This image was scanned from the original glass negative taken by Ralph Snowball. It is part of the Norm Barney Photographic Collection, held by Special Collections.

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dunedoo: Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Pubs of Australia, and we'd love to have this added to the group!

hedfram2: Jane Hardy was licensee of this hotel from 1884 to 1886 when Arthur Gower took over the licence. One can assume that Jane's husband, Thomas was the licensee before her.

beachcomberaustralia: Fascinating to see the musical instruments - from left to right - triangle, concertina, penny whistle, accordion, and banjo. The pub band. I imagine they sounded very like Irish pub folk bands where whoever turns up joins in. The building is still there, but oh dear! - It's difficult to believe that someone would do that to a building. At first I doubted it was the same one, but there is a cornice top left saying "Glasgow Arms Hotel".

dunedoo: [http://www.flickr.com/photos/beachcomberaustralia] You are very observant. I didn't even notice the name in the top left hand corner. They have altered the building. But I think it has been altered twice. If you compare it to the original photo, above, there appears to have been an extension added , on the left, when it was still a pub. The sign backs that up. Later when the pub was closed and sold, it was further altered by elimination of a door, and the alteration of the public bar area, giving a closed in ground floor verandah. The upper verandah was removed. mike fairless: Jane Falcus (later Hardy) was the grandaughter of my gt gt gt grandparents Thomas Falcus and Elizabeth Curry born in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. I would like to get in contact with Christine Ryan of Newcastle, NSW who has added this photograph and was her gt gt grandaughter. I can give you LOTS more information on your Falcus ancestors. contact to Michael.fairless@hp.com Cheers Mike Fairless

UON Library, University of Newcastle, Australia: We have received the following information from Mike Fairless. Many thanks, Mike! There is an interesting family trait of the licensing business relating to the owner of the Glasgow Arms (Jane Hardy). Let me explain, it may be of interest to those viewing your photograph Jane Hardy (proprietor of the Glasgow Arms) was born as Jane Falcus to parents John Falcus and his wife Sophia (nee Nicholls) who married 11.4.1831 at All Saints Church, Ballast Hills, Byker, Newcastle upon Tyne. We think that John Falcus as probably a Keelman working on the River Tyne (the "Keelman" was unique to the River Tyne). A keelman's job was to take around 20 tons of coal at a time to the large vessels waiting at the mouth of the Tyne. The keelmen took their name from the boats they rowed. The word keel is thought to come from the Anglo-Saxon word "ceol" meaning a boat. The keels used on the Tyne were about 40 feet long by 20 feet wide and quite clumsy with an oval, almost flat bottom. Each boat was generally crewed by four men; the "Skipper", the "Haddrack" or "Keel Bully", who steered the boat and one or two "Hillies" who poled the vessel along. They used a large oar at the stern, called a "swarpe" and a pole with an iron point for use in shallow water called a "pug" (on the Tyne). They would walk up and down the boat wielding these and pushing the boat along like a punt. The boats were propelled by a single sail. ...and back to the family......There were three children in the family: Ann baptised 19.9.1831 All Saints, Ballast Hills, Byker, Newcastle upon Tyne Jane baptised 9.5.1833 All Saints, Ballast Hills, Byker, Newcastle upon Tyne John baptised 11.1.1836 All Saints, Ballast Hills, Byker, Newcastle upon Tyne Sophia was a "schoolmistress". Tragedy hit the family in March 1836 when father John Falcus was killed in a fight. The local newspaper the Newcastle Courant reported the following on March 26th 1836 THOMAS COLLIER was arraigned for the manslaughter of John Falcus MR INGHAM stated the case to the jury, and called Joseph Gibb, who said - I am a surgeon; live near the glasshouses; was called to attend John Falcus, who was suffering from pain on the left temple, and all around the head. I dressed the wound, but did not see him again until the 5th of March, when I saw him in the presence of Mr Elliott. Mr Henzell examined the head of the deceased on the 16th of March, the day he died, and had no doubt but that he died of a fracture in the skull caused by a severe blow on the temple; at that time there were no other external marks Mr Elliott, another surgeon, attended the deceased and was satisfied that the fracture in the skull was the cause of his death Wilson Beavit was present on the 22nd of February in Hornsby's Yard, East Ballast Hills, and saw the prisoner and Robert Falcus fighting: Robert Falcus struck the prisoner over the face, when deceased interfered, took hold of his brother and wanted him to go home; the prisoner then struck the deceased with an iron or metal instrument which he held in his hand, and knocked him down, and was going to strike again but was prevented by witness, who received the blow on his hand; witness then carried deceased into a corner, and afterwards carried him home. Another witness, named Robert Mann, corroborated the evidence of Beavit as to the parties fighting and the prisoner striking the deceased. The jury returned a verdict of guilty; to be imprisoned and kept to hard labour for 12 months. It is interesting to see the reference above to being treated by Joseph Gibb. This is the Dr Gibb who achieved immortality in the Tyneside 'anthem' "Blaydon Races" of 1862: (apologies for the accented version below of a couple of verses!) Aw went to Blaydon Races, 'twas on the ninth of Joon, Eiteen hundred an' sixty-two, on a summer's efternoon; Aw tyuk the 'bus frae Balmbra's, an' she wis heavy laden, Away we went alang Collingwood Street, that's on the road to Blaydon. ......... When we gat the wheel put on away we went agyen, But them that had their noses broke they cam back ower hyem; Sum went to the Dispensary an' uthers to Doctor Gibbs, An' sum sought oot the Infirmary to mend their broken ribs. Oh! me lads, ye shud a' seen us gannin, Passin' the folks upon the road just as they were stannin'. Thor wis lots o' lads and lasses there, all wi' smiling faces Gannin' alang the Scotswood Road to see the Blaydon Races. It must have been very difficult for widow Sophia after the death of her husband, John. In those days there was no pension or social security to assist the family and times must have been very hard for Sophia and her three children. By the time of the 1841 Census, Sophia was living in Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne with her children, she was described as a 'schoolmistress'. I suppose lack of money for food, clothing and rent would drive Sophia to desperate measures. She must have been quite resourceful (!) because she makes the local papers again in February 1844 when the Newcastle Courant reported the following ILLICIT STILL - Mr Stanley, collector of excise, appeared before the magistrate on Friday, in conformity with an order from the Board of Excise, to prosecute a woman named Sophia Falcus, for having had an illicit still. It appeared that Mr Walter Easton, an excise officer, along with Mr Thompson supervisor, and two excise officers, on the 24th of November, were induced, from information the former had received, to go to a room in a tenemented house at Byker Village. They found that the door was locked, but by means of a key, furnished by a person who receives the rents of the property, they gained admittance, and found a still charged with 50 gallons of fermented wash, and running with low wine (a weak spirit). There were two quarts of this wine, and thirty utensils, all of which they seized. Mrs Dorothy Minto, the receiver of the rents, proved the occupancy of the room to have been by Sophia Falcus. The application was made under the 6th of George IV., c. 80 sec. 39, subjecting the defendant to a penalty of £200., and a warrant was granted In those days £200 was a lot of money (probably equivalent to about £18,000-£20,000). Presumably Sophia would not have this amount of money and we do not know what happened to her if she could not pay (prison?). We are not quite sure what happened after this incident. Was Sophia prosecuted? The newspaper cutting might suggest that she was not present at the tenement when it was 'raided'. Did she escape prosecution by moving away and changing her name? By the time of the 1851 census, Sophia had remarried (to someone called 'Sparke', although no marriage details can be found) and been widowed again and was a 'charwoman' now, she was with her children Jane and John in Trimdon, County Durham (her eldest daughter Ann was working as a 'servant' in Newcastle upon Tyne). She remarried again in 1855 to Thomas Hall although by this time she had changed her name to "Fawcus" (which is an alternative spelling for "Falcus", her son John had also changed his name to "Fawcus" by this time. Perhaps she did so in order that she could not be traced). By the time of the 1861 Census she was living in Castle Eden Colliery, County Durham with her husband who was described as a 'lamp keeper at the colliery'. By the time of the 1871 Census she was still married to Thomas Hall 'a Davy Lamp Keeper' now at Wingate Colliery, County Durham. We hope she had a happier life and she died in 1879 aged 69 years Meanwhile, daughter Jane Falcus had married Thomas Hardy in 1854 in Sunderland (he was born in 1832 in Cramlington, north of Newcastle upon Tyne) and this couple emigrated to Australia in 1855 and on the immigration record Jane Hardy's parents are confirmed as "John and Sophia Falcus, father dead, mother at Castle Eden Colliery" After that our trail grows cold but we hope that your correspondent can fill in the missing details and perhaps provide us with some photographs of "Jane Falcus" to go with our narrative F Rose: Someone didn't actually "do" this to the building. In 1989 Newcastle had a devastating earthquake and the roof was shaken and all the decorations and plinth came down. I don't know whether the balcony came down at the same time or earlier. The original Glasgow Arms hotel was built in 1875 and later was extended on both sides. A second Glasgow Arms Hotel was built across the road around 1939 and at that time this hotel was sold to Clement Walsh who converted it into 6 large flats. It was later altered and made into 8 flats. After the earthquake repairs were completed the property was sold by the descendants of Mr. Walsh in February 1993. Many of the flats were as originally renovated in 1939 and the current owners have done extensive renovations to the inside plus replaced the external staircase and walls surrounding it.