The White Bull, Ribchester

The White Bull (also known as the White Bull Inn) is a public house and inn on Church Street (formerly one of the Roman Watling Streets)[1] in the English village of Ribchester, Lancashire. It dates to 1707, although an alehouse is believed to have previously stood on the site.[2] It is a Grade II listed building with some unique exterior features.[3][4][5][6]

The White Bull
The building in 2006
General information
Type	Public house
Address	Church Street
Town or city	Ribchester, Lancashire
Country	England
Coordinates	53.81201°N 2.53232°W / 53.81201; -2.53232
Completed	1707 (1707)
Renovated	2017
Owner	Bob and Marilyn Brooks (since 2017)[1]
Landlord	Chris Brooks[1]
Technical details
Material	Sandstone
Floor count	2
Other information
Number of rooms	3
Website
http://whitebullribchester.com

The building, which overlooks The Hillock, the ancient centre of the village, is made of sandstone with slate roofs, in two storeys and four bays. On the front is a protruding two-storey gabled porch with two pairs of Doric columns, possibly taken from a nearby Roman fort,[7] specifically the tepidarium of the Roman baths. They are believed to have been recovered from the bed of the River Ribble.[8]

The doorway has a moulded surround. Above the portico is a rustic wooden representation of a white bull. The right bay has been altered and contains a door and modern shop windows. To the left, a former stable has a doorway with a plain surround, a blocked doorway converted into a window with a dated lintel, and a circular pitching hole.[4][5] The original door, to the right of today's main entrance, was filled in in the 1940s.[9]

In the late 18th century, the building also served as the local courthouse for many years, with one of its rooms used for holding prisoners.[8]

The inn, which has three rooms, was put up for sale, in January 2017, at an asking price in excess of £385,000.[10] It was bought by the Brooks family, who had previously owned it around the turn of the century, and was refurbished.[1]

The pub was patronised by the members of Time Team during their three-day visit to the village, in September 1993, which was focused on nearby 2 Church Street.[7]