Photo RGL 2016

The Rock Hotel, 200 Cherry Hinton Road, Cambridge

History of The Rock Hotel

1901

John Gardiner, 51, innkeeper, born Newmarket

Sarah, 51, born Newmarket

Michael W Fordham, 20, barman, born Newmarket

Bertie Jeffery, son in law, 12, born Newmarket

1911

Archibald Campbell McRae, 38, licensed victualler, born Surrey

Ellen Elizabeth, 39, born Leics.

Phyllis Winifred, 15, born Herts.

1939

Tom Weston, b 1885, licensed victualler

?

---

The Rock is the oldest of only two public houses in the Queen Edith’s area and as a result has always been very busy.

In the 1960s the landlord was John Gavin, the professional footballer who played for Cambridge City from 1961-2. At the time of Erica Dimock’s Cambridge News article about Cherry Hinton Road in 1964 he was playing for Newmarket.

The CWN article of 1987 recalled that the pub had had a bad reputation earlier in its history as a place where fair followers would settle old scores, but by 1987 things had changed a great deal.

Steve Cundy came to be landlord in 1986 and stayed for many years.

Sources: Cambridge News (Cambridgeshire Collection)