Several medieval buildings on the High Street, such as the George Hotel, the Ancient Priors and the Old Punch Bowl, met this need to some extent, but none were built for that purpose: all had been adapted from existing structures with different uses.

The Ancient Priors was built as a house with a small agricultural plot;[9] the Old Punch Bowl had been a large farmhouse;[10] and although the George had always been an inn, it expanded gradually and haphazardly across several neighbouring buildings.

A site 70 yards (64 m) further north[12] on the High Street was selected; this was large enough to provide both a bigger building and a substantial area at the rear for the stabling of horses.

[15] Architectural studies made in 1995 and 2003 attributed a date of around 1600 to the southern part of the building, suggesting that the inn was built around the core of an older structure.

[16] It was also one of Crawley's centres of commercial activity throughout the 19th century: the town's main post office was based there between 1810 (when a daily mail coach service between London and Brighton began)[17] and 1895,[15] and a corn exchange existed between 1800 and 1883.

[16] The post office was attached to the north side of the inn, and was demolished in the 1950s to make way for the Broadwalk—a pedestrian thoroughfare which formed an integral part of Crawley New Town's shopping centre.

[20] Stagecoach traffic declined in the late 19th century as trains, motor buses and cars successively became more popular, but some coaches continued to run until the 1940s.