The Bell & Sluice

Location

corner of Bell Street and the Sluice Path

Core

17th century

Renovated

1991

Landlord

Tom Ash, since 2003

The Bell & Sluice is the most-visited building in Morrowfen. It stands on the corner of Bell Street and the Sluice Path, on the slight rise at the centre of the town. The town seal, in faded paint, is embossed on the front of the pub sign.

The name is a puzzle to visitors. The bell is the bell of St. Within’s, which is said to have hung here briefly in 1643, on its way to a Parliamentary camp. The sluice is the sluice of the Drainage Committee, whose outflow is across the marsh. The two have not been in the same place at the same time since 1947.

Inside

The bar is small and tidy. The cellar is tidy in a way that Tom Ash is quietly proud of. The cellar was renovated in 1991, when a new boiler flue was put in. Tom does not, as a rule, speak about the renovation.

The pub is run by Tom Ash.