Dovecot Street corner, showing Literary and Philosophical Institute Building, and Northern Echo Offices. Also showing Alma Hotel, and Collingwoods. Some passers by in the street.Signs, including Martin Taylor, Kays Spreadeagle Hotel, Collingwood,Bovril,Alma Hotel,Northern Echo,Market Cafe Temperance Hotel shown in photo of Dovecot Street corner 
Picture Stockton Archive
A Pictorial History of Stockton-on-Tees
Picture Stockton Archive 
Does anyone know what year the spread eagle was pulled down?
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I’ve read much on this website about the Cowley family, who operated the watchmaker and jewellery shop on the corner of Dovecot Street /High Street for many years. There are many photographs, showing their name displayed high up on the eaves-line of this corner site. This however, is the first ‘older photograph’, where I notice that Collingwoods the Jewellers, have by this time taken over the premises, having retained the same signboards for their own use..
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It always puzzled me why Dovecot Street was spelt without the -‘e’- at the end, so as to make it Dovecote Street. It appears the original word ‘dovecot’ is of Norman / French extraction dating from 1150–1200 or thereabouts. A dovecot was a brick built upright round column with a tiled roof, with entrance holes and nest boxes for the birds pleasure, these doves were reared for table meat, at a later date the keeping of white fantail ornamental birds in a dovecot perched on a wood pole placed in the garden became popular. It appears if ornamental birds were kept by the owner or keeper, then they were kept in a dovecot, whilst the more numerous flocks of pigeons were kept in a dovecote. (Called in Durham a cree, and in Scotland a doo’cot.
During the 1801-1930 house building period the interchangeable words Dovecot or Dovecote were highly popular names with house builders, so today you can find Dovecote Avenue, close, cottages, drive, gardens, lane, mews, view, road and Dovecote Park names the length and breadth of Britain.
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Spread Eagle Landlords 1970 – 1980
Probably the years listed need to reduce by 2 years to be accurate from other sources
1972-73 Arthur E Thomson
1973-74 Dennis – Elizabeth (Betty) Moved on to Black Bull Yarm
1974-75 Ronald – Jacqueline Gough
1975-77 Leonard S – Doris May Gladdon moved on to Nags Head
Both listed 1975 electoral role at Nags Head Darlington
1977-79 Frederick – Margaret Innes
1979-80 Mary L Kemp – Linda Gibson – William Magor – Ramshaw Wright
1981-82 Adrian – Hilda Bowell
1982-84 Gordon V – Christine Canwell
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Linda Gibson was never landlady she was barmaid for Mary Kemp. Mary Kemp being the wife of Mick Kemp Drummer of the Blue Caps
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I am trying to find a picture of 18 Dovecote Street which was the premises of Thomas Elliott 1891 – 1901, he was a veterinary surgeon. can anyone tell me where it is in relation to some of the photos of Dovecote Street, and does anyone have a photo of of number 18 directly.
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DOES ANYBODY KNOW WHAT THEY CALLED PACCITOS ICE CREAM PARLOUR IN DOVECOTE IN 1940? I THINK IT WAS HOPKINSON BUT MY FRIEND DISAGREES
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I remember The Regent and The Old Royal, not sure of their exact location.
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The Old Royal was in one of the streets that ran parallel to Hartington Road possibly Skinner Street but it was certainly along there somewhere as we went to a jazz club there in the late 50s
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I seem to recall a BYB pub on the corner of Regent Street and Nelson Terrace and I think it was called The Regent.
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Bob Irwin – Bob I think you could well be right – I had one of my first “legal” pints in there & it cost me 1/3d, the equivalent of just over 6p. I have just taken “the pubs guided tour”, on the site and mean to add my memories of one or two of the hostleries concerned. Many happy hours spent in these watering holes.
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Could it be the Royal? Or as known “The Big Royal”.
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Michael Higgins – Michael thanks for your & the comments from other contributors it certainly rekindled some memories. Such a shame that there are no visual records of the interior. At least I was able to pick out the Bass sign on one of the shots, good to know the gray cells aren”t completely shot! I”ve already posed the question, but can you remember the name of the BYB pub, just round the corner on Nelson Terrace?
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Yes Mike is was spectacular in the back room put “spread eagle” in the search box for further info
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Kay”s Spreadeagle Hotel which later became just the Spread Eagle had, at least, the back room redecorated in a very spectacular fashion, in the mid – late 1960″s. I remember being invited in for a drink with a friend of my fathers who I met on the High Street one Saturday. The ceiling & moulded cornice had been totally refurbished, with the cornice details being picked out in several colours of paint. Talk about being fair impressed. If my memory is not faulty it served Bass.
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I did a survey of the White Hart pub on the same block over 25 years ago and took several photographs of the surviving original interior, particularly the stained glass clerestory-style roof light in the rear areas. Sadly, only a couple of years ago in a ‘clear-out’ of old files, I regrettably threw them all away.
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Does anyone know what 32 Dovecot Street was during this era? We know it was a business address but what type of business? If anyone knows would they contact carolmottershead@aol.com Thanks
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I was very pleased to see the photograph of Dovecot Street. My great, great grandfather, William Lietch Dodd, worked for the “Northern Echo” circa 1870 and it was such a lovely surprise to see a photo of the building in which he was employed. This photo will be a wonderful addition to my family history book.
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The name Dovecot Street came about because the Bishop of Durham once kept a large dovecot in a house in this area. Close to the Spread Eagle Hotel seen in this picture, the house was demolished in 1838.
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