During the English Civil War, the Inn was occupied by Cromwell’s officers, but later taken by the King’s Men-At-Arms, suffering raids by deserters from Cromwell’s Ironsides.
In 1792, the Innkeeper shot and wounded the famous Highwayman Edmund Grosse, who was later tried and hung at Lancaster Castle. His body was filled with tar and stretched on a gibbet, where it remained on the parish’s Hanging Green Lane for over 2 years.
By 1812, at the height of the coaching trade, a lantern room had been constructed to guide travellers over the sands to the inn, and the stables were extended; they could now hold 16 horses and four drivers, as well as a rescue team for the treacherous Morecambe Crossing.
The inn also served as the meeting place for the Manor Court of Slyne-With-Hest, with most of the inquests and hearing being held at the pub. Its popularity further increased in the 1840s due to the regular hosting of sporting events, such as bare-knuckle boxing and horse racing.
Whilst the 1846 opening of the Furness Railway devastated the coaching trade, it brought a whole new clientele to the inn. In 1890, according to the station master, up to 800 people were arriving at the Hest Bank Station each day.
