The Ship Inn is located on the banks of the Stroudwater canal and must have been a popular watering hole for bargees and canal workers well over one hundred years ago. The Ship is still trading, now owned by Dangerfield Inns.
Gloucester Journal: April 8th 1882: Property Sale – At the Anchor Inn, Epney, on Tuesday, Messrs Bruton Knowles & Co. offered for sale by auction the Ship Inn, Framilode, with the surrounding outbuildings and garden and a cottage and garden adjoining. Mr. Whitchell became the purchaser for £500.
The Citizen, Friday February 2nd, 1979: A cheque for £52, proceeds of various fund-raising activities over Christmas, was presented last night to the RNLI at the Ship Inn, Framilode. The cheque was received by Major Michael Sandford, area representative of the Royal National Liveboat Institution, from the landlady, Mrs Pauline Marshall.
The Citizen: Saturday, May 21st 1988 – Man held after pub incident: Police were called to a Frampton-on-Severn (sic) pub late last night after the landlady was injured. Two police cars were seriously damaged. Officers were called to the Ship Inn after licensee Susan Jones complained that shew had been assaulted. Inspector Brian Farmer said: “A man was coerced outside where two marked police cars and an officer’s private car were damaged. Windscreens, lights and windows were smashed and panels dented.” Mrs Jones was treated at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital for bruising but was not detained. A 24-hour pool and darts marathon was taking place at the pub at the same time. “There was no extension of licensed hours and she was not serving drinks.” Said Insp. Farmer. A 25 year-old-man was today helping Stroud CID with their enquiries into the incident.
The Citizen, Saturday May 16th 1998: Pubwatch. The Ship at Framilode. By George Henderson:
The Ship Inn at Upper Framilode, as its name suggests, was one of the many hostelries that thrived along the route of the River Severn and Sharpness Canal during the heyday of England’s inland waterway traffic. The pub was a favourite watering hole with bargees and canal workers in the days when Gloucester was a great port and seagoing vessels cruised up the canal in droves. But even after the canal trade declined, the pub continued to thrive thanks to Framilode’s popularity with day trippers who came to enjoy the local tea gardens and possibly a snort of something a bit stronger.
The old picture (above) was taken around 1910, when the licensee of the day, Harry Rudge, is believed to have kept pigs which were killed and salted in the cellar. The pub has been considerably spruced up in recent years and still attracts day trippers who, on a warm day, can slake their thirst and enjoy a bite of food in a quiet backwater. For, although only a couple of miles from the Gloucester conurbation, the Framilode area is genuinely off the beaten track as it crouches on the edge of the Arlingham bend, where the river has created its own peninsular all but cut off from the outside world
It was through this area that St Augustine travelled to cross the river at Arlingham en route to his evangelical mission in Wales. And it still retains an atmosphere that evokes the spirit of something ancient and untouched by the 20th century.
Stroud District Council. Planning. 10th July 1998: Mrs D. Harris, The Ship Inn, Framilode – ‘Change of use of skittle alley to bedrooms.’
The Citizen, 12th August 2003 – Pub ale and hearty for week of health: A pub near Stroud is taking the healthy eating message to heart. The Ship at Upper Framilode is to offer heart friendly meals during a week of fundraising for the British Heart Foundation. Landlord Keith Rog, who has had a heart operation, said an afternoon of live jazz will launch the effort on Sunday. For each heart friendly meal Mr Rog has promised to donate £1 to the BHF and donations to the charity will be welcomed during the jazz.
Mr Rog, who also raised more than £4,000 for the British Heart Foundation with a walk on the Great Wall of China, is not the only member of the Ship team to support the good cause. Employee Andy Jones was born with a heart defect but now lives a normal life thanks to BHF research work.
Commercial Property, Christie & Co. Canal pub sale – 21st June 2004: The lease of the Ship Inn, which is the last surviving public house in the village of Upper Framilode, is up for sale through the Bristol office of Christie & Co. The attractive canalside inn briefly comprises a character bar, restaurant and family room, two trade gardens, a car park and substantial owner’s accommodation with four double bedrooms (one with en suite facilities), lounge, office, bathroom and also two self-contained studio apartments within a converted skittle alley.
Matthew Smith of Christie & Co’s Bristol office, who is handling the sale, commented: “Our client, Keith Rog, acquired The Ship Inn in September 2001. During his ownership the turnover increased by more than 50% last year, and is growing by a further 30% in the current year. Mr Rog is now reluctantly offering the business for sale due to ill health and is leaving the licensed trade after 25 years in the industry. We feel the business offers an excellent opportunity for a new lessee to take over this already highly profitable and well established business.”
Christie & Co is offering the Ship Inn for sale with a guide price of £140,000 for the leasehold interest. The business is held on a ten year lease from Enterprise Inns which commenced in September 2001.
The Citizen, 16th August 2004 – New bosses shipped inn: Carolyn Ellis and Tasha Jenner have become the new licensees of The Ship Inn at Upper Framilode, A protection order for the pub was granted to the pair by south Gloucestershire Magistrates sitting in Stroud.
Christie & Co., August 2007: The Ship Inn, Upper Framilode. The lease of the traditional canal side pub was on offer for a guide price of £129,950.
Stroud Life, Wednesday 3rd August 2011 – Food & Drink. Pub visit by Victoria Temple: (edit) There can be few better places to be on a warm evening than sitting on a picturesque terrace beside a canal watching birds flit in and out of the reeds while you sip real ale and munch chips. We had made it out of the Five Valleys to the Severn Vale to the Ship in Upper Framilode – and it felt like a real discovery. The Ship is a friendly pub in a pretty setting next to a disused stretch of the Stroudwater canal. It’s all reeds and weeping willows with only the sound of bird song to interrupt pub goer’s chatter. It’s a down-to-earth kind of place serving traditional pub food when we sampled the menu.
It was all standard fare but decent enough and very affordable, making The Ship somewhere to stop for lunch while enjoying a canalside walk or bicycle ride without feeling its going to hurt your credit card. And there’s a good selection of real ales. Clearly, this is a pub with a loyal local following but visitors and passers-by receive a warm welcome.
Stroud District Council. Localism Act 2011. On 1st November 2018 Stroud District Council received a notice under the Localism Act of 2011 from the owner of the Ship Inn, Framilode, which is listed as an Asset of Community Value. The notice confirms the intention of the owner to enter into a relevant disposal of the land.
Stroud News, 18th January 2012 – Ship has a new team at helm: Canal-side local The Ship Inn in Upper Framilode is back open for business with a new landlord and a mouth-watering menu of pub classics. Stroud-born Terry Stephenson has reclaimed the welcoming venue following its recent two-month closure after the previous owner’s lease ran out. The kitchens have had a total overhaul and customers now can tuck into their choice of a dozen classic dishes, courtesy of Terry’s eldest son Mike, 21, who is head chef.
“The first time I saw the pub in its lovely setting right beside the canal, I really wanted to give it a really go,” said Terry, 47, who worked as engineer for 20 years before opting to try his hand in the pub trade. “We have some great locals here and its so nice to see everyone happy that they now have their old pub back. The support we have had from the locals has been great and a lot of them have told me they have not felt so welcome here in a long, long time.”
Stroud covers band Blaze will headline an official re-opening night at the pub on Saturday, January 28th and Terry is opting to make live music, quizzes and karaoke nights a regular occurrence.
The Citizen, 30th May 2015 – Meet the landlord. Ship shapes up with new menu: New managers at The Ship in Framilode hope to turn their traditional canal-side pub into a destination gourmet venue and attract visitors from far and wide. Landlady Gina Hawkins took over the inn five months ago and has overseen a revamp which, it is hoped, will attract villagers, commuters and tourists looking for an alternative high-end pub.
Waymarked Inns, which also runs the Pilot in Hardwicke, has ushered in a new regime for The Ship Inn and has brought in a new chef and revamped gourmet menu. Gina, 35, said: “The Ship had been through a few managers and some people had lost interest. It was more of a pub than a restaurant and was quite dark inside too. But we want to tell everyone there are new managers and we’re here to stay. People have come and said it’s so much more welcoming now, and it’s a home from home.”
Gina, who grew up in Pembrokeshire and has worked in the pub industry on and off since she was 18, said it was fate that brought her to The Ship Inn. She said: “Working for the big chain pubs made me want to leave the trade completely. I was looking for a job in an office. But when I first saw the pub from the drive that was t, my heart melted. Now I want to stay here for the rest of my life.”
While the Ship inn is food-led these days, it is still popular with ale drinkers, dog-walkers and classic car clubs who regularly meet there. Despite its rural location the pub enjoys a busy passing trade from the nearby canal and motorists from the M5. Gina also has high hopes for summer nights in the Ship Inn’s garden. She’s looking to have a children’s playground and a pizza oven built outside the pub in the coming months to make the most of the warm weather.
Advertisement, October 2016 – The Ship Inn re-opened in early June with new owners Harry & Caroline Edwards. They have now been joined by Chef Phil Hull who brings a wealth of experience with him and has already introduced new menus, including a Tapas menu which is proving very popular. Every Wednesday night there is a Curry & Burger Night, freshly made curries and juicy burgers for only £5. On Fridays they offer many fresh fish specials, Sunday is roast and then light bites from about 3pm.
Stroud News & Journal, Wednesday 19th September 2018 – Historic pub set to close: A village pub is set to close after a new tenant could not be found, despite the interest of a community group. The Ship Inn, Upper Framilode will close on Sunday, September 16th. Owned by Ei Publican Partnerships, the historic pub is located alongside the old Stroudwater Canal.
Peter Rogal is part of The Ship Inn Framilode Community Group who want to take over the venue. “The Ship Inn is the only pub in the village and the only pub within easy walking distance of Saul and Framilode Passage. Close it, and the village becomes no more than a backwater, a dormitory, like so many other villagers that have lost their heart to the demands of the pubcos. Ei will argue the pub isn’t viable. That is wrong. A few miles away, the community was able to buy out Ei and what was a failed pub in Ei’s tenanted estate is now a thriving pub at the centre of the community.”
So far the group has received pledges totalling almost £100,000. The pub is listed as having a potential annual turnover of £214,000 and a rent of £18,000. Peter claims these have both fallen more than 20 per cent since 2015. As the pub is listed as an Asset of Community Value, should Ei put it up for sale the community will have the opportunity to bid for it.
Ei said: “We can confirm the Ship Inn will close following the publican’s decision to cease trading. We are currently assessing our options for the site.”
https://www.theshipinnframilode.uk/
Map Reference: SO 752103
Licensing Details:
Rateable Value in 1891: £13.10s.0d.
Type of licence in 1891: Beerhouse
Owner in 1891: Stroud Brewery
Rateable Value in 1903: £13.10s.0d.
Type of licence in 1903: Beerhouse
Owner in 1903: Stroud Brewery
Closing time in 1903: 10pm
Owner in 2002 : Enterprise Inns
Landlords at the Ship Inn include:
1856 G. Williams
1891,1903 Frederick Poyner
1910 Harry Rudge
1939 Gilbert Geo. Stafford
1979 Pauline Marshall
1988 Susan Jones
1998 Hartwig Fischer
2001 (Sept) Keith Rog and Carol Redman (Keith was also licensee at the Bell at Frampton on Severn)
2002 Alex Simm (pub operator)
2004 Carolyn Ellis and Tasha Jenner
2007 Yunis
2011 Andy Hopkins
2012 Terry Stephenson
2015 Georgina Hawkins
2016 Harry and Caroline Edwards
