First mention of this inn was in 1636 when it was held by one John Ward, and though the brick exterior gives it the appearance of being a much later building, they cover a timber-frame structure the foundations of which were likely to have been laid in the 16th century. Former town brewers Hawkes & Co bought the Star in 1808.

An entrance at the corner of the building that once opened onto Water Lane was bricked-up in the early 1900s, perhaps to protect departing patrons from potential accidents due to increased traffic. The side of the building is half covered in traditional weatherboard, while at the rear can be found the inn’s old water pump and former stables. The stable yard later became a car park but is now a small pub garden. And in the early 20th century the Star advertised accommodation for cyclists, making it particularly popular with people from local villages who would stop overnight to ensure an early start to Thursday’s market.

Former celebrated local artist, John Kynnersley Kirby (See Guide 11), a painter of many local scenes and characters in the early 1900s, once used the interior of the Star for a painting entitled ‘The Slate Club Secretary’. In it he portrayed a freelance journalist named Jimmy Sell set against the pub’s smoke-laden Victorian wallpaper.

Several shops occupy the south side of Bridge Street, all, apart from the brick building next to the Black Lion, housed in two 17th century timber-frame buildings. The upper floor of the smallest of these buildings still leans precariously into the street as it did when first built and, inside, its original timber framework is now fully exposed, as is the fireplace at the rear of the shop that is almost certainly original.

The larger building next to it houses three shops and is two and a half-storeys high, the half-storey being added in the mid-late 17th century to accommodate attic rooms. It has four gables and three first floor bay windows, although the bays were not part of the original construction. Perhaps the most fascinating of these shops is G.H. Wilson’s ‘Specialist Confectioners and Tobacconist’, although the once large and varied selection of cigars are now no longer available. Sweets, however, are still sold from glass jars and children can fill a bag with a variety of penny treats.

Sadly, George Wilson is no longer with us but the establishment of his first shop goes back to 1926 when he arrived here from Derbyshire and bought a former kiosk that stood alongside the old Empire cinema in South Street. Up until 1915, when The Empire closed, the kiosk was where cinema goers bought their sweets and cigarettes (See Guide 15 Cinemas). George continued there until the early 1970s when both the former cinema and kiosk were demolished to make way for a new Tesco's store. He then moved to these premises in Bridge Street.

George Wilson is perhaps best remembered in the town for the part he played in the successes of the town's football club. Shortly after joining the supporters club he became a committee member in 1927, then president, and finally chairman in the 1940s. He was the man most responsible for Bishop's Stortford FC rising from local league football in the 1920s to become one of the top non-league clubs in the country during the 1970s. His greatest honour, however, came in 1970 when the club showed its gratitude by renaming the Rhodes Avenue ground, George Wilson Stadium (See Guide 12 Rhodes Avenue). George died in 1982, aged 90. His former shop is now under different ownership but still carries his name. MORE PICTURES