Heritage

Bufferland was developed between the 1840's and 1860's. Local legend has it that the Alma Inn was opened in 1854 by a soldier returning from the Crimean war and that the pub stood in isolation for some years before other housing was built along North Street and Bufferland Terrace. If this is so, The Alma would have been an illegal beer house as the first licence for the pub was obtained in 1869 by sail-maker Charles Reynolds! Elizabeth Reynolds was Land-Lady between 1874 and 1879 when The Alma became one of several pubs under the control of local brewer and spirit merchant William B. Price. Various tenants were installed by Mr Price during the 1880's and early 1890's, but none lasted very long. At the turn of the 20th century, Mrs Susan Anderson was the licensee, having taken the reigns in 1897 and leaving in 1910, shortly after she was fined a hefty £20 for "permitting drunkenness on licensed premises". Maurice Williams took over as tenant and purchased the pub in 1914. In that year he drew up plans for an attractive new-look pub, pointing out, in a letter to the council, that "the age of the building calls for immediate repair". His plans confirm that The Alma was once a single storey cottage pub as the application was for a two storey building with three upstairs bedrooms. Further research shows that the owners lounge, front door and pub television room were once an adjoining cottage. However, probably due to the outbreak of war, the rebuilding never took place at that time. Mr Williams employed several managers to run The Alma right up until 1930, when he once again took the helm himself, remaining in charge until 1943, when Albert Gosling took over. Local builder Cyril Walden took over in 1961 and the pub finally got its second storey. It was during the 1960's that the cottage next to The Alma was purchased and a second storey was added to it.

Max & Julie Shankland, the current owners, purchased the Alma in April 2004 and soon embarked on a programme of repair, renovation and rebuilding, starting with all new seating and bar area. Local builder, Shaun Smith, was contracted to build an attractive extension, more than doubling the capacity of the pub and incorporated an all decked continental style Beer Garden into his innovative design. Once the work was completed, on time and on budget in July 2005, Shaun's high standards of workmanship and commitment ensured he was first choice for Julie Shankland's own design for the renovation of the toilet area and at the time of writing, Shaun's team are nearing completion of the fourth stage of the renovation, replacement of the floor in the bar area with a traditional wooden floor.

It is a credit to both the design team and the builders that the Alma has lost none of its original character but rather had it enhanced and improved. As Max said on a recent Radio Pembrokeshire interview, "The Alma has been an important part of this community for over 150 years. The patrons who spend their hard earned cash here deserve more for their money than just a drink in return. We are putting as much back into the Alma as we can. The customers deserve it, the pub deserves it". If you have any stories about The Alma, old photographs or any details or memories you would like to share, we would love to hear from you. Contact us here