The Pyrotechnists Arms
To be honest, not my favourite pub. A little on the damp and dull side inside (but concomitantly cheap). I did use to go there more regularly when I was a school Governor and the drinkers amongst us required somewhere handy to repair to where we would be certain to get a seat (it is also rarely full).
I fear the most interesting aspect of the pub is its name. By repute it is built on or near to the site of Brock's Fireworks (and Brock Street is close by). Brock's, founded by John Brock, has the reputation, apparently of being the oldest British fireworks manufacturer. Established in the 18th Century, the company then later moved South. Finally bought out by Standard in 1988. I remember boxes of Brock's on Guy Fawkes night when I was younger.
There has been some doubt cast on the story of the Brock's factory on other Web sites. However, to quote from the Mr C. T. Brock himself:
"The success of the fireworks at the Crystal Palace having become an accomplished fact, I built extensive works at Nunhead and commenced manufacturing on a scale never previously dreamt of in the trade - the vast expanse of the locale of my displays obviously necessitating extraordinary expenditure of material"
(Pyrotechnics: The History and art of firework making by A. st H. Brock, (London, 1922), p.47)
According to this book, the factory was the site of a great series of experiments from the early 1870s which lead to the development of the Explosives Act 1875. The factory was apparently built with especial regard to safety and as a result of the Act fireworks accidents decreased markedly.
What I still haven't been able to find is the exact location of the factory. Apocryphaly the pub stands on the site, but that seems a little small, and why is Brock Street on the other side of the Green?
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