The Old Boar’s Head’s history runs deep, the building has been tree-ring dated to 1622, with strong evidence it was built as an inn from the very start. Records from the time, including the will of Isaac Walkden, the first tenant and son of Middleton’s schoolmaster Robert Walkden, show the pub was already in use by 1623. His will, preserved at Lancashire Archives, lists an inventory of nine beds, twenty chairs or stools, brewing vessels, barrels, pots and glasses across six rooms, all pointing to an active inn. Sadly, Isaac died during a typhus epidemic in the summer of 1623, but the Walkden family went on to run The Old Boar’s Head until the late 1600s, while also farming land that later became Jubilee Library and Park. Unlike many pubs that claim to be the oldest pub in England, The Olde Boar’s Head has continuously operated as a public house, holding records of each tenant, and still stands as the original building. With such rich records, The Old Boar’s Head stands as one of the oldest pubs in England.