Ye Olde London, 42 Ludgate Hill City-of-London EC4M 7DE

Earlier address is 24 to 26 Ludgate Hill. Wm Younger's stained glass which was recently removed, gives a date of 1749. **
It was a Greene King public house in 2017, and still in March 2026. Greene King has announced plans to sell off, or convert 150 pubs into tenanted or franchised locations, as the UK hospitality sector struggles with rising costs.

A listing of historical London public houses, Taverns, Inns, Beer Houses and Hotels in St Martin Ludgate, City of London.

St Michael's Ludgate Hill on the left/centre and showing the front of St Pauls Cathedral ahead.

In 1760, we have the London Lodge, at the London Coffee House, Ludgate Hill, a Masonic Lodge

James Rowley, a wine merchant, coffee house keeper, business man, took out a 99 year lease on the London Coffee House in 1770. [Before that he was at St Pauls Coffee House, 4 St Paul's churchyard at St Gregory by St Pauls parish, and advertised his move there.] John Leech senior shared the management of it with him and took over when he died in 1797, and James Rowley's will, proved 1798 outlined the future arrangements for the coffee house. They jointly took out fire insurance in 1792. Rowley was a member of the Wheelwright's London Guild. *

The London Coffee house was well known as a place for meetings of all sorts of groups, including the Masons as well as jurors retiring to consider their decisions about trials at the Old Bailey. *

You can follow ownership changes via Land Tax records, and a whole range of records at the London Archives. The churchwardens of St Martin Ludgate had an annual jolly there, and James Rowley was a churchwarden, an overseer of the poor and did various other charitable things. *

You can find out all sorts of information at London Archives. *

Here is an example of advertisements placed in newspapers between about 1765 and 1782 in regards to Rowley Snuffs.
Newcastle Chronicle. Saturday, 13 July 1765
Just arrived, and Sold by Alex Campbell, in Carlisle, and T Slack in Newcastle, Booksellers; and by the Newsmen and Distributors of this Chronicle.
The Genuine British Herb Tobacco and Snuff.
Prepared by the original Proprietor, and sold only by James Rowley, at St Pauls Coffee-house, London, for these three years past.
The following is an Abstract from the succinct Account of it, which is published by the Author, ad giving gratis to every Purchase of the Tobacco or snuff.
"It is composed of Bretony, Coltsfoot, Eye-Bright, Lavender, Thyme, Rosemary Buds, and many more of the choicest nervous simples in the whole system of botany. Dr Spon, a very eminent Physician at Geneva, was the first who prescribed the smoaking of this Composition , and had the Satisfaction of feeling the good effects of it among his Patients; and Dt Beaufort, about 30 years since, had the like success with it in London. The Polish Nobility and Gentry constantly mixt it with their common Tobacco, by Prescription of the famous Dr Broakenschwerdt, for strengthening the Nerves and stomach, and for preserving the Sight, to mitigate the Heat and Strength of the common Tobacco, and to render the Smell of it fragrant and agreeable. It is remarkable, that thos who have made a Practice of Smoaking and Snuffing these herbs, are never troubled with Head aches, Paralysis, Defluctions of Rheum, nor any superfluous Humidities, nor need the Assistance of Glasses for the Sight, even in extreme old Age".
The Tobacco is 5s 6d per Pound, 3s per Half Pound, 1s 6d per Quarter Pound, and the Snuff 2s 6d and 1s 3d per Canister.
That the Public may be satisfield of the Genuineness of this Composition, the abovesaid James Rowley is authorized to sign his Name on each packet.

Shrewsbury Chronicle. Saturday, 30 December 1780
For all Disorders of the Head and Eyes.
Just received by the Printer hereof a fresh Parcel of the Genuine
Rowleys British Herb Snuff and Tobacco, so remarkable for the cure of headaches, weakness of sight, deafness, giddiness, palsies, apoplexies, and so honourably recommended by her Grace Charlotte, Duchess Dowager of Somerset, and many other very respectable personages, may now be had the snuff in neat pocket boxes, at 6d each, and the Tobacco in quarter pounds, as usual, and also for the use of taverns, inns, and public houses, in two-penny papers.
But as spurious sorts have been obtruded upon many of those houses, and which for the sake of cheapness, may be compounded of herbs of pernicious quality, it is become necessary to observe, that the name, James Rowley, is signed on each paper of the genuine sort.
Besides, in the above named complaints, there is another advantage, in using the snuff; it opens and cleanses the nostrils and glands when clogged and obstructed by the common Snuffs; snuff-takers therefore should never be without a box of this.
Sold by the proprietor at the London Coffee-house, Ludgate hill, London; by T Wood, printer of this Paper; E Houlstone, Wellington; T Hotchkiss, Oswestry; and may be had of the News-men. Allowance to Inns, Taverns, Shopkeeper, who buy to sell again.

1805/Dallimore and Leech, London Coffee house, Ludgate street/../../Holdens Directory

1822/Leech & Co, London Coffee House, Ludgate street/../../Pigots Directory

1829/Leech & Buttell, London Coffee House, Ludgate street/../../Robsons Directory

1833-34/Samuel Lovegrove, London Coffee House, 24 Ludgate hill/../../Pigots Directory

1836/Samuel Lovegrove, London Coffee House, 24 Ludgate hill/../../Pigots Directory

St Paus Lodge, named in 1821 meets at the London Coffee house, Ludgate hill, London in 1843

1851/Samuel & Jas Lovegrove/Wine Merchants/../../Post Office Directory ***

1851/Samuel Lovegrove/Hotel Keeper/38/St Gregory & St Pauls, London/Census
1851/Ann Lovegrove/Wife/36/Blackheath, Kent/Census
1851/Ann Lovegrove/Daughter/7/Blackheath, Kent/Census
1851/Edward Lovegrove/Son/4/Blackheath, Kent/Census
1851/Elizabeth Lovegrove/Daughter/2/St Martins Ludgate, London/Census
1851/Sarah Lovegrove/Daughter/7 months/St Martins Ludgate, London/Census
1851/Emilia Higgins/General Servant/27/Loughton, Essex/Census
1851/James Stevens/Hotel Clerk/20/Kingston, Oxon/Census
1851/Frances P Rowe/General Servant/27/Cornwall/Census
1851/Adolph Hartman/Hotel Waiter/18/Hamburg/Census
1851/Joseph Softlawn/Hotel Waiter/46/Hounslow, Middlesex/Census
1851/Samuel Read/Hotel Porter/22/St Anns Blackfriars, London/Census
1851/James Thorne/Apprentice to Inn/19/St Brides, London/Census
1851/Michel G Tabal/Cook/32/Paris/Census
1851/Frederick R Hartman/Apprentice to Inn/21/Somers Town, Middlesex/Census
1851/Emily Drummond/Chambermaid/39/Chigwell, Essex/Census
1851/Matilda Giles/Chambermaid/35/Petersham, Surrey/Census
1851/Hannah Wilson/Chambermaid/33/Whitechapel, Middlesex/Census
1851/Ann Rowland/Chambermaid/28/Lyford, Berks/Census
1851/Martha Barford/Chambermaid/28/Little Glenham, Suffolk/Census
1851/Matilda Scater/Chambermaid/20/Dundee/Census
1851/Maria Ingram/Kitchenmaid/24/Cornhill, London/Census
1851/Hester Collingwood/Kitchenmaid/26/Clerkenwell, Middlesex/Census
1851/Ellen Cuthbert/Kitchenmaid/23/Perth, Scotland/Census
1851/Hannah Parkings/Kitchenmaid/21/Truro, Cornwall/Census
1851/Caroline Cadman/Kitchenmaid/24/Newport, Shropshire/Census
1851/Jame Hayde/Kitchenmaid/20/Stratford, essex/Census
1851/August Scholl/Hotel Waiter/24/Rudesheim/Census
1851/Reuben Gray/Hotel Waiter/22/Moreton in Marsh, Gloucester/Census
1851/William Williams/Hotel Waiter/16/St Brides, London/Census
1851/John Taylor/Porter/50/Heath, Yorkshire/Census
1851/Mary Stevens/Chambermaid/22/Chalford, Oxon/Census
1851/Elizabeth Bareham/Chambermaid/36/Lewisham, Kent/Census
1851/Mary Johnson/Chambermaid/18/Southwark, Surrey/Census
1851/Robert Ware/Waiter/16/Hackney Road, Middlesex/Census
+ Visitors

October1853/Samuel Lovegrove and James Lovegrove/Outgoing Licensee/../../Era

October 1853/Edward Ellis/Incoming Licensee/../../Era

Lion and Lamb Lodge, named in 1816 meets at the London Coffee house, Ludgate hill, London in 1860

1869/James W Strange & Co/../../../Post Office Directory ***

1877/Jothn Jones/../../../Post Office Directory ***

1881/Alfred Jones/Publicans Manager/20/London City, Middlesex/Census
1881/John Salter/Barman/21/Lidbury, Devon/Census
1881/John Clark/Barman/20/Sunderland, Durham/Census
1881/Alfred Burke/Barman/19/Lewisham, Kent/Census
1881/Edward Richman/Barman/20/Camberwell, Surrey/Census
1881/Jenny Petchell/Housekeeper/23/Hatfield, Hertford/Census
1881/Caroline Sampson/Housemaid/22/London City, Middlesex/Census

1884/John Jones/../../../Post Office Directory

1899/Stanley Herbert Gibson/../../../Post Office Directory

1902/John Charles Coe/../../../Post Office Directory ***

1922/Cambrian Catering Co Ltd, Ye Old London Coffee House/../../Post Office Directory

1938/Wm Younger & Co Ltd/../../../Post Office Directory ***

1944/Wm Younger & Co Ltd/../../../Post Office Directory ***

2017 Greene kIng, Ye Olde London, 42 Ludgate Hill City-of-London EC4M 7DE

* Provided By Linda Green

** Provided By Tris

*** Provided By Stephen Harris

And Last updated on: Thursday, 13-Aug-2026 14:41:53 BST