The Bear Inn (or just "The Bear") is one of the oldest public houses in Oxford, England, dating back to 1242. The pub was previously a coaching inn and was especially fashionable in the 17th century, when judges and royal commissioners were among the patrons. The heir to the throne in Denmark visited in 1652. The establishment closed as an inn in the early 19th century. At the time there were over thirty bedrooms, with stabling for a similar number of horses. The present building was built in the early 17th century as the residence of the Inn's Ostler. It was converted into a separate tavern, "The Jolly Trooper" in 1774, then took over the name of the Bear when the original main building (situated towards the High Street where All Bar One now resides) burned down in the early 19th century.
A feature of the Bear is a large collection of snippets of decorative ties, started in the 1950s, and given by customers (some famous) in exchange for a pint of beer. These are displayed in glass-fronted cases on the walls and even the (low) ceiling. The ties mostly indicate membership of clubs, schools, etc. There are over 4,500 ties in the collection. The name may have been derived from a bear pit (for bear baiting) on the site. However, it is more likely to come from the bear and ragged staff on the crest of Richard Neville, the Earl of Warwick. The Bear is located on the corner of Alfred Street and Blue Boar Street, opposite Bear Lane in central Oxford, just north of Christ Church.
See also
- Other Bear Inns
