In the 18th century, the centre of smuggling was Mother Redcap’s, a tavern that stood on the site that the nursing now stands. An elderly lady called Poll Jones, well known to smugglers and privateers, acting as a banker, lookout and minder of their plunder while they were at sea.
She was know for wear a scarlet bonnet as her preferred head dress, giving her the nick name Mother Redcap.