linoleum and other chemicals there.
There are records dating back to 1820 which indicate there was a coach station located in that area at that time. The name of the pub which opened in 1987 links to an original stone white cross that was located about 200 yards away. It was initially a Bass Taverns establishment before the current owners Tim Tomlinson, and his team took over residency in 2004, and they have created a fine hostelry with over twenty rotating ales.
Lancaster White Cross. Image Credit Visit Lancashire.
Tim also now owns two other pubs Merchants 1688 and the Stonewell Tap in the city centre and is also involved in the organising of the festival I was attending. I recall first visiting in the 1990’s and also had a rendezvous there on my 50th birthday shindig after we had gravitated back after an overnight stop in Glasgow.
It is a pub accessed via the canal towpath from either one of the two adjacent bridges. It takes full advantage of its picturesque location by having extensive seating outside which can cater for up to 300 people. Even though it was an October day it was warm enough for us to grab one of those canal side tables and quaff one of their special brewed Festival ales. Munchies kicked in at that stage, and we dined on a fish finger butty which was sourced from nearby Fleetwood.
They do not as a rule stage live music however, they made an exception for the festival weekend, and they had acts playing at the Lancaster White Cross Acoustic Stage located just inside the doorway. Performing was a local artist and singer/songwriter Eleanor Bennett who alongside displaying her art, also undertakes sound and singing workshops.
Eleanor Bennett. Image Credit eleanorbennettsartstumblr.com
Further into the venue was located Lancaster White Cross Main Stage where another local 5-piece combo called Chimps of the Future took to the boards. They formed in 2021 and perform their own material and were in the rock mould. They were good fun and gathered quite a decent audience.
The owners of the White Cross have previously admitted in the past they have lived in the shadow of the more well known Lancaster Water Witch, which was our next destination. It is located about five minutes’ walk away and is another canal path hostelry.
The original Water Witch was not a boozer but was in fact a seventy six foot packet boat that plied its trade on the canal in the 1830’s with the premise of combatting the new railways. Alongside carrying people, they also transported parcels and mail, and they would set off from Kendal at 6am and arrived in Preston at 1pm, halving the journey time of previous packet boats and probably completing the trip in quicker time than some Northern trains do today!
They had scope to cater for up to 120 commuters who were housed in two heated cabins and stewards were on hand to provide refreshments, though unfortunately I don’t think butter pies would have been included on the menu at that stage. It travelled at a princely ten miles an hour and was pulled by horses who thankfully had an equine relay change every four miles. The fare for the cabins on the trip were three shillings for first class and two shillings for second class.
Lancaster Water Witch. Image Credit waterwitchlancaster.co.uk
The building itself was previously a canal company stable block and opened as a pub under its current name in 1978. It is a long narrow atmospheric public house with bare stone walls and floors and as a taller punter I have to crouch down a smidge on entering. It is a renowned food establishment and similar to the White Cross there are a plethora of outdoor seats.
It is a hostelry I have visited many times over the years, especially in the summer months and was our first port of call after we cycled the entire Preston to Lancaster canal in 2005. They occasionally have acts playing and, on our visit, there was a local acoustic duo called Outatime playing indie covers in a little window alcove about halfway down the bar area.