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Picture source: Peter Ashworth

The Old Crown Hotel was situated at 33 Scotland Street and is now used as a hotel called Sleep

It has now reverted back to a pub, called The Crow Inn, with rooms. Extract from their website: "Historically, The Crown Inn, as it has been formerly known, has witnessed everything from reputed Chartist plots to storm the old town hall, a militant trade union-instigated assassination in the snug in the 1850s, and infamous late night parties overseen by the licensees who gave the pub one of its old names, Ruth & Barry." The union-instigated assassination referred to above took place on 1 August 1859, where one James Linley, a saw grinder, who had refused to join the Saw Grinders' Union, and who had already survived two attempts on his life in 1858, and earlier in 1859, was shot in the head and died. A number of union "outrages" as they became known, including Linley's murder, were the basis for the Alan Cullen musical docudrama "The Stirrings in Sheffield on Saturday Night" (music by Roderick Horn), which received its first performance on 6 May 1966 at the Playhouse, Sheffield. The Secretary of the Union, William Broadhead, was the landlord of the Royal George in Carver Street (demolished 1970s) and whilst he eventually confessed to ordering the murder, he was not charged with it, neither were any others, though he did lose his licence. Out-of-town Police reinforcements had to be sent to quell rioting resulting from the "outrages" and Union laws were also changed by Parliament as a result.

Kathryn Ludlow (November 2025)

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