The Crown was built in 1821 by Frank Beattie, one of the first Langholm people to ‘ride the marches’ (see Common Riding), and it has had a close association with the event ever since.
It was bought by Adam Watt (1884-1913), owner of the Douglas Hotel, in 1889. Adam was involved in a number of court cases over the years and was fined for unlawfully keeping an open house, selling short measures, supplying alcohol to someone already under its influence and keeping a dangerous dog. He also took his dentist to court.
After his death in 1913, the Crown was owned by his trust, with the keeper being Barbara Younger nee Cramb from Dunblane in Perthshire. Her husband David had also died in 1913, leaving her to run the hotel alone. David had been a hotel porter in Dunblane before he and Barbara moved to Langholm.
The Youngers had three sons and three daughters, with one son old enough to be of military age. George joined the Royal Highlanders (the Black Watch) and received a gunshot wound to the head in France in September 1915 (see 13th October in the Diary). After five weeks in the Lord Derby War Hospital in Warrington and other recuperation, he returned to France in March 1916 and survived the war, although he received another gunshot wound, this time to the hand.
Barbara was still the hotelkeeper in 1920 but then handed over to William Cameron from Skipton in Yorkshire. By 1925 the hotel had been sold to proprietor/keeper Robert Kirkpatrick.