The Old Ship Hotel is believed to date from 1559, as an unnamed house owned by Richard and John Gilham. It is the oldest hotel in
Brighton, and the first known record was in 1665. The building was purchased in 1671 by Nicholas Tettersell, who owned the boat
Charles II used to get to France. Until 1777, the building hosted the town's
post office. and
Samuel Johnson; Johnson had an argument with the local priest, Henry Michell. In 1780, the assembly rooms hosted card evenings on Tuesday and Saturday, although the ballroom was later closed in 1814. The building was expanded in 1794, and the Ship Street corner block was added in 1835.
Charles Dickens stayed at the hotel in 1841, By 1885, the assembly rooms had been turned into auction rooms. The assembly rooms became a
Grade II* listed building in 1952. ==Notes==