 | | The Seven Stars is in Thomas Lane |
It is incredible that it's still here. The earliest reference in the Bristol Record Office is 1697, when Sir John Hawkins acquired it when buying the brewery that would later become Georges. Tucked away up a back street, it has had a later façade added to it. Internationally, the pub is of huge significance because of its involvement with the abolition movement. Thomas Clarkson, whist a lowly cleric, gathered evidence here with the help of Seven Stars landlord Thompson, for William Wilberforce. The results were crucial in changing public opinion, initially for the plight of British seaman, but then for the enslaved African. Without doubt, Clarkson and Thompson were extremely brave, going against some powerful and ruthless men. Last November, whilst taking part in Bristol Radical History Week, I was relating the history of the pub when Peter Linebaugh – one of the star speakers – pointed out an amazing coincidence.
In America, the Seven Stars (or ‘Drinking Gourd’) played a major part in the freeing of slaves. The “Drinking Gourd” is a famous coded Slavery song (‘pilot verse’) which gave runaways directions to the North (Freedom) Star and safety. The fact that the pub could have had any one of hundreds of names made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. Mark Steeds is a local historian and publican. He is speaking at The Seven Stars on Friday, 9 March, 2007 as part of Bristol Radical History Group's events to mark Abolition. | 
