WHEN walking through the town centre residents may notice a unique pelican figure standing above Buttermarket Street.

But few will know the building located below is one of the town's most historic buildings, with its association with Warrington dating back to 1849.

It was then when owners John and James Lawton dissolved their partnership of the nightspot to go their separate ways before businessman Harry Painter kept it trading as the Pelican Vaults.

However, between 1885 and 1895 the building underwent a name change to The Pelican Inn and became home to an elaborate hanging lamp, as well as a toffee-coloured tiled facade.

But there were major changes to the site to come as part of a road-widening scheme in the town.

In 1915 to aid traffic congestion, the council reached an agreement with Greenall Whitley brewery, which owned the Pelican at this point, regarding a demolition of the original building and a rebuilding scheme.

The First World War delayed the start of the renovation project but The Pelican Inn was eventually rebuilt on roughly the same spot before 1930.

Warrington Museum and Art Gallery said the new pub was designed with a neo-Georgian facade by architects Wright and Hamlyn.

It was at this point that the iconic pelican sculpture was added and soon after it became a popular spot for soldiers.

During the Second World War it was a particular favourite with Americans from the Burtonwood base, who would drink there before regularly visiting the town's casino club to enjoy jazz or the neighbouring Empire Cinema to catch a film.

Alfred Clemo, treasurer of Warrington Older People's Forum, was a regular visitor after the war and admits not all at the venue saw eye to eye.

"I used the pub quite a lot – it used to be nicknamed The Dirty Bird but it was not dirty, it was just a nickname that came about," he said.

"It was still used by Americans around 1946 and 1947 and I remember one night there was a punch up between the locals and the Americans.

"Unfortunately for the Americans there were a lot of hard knocks going in there."

Denys Brislen owned the pub when it was scheduled to close in March 1968.

The facade was re-modelled and the building was handed over for retail use and split into two units.

The larger right hand unit has long been a building society, having been a National and Provincial and then a Cheltenham and Gloucester, before recently being rebranded as a TSB.

However, those passing by can still see elements of the building's history, including the drainpipes with the letters GW on the spouts, standing for the Greenall Whitley brewery, and of course the Pelican still remains a keen onlooker.