Constructed between 1821/1822

Please note that this text is an extract from a reference work written in 1990.  As a result, some of the content may not reflect recent research, changes and events.

j) KING’S ROAD : Before the construction of the King’s Road in 1821-2, traffic along the cliff top had to turn inland at Middle Street and Little East Street . The length of King’s Road between Little East Street and East Street was part of the new thoroughfare, but became a quiet backwater of the Old Town when it was superseded by the Grand Junction Parade in 1829. For details on the rest of this major road, see the main entry on ” King’s Road “.
No.6, Dolphin Cottage, is accessible only via a private passage near the corner with East Street , and is an unusual early survivor in this part of the town. The Queen’s Hotel (q.v) now occupies the entire block opposite. Part of the building in King’s Road , once a separate house, was designed by Amon Henry Wilds in around 1825 with four-storey bows, giant pilasters and  ammonite capitals; this part is now listed. {44}
At the corner with Little East Street stands Dr Brightons. Formerly the Star and Garter Hotel, it was dubbed Dr Brightons in the nineteenth century and the name has stuck; the proprietor posted a notice on the wall giving the ‘consulting hours’ and listing the ‘prescriptions of the finest quality’ which were available inside. The hotel has played host to many famous people, including Winston Churchill, Jack Dempsey, Charlie Chaplin, Richard Burton, and the Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII), and dates back to at least 1785 when twin Irish giants were exhibited there. In front of the original bow-fronted building stood a capstan which was removed in 1827 to make way for the construction of the Grand Junction Parade . This action provoked the last major argument between the town’s fishermen and other inhabitants {15,123}.

Any numerical cross-references in the text above refer to resources in the Sources and Bibliography section of the Encyclopaedia of Brighton by Tim Carder.

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