The Lad in the Lane is a public house

Public house

A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...

 located in the Bromford

Bromford

Bromford is an industrial area of Birmingham, situated between Ward End and Erdington.- Toponomy :In Old English, "Bromford" means "broom ford", signifying abundance of broom shrubs and a location to cross the River Tame....

 area of Erdington

Erdington

Erdington is a suburb northeast of Birmingham city centre, England and bordering Sutton Coldfield. It is also a council constituency, managed by its own district committee...

 in Birmingham

Birmingham

Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. Dating to the year 1400, it is considered to be the oldest house and pub in the city, although The Old Crown

The Old Crown, Birmingham

The Old Crown a pub in Deritend, is the oldest extant secular building in Birmingham, England. It is Grade II* listed, and claims to date back to circa 1368, retaining its "black and white" timber frame, although almost all of the present building dates from the early 16th century.-History:It is...

 in Digbeth

Digbeth

Digbeth is an area of Birmingham, England. Following the destruction of the Inner Ring Road, Digbeth is now considered a district within Birmingham City Centre. As part of the Big City Plan, Digbeth is undergoing a large redevelopment scheme that will regenerate the old industrial buildings into...

 claims to date from 1368, a date which is yet to be confirmed. Prior to the dating of the building, New Shipton Barn in Walmley

Walmley

Walmley is an area of Sutton Coldfield, England. It is in south Sutton Coldfield, near to Minworth, Wylde Green, Erdington and south of Thimble End. It is approximately northeast of Birmingham city centre...

 was considered to be the oldest building in Birmingham, dating to around 1425. To find the construction date of the building, scientists used a technique called dendrochronology

Dendrochronology

Dendrochronology or tree-ring dating is the scientific method of dating based on the analysis of patterns of tree-rings. Dendrochronology can date the time at which tree rings were formed, in many types of wood, to the exact calendar year...

 to analyse the timbers in the oldest known part of the building. The results showed that it was constructed in the spring at the end of the 14th century.

When constructed in 1400, it was used as a home for a family of high status. It is believed to have remained as a house until the early 1780s, when it was converted into a pub by the owners who were established in 1306. Throughout its lifetime as a pub, it has also been known as The Green Man and the Old Green Man. It was used by foresters who worked for the Earl of Warwick

Earl of Warwick

Earl of Warwick is a title that has been created four times in British history and is one of the most prestigious titles in the peerages of the British Isles.-1088 creation:...

. In the 1930s, the pub was extended and altered.

On April 25, 1952, the building received listed status. This was altered on July 8, 1982 so that it became a Grade II listed building.