Romilly Hall and the Romilly Park area are inextricably linked with the Romilly family, whose association with the town began in 1812, when Sir Samuel Romilly purchased the Barry and Porthkerry estates, comprising 1,950 acres of land, in what was to become modern Barry. During the first half of the 19th century, there was only limited development associated with the estate which then grew rapidly in the late Victorian and Edwardian periods.
Text about The Sir Samuel Romilly.
The text reads: The man who gave this Wetherspoon public house its name began his association with Barry in 1812, when he purchased large tracts of land in the area. By that time, Sir Samuel was well-known for his work in reforming criminal law.
This work began with Thoughts on Executive Justice, published in 1786. Twenty years later, Romilly was appointed solicitor general and was instrumental in reducing the many trivial offences, such as pickpocketing, that were subject to capital punishment.
His second son, John, followed in his footsteps as solicitor general. Later appointed master of the rolls, John was raised to the peerage as 1st Baron Romilly of Barry, in 1866. The title became extinct on the death of the 4th Baron, in 1983.
A photographic collage of Barry.
This pub was once a bank, and still has the original vault.
A sculpture depicting Sir Samuel Romilly.
External photograph of the building – main entrance.
Extract from Wetherspoon News Summer 2019.
If you have information on the history of this pub, then we’d like you to share it with us. Please e-mail all information to: pubhistories@jdwetherspoon.co.uk