Builders unearth piece of pub history hidden in city centre for more than 60 years

[Blitzkid]

The day after the Coventry blitz the army took full command of Coventry it brought in every kind of help that was needed, it was army engineers that told the Council and the brewery that the White lion Hotel was a danger to everyone, either pull it down or fence it off, which the Council did, no question, or any dispute, until 1942, when the brewery and Coventry fully expected the White lion and Smithford street would be rebuilt, in fact the Brewery was so confident that it showed a gallery of it's future plans, inside the unsafe Hotel through a hole in the east wall of the second floor.1942. this was disbanded after a few weeks because of safety.it remained that way for a couple of years,when all of Coventry
where told Smithford street and the white lion hotel wasn't in the plans of the new city that was to be built. Blitz kid.

[dutchman]

Very interesting Blitzkid, thank you!

White Lion prior to construction of the Upper Precinct:



Please note I've now merged these posts with the earlier thread to keep everything in the one place.

[Blitzkid]

the Advert's were placed there in 1934, when the White lion opened it's new Restaurant, and function room at 51 Smithford street, placed in the pavement they lay under the rubble of the Hotel from the Blitz,.
Dutchman, there is no real Dispute, only of it's own making, there was no dispute in 1940, no dispute again when the telegraph wrote it's own Blitz book 1948 and no dispute since to my knowledge in the last 60 years and all Blitz survivors will confirm such. for the army and all helpers were in the city before the all clear siren dounded

[Blitzkid]

white Lion Hotel. the photo above tells a great deal, this photo is about 1952 time, and the lights are on, water and gas also.
I, my father and an uncle stood where the photographer stood on Sat morning two days after the Blitz, on rubble about 2 ft high, the second, the rest of the wall floor walls where only about 6/7 ft high broken shell of the building, the walls held all the rubble from the top half of the Hotel, from were you are looking you see the dividing wall between 50 and 51, half way up the top of those old stairs there was a hole in that wall, her in 1942, when the rubble had been removed the brewery placed a Gallery of their future plan's, on a very shaky
first floor. that you entered through the hole in the wall.

[dutchman]

Another view this time from before the war, it's mock-Tudor frontage is just visible on the right. The BBC Coventry & Warwickshire website had a long email from a woman who lived there as young girl but I'm not able to find it again. She talked about the nearby shops including 'Selfridges' but I'm pretty sure she meant 'Selrights'.