The pre-Victorian Warminster historian, John Halliday, writing circa 1810, mentions the existence of the Admiral Vernon inn at [Silver Street] Warminster during 1700.
(In different parts of England and Scotland, a depiction of Admiral Vernon’s head was for many years a favourite subject for public house signs – Dictionary of National Biography, volume XX, pp287-272.)
The Admiral Vernon inn at Silver Street, Warminster, was on the south side of the street, opposite the entrance to Ash Walk. At the time of publishing this post (1st February 2025) the location of the former Admiral Vernon inn has the address 2 Silver Street, Warminster, BA12 8PS, and is occupied on the ground floor by the designer wedding dresses boutique Bride By Design.
In the Indexed Summary of the Alehouses named in the enrolled recognizances of licensed victuallers, 1747 to 1757 (held at the Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre, Chippenham, reference number: WRO A1/325/8 to 15), Box 15/9; the Admiral Vernon at Warminster is listed, and the licensee for the period 1754 to 1757 is named Daniel Webb.
The Reverend John Jeremiah Daniell, in his History Of Warminster, first published in 1879, includes the Admiral Vernon in a list of 48 inns which he said existed in Warminster at the beginning of the 18th century. He also says the Admiral Vernon was one of 15 inns on the list which ceased to trade between 1740 and 1766. He adds that “the New Inn only took their place.†It was, indeed, the New Inn that took the place of the Admiral Vernon.
Reg Cundick, in the book The Inns And Taverns Of Warminster, published in November 1987, concluded his notes about the Admiral Vernon inn at Silver Street, by saying “Warminster’s inn with this name was changed to the New Inn, presumably after Admiral Vernon fell into disgrace.â€