Knocking on the door to the past

I was talking recently with some friends about answering the door or answering the telephone to unexpected callers, and how these days we often choose not to. This set me thinking back to a conversation I had with another friend years ago who said: "if you can't drop in unexpectedly on your parents, then who can you drop in on?" I must have been thinking about this a lot lately because I dreamed one evening that my parents dropped in on me when I was out, but others in my house were in, so when I got home I was horrified - not horrified to see my parents, but horrified because I hadn't vacuumed for 4 days, the place was untidy and the washing basket was overflowing. And as for the dust ... well!

So these days, I wouldn't dream of calling in on anybody without either phoning them, texting them or emailing them to arrange a suitable time for a visit. I might walk past their house on a regular basis, but I certainly wouldn't interrupt their life without due warning. And even if we did arrange something, we'd be more likely to meet for tea in a cafe in town!

But, as we know, this closed door society hasn't always been like this. Years ago people didn't even used to shut their front door, kids played in the street and not only would you pop in and chat with your friends and neighbours, you'd even - horror or horrors - borrow some sugar from them!

This led me to the curious thought of who from Loughborough's past would I call in on if I happened to be around during their lifetime! Here's some of those who are on my list - and it is just some of them, as there are hundreds more!

• In 1891 I'd visit William Clarke, who was part of the Clarke's Dyeworks family, at The Gables on Forest Road. It's student accommodation now, but I wonder what it would have been like inside as a new house around 1891? And what would William and his family have been like? In 1911 I'd have called in on his widow, Laura, who was now living at no.55 Park Road. That house would surely have been magnificent in those days. In early 1953 I'd have visited William's son, also William, at his home at no.3 Park Street, unaware that this was probably the last time I'd see him.

• In 1889 I'd pop in to see Arthur Paget and his wife, Rose, in Radmoor House, to hear how exciting it was to have an invention displayed at the recent Paris Exposition! Arthur died in 1895, and Rose moved away, so, later that year, I'd drop in an Ernest Coltman, son of Huram Coltman, boilermaker, and see how the house and nearby grounds had changed.

• In 1891 I'd mount the steps of no.20 Burton Street to pop in on Thomas Messenger and talk about the old Messenger business he sold to Walter Burder in 1874. In 1911 I'd be calling in two doors down, at no.22, to pass the time of day with Henry Corah, who ran a printing business. 1939 would see me again calling in at no.20 to see what architectural plans Arnold Barrowcliff was currently working on.

• In the meantime, in 1891 I'd pop in to see how Walter Burder was getting on in his new house, Field House, after moving here from Park Road. Then I'd walk over to The Elms, off the Leicester Road and see how his younger brother, Alfred was getting on in his big house.  

• Having visited Edward Middleton, owner of Middleton's Bank in Market Place, at his home in the Grove on Ashby Road (now student halls) in 1871, I'd then walk up to Leicester Road, to visit his son Edward William Craddock Middleton and his wife Augusta Sophia. They're living in Shelthorpe Cottage, a beautiful house in a park setting - lovely and quiet! In 1887 Edward died, and Augusta Sophia continued to live in Shelthorpe House, but eventually moved to Fairfield House, now known as the White House, probably to get away from the steam of the new Great Central Railway, and the constant machinery of the new Tucker's brick works, which both opened around 1898-9. In 1907 I'd pop in to Fairfield House and chat about the recent events Mrs Middleton had been to - she's a very social lady and has numerous friends!

And this would leave me plenty of other folk to visit on other days!

You are welcome to quote passages from any of my posts, with appropriate credit. The correct citation for this looks as follow:

Dyer, Lynne (2019). Knocking on the door to the past. Available from:  [Accessed  14 July 2019]

Take down policy:

I post no pictures that are not my own, unless I have express permission so to do. All text is my own, and not copied from any other information sources, printed or electronic, unless identified and credited as such. If you find I have posted something in contravention of these statements, or if there are photographs of you which you would prefer not to be here, please contact me at the address listed on the About Me page, and I will remove these.

Thank you for reading this blog. 

Lynne 

      

Zeppelins Lincoln Taylor Loughborough

Before last week's post I think we were on the topic of Taylors, and bells of theirs that I'd found on my recent travels. So, let's leave the continuation of that one for next week (but do please remind me!), and let's talk Zeppelins instead!!!

I've blogged quite a bit about Zeppelins over the years, but today I want to tell you about a fantastic talk I went to last week on the subject of these airships, especially in relation to their raids on Lincoln.

Over the last couple of months I've been lucky enough to be in communication with the country's leading expert on Zeppelins of the First World War, the aviation historian and writer Ian Castle. Now, Ian lives many miles from Loughborough, but when I heard he was coming to Lincoln museum to do a talk, I was there like a shot! 

Actually, we spent the day doing a few other things first. A trip to Kelham Hall was revelatory! A beautiful Victorian Gothic Hall in a country park, designed by George Gilbert Scott, the very same architect you renovated our own church of All Saints with Holy Trinity. The hall is used as a wedding venue, but if there are no weddings going on, people are welcome to walk around the whole place! At one time the hall was home to an  Anglican order of monks, and there is still evidence of this to be seen. The grounds seem to contain a small caravan park, a maze rather like the one at Wistow, and the church and churchyard of the parish of Kelham, St Wilfred's. 

After spending a glorious couple of hours here, we went off to Upton Hall, now home to the Museum of Timekeeping. Fascinating place! Full of ticking and chiming clocks! I think it would drive me mad to stay there for long!!! But, the setting was charming, and some of the clocks, especially the long case clocks, were really beautiful. Interestingly, there were quite a few Gent (of Leicester) clocks, so it was good to see those. What I hadn't expected to see was a medium-sized bell. I suppose I should have really. And - you know what's coming - it was a Taylor's bell!!!! 

After a quick visit to the tearooms, we made our way into Lincoln city. We parked down by the canal and walked up past the cathedral before popping into a Pizza Express for tea. I'm not normally one for eating in national chains, but I wholeheartedly support PE who always seem to choose old buildings and renovate them to a great standard, like our former nurses' home, which not only did they renovate, but actually brought back into use. 

Fed and watered we then made our way to the Lincoln Museum, called The Collection where we had a guided tour around the Bastion in the Air exhibition, which focussed on the rising threat to Britain from aerial attacks by airships. The tour was led by Brian Riley, a former officer in the RAF, who really made the exhibition come alive.

And then, we excitedly made our way to the auditorium to hear all about airship attacks on Lincoln and Lincolnshire. This was absolutely fascinating! So many things chimed with me, when I compared what I was hearing to what I knew about the Zeppelin attacks on our own town. The attacks on Lincoln were many and through an interesting story, and some animated slides Ian showed us all the location of every attack on the area, named every airship and every captain, shared with us details of the killed and the injured - and told us about every sheep or cow that died in the attacks. 

It was on the night of 31st January 1916 that Zeppelin L20 dropped bombs on Loughborough, and that same night Lincolnshire was also being attacked.

To end the intensity and solemnity of the events, the speaker showed us examples of the humour adopted by the people of Britain, through postcards of the time.

All-in-all, a very exciting day!!

As if that weren't enough, the following day I was lucky to be able to attend the family event at The Grove, one of my favourite houses in Loughborough, now a student hall, but previously home to many familiar Loughborough names included Edward Chatterton Middleton. 

These visits were sandwiched between a couple of organ concerts given by visiting organists at All Saints with Holy Trinity. Tonight's concert started with a lively Bach Prelude and Fugue and finished with a contemplative piece, played by David Cowen, Associate Organist at Leicester Cathedral. 

Well, I think that's about it for tonight!! I've got a busy week next week - did I tell you about the new book launch? Do come along if you can!

You are welcome to quote passages from any of my posts, with appropriate credit. The correct citation for this looks as follow:

Dyer, Lynne (2018). Zeppelins Lincoln Taylor Loughborough. Available from: https://lynneaboutloughborough.blogspot.com/2018/08/zeppelins-lincoln-taylor-loughborough.html  [Accessed 12 August 2018]

Take down policy:

I post no pictures that are not my own, unless I have express permission so to do. All text is my own, and not copied from any other information sources, printed or electronic, unless identified and credited as such. If you find I have posted something in contravention of these statements, or if there are photographs of you which you would prefer not to be here, please contact me at the address listed on the About Me page, and I will remove these.

Thank you for reading this blog. 

Lynne

                   

A Society Wedding

A couple of week’s ago I wrote a post about the Rev. Henry Fearon, which included some very brief reports of marriage ceremonies he performed, and which included some well-known Loughborough names. This week, I thought I’d expand on that a bit and share with you a report of a society wedding from 1864.

Although this wedding took place in Ashby-de-la-Zouch, the bridegroom, Edward William Craddock Middleton, was an important figure in Victorian Loughborough, being a banker and the youngest child and only son of Edward Chatterton Middleton and his wife, Anna Maria (1). Edward Chatterton Middleton was one owner of the “Loughborough Bank”, which had its premises in Loughborough Market Place.

Mr Middleton’s bride, Augusta Sophia Vavasour, from Ashby-de-la-Zouch, was the daughter of the Rev. Marmaduke Vavasour and his wife Mary Ann St John. Marmaduke Vavasour was vicar of Ashby, honorary canon of Peterborough Cathedral, and son of Thomas Hippon Vavasor, a merchant from Rochdale.

During their married life Edward William Craddock and Augusta Sophia lived at Shelthorpe Cottage (see below for a picture). This house is now The Cedars Hotel on Cedars Road. After the death of her husband, Augusta Sophia moved to the White House, so called because it was originally built in about 1823 for the White family who were owners in the hosiery company Paget and White. This house is now Fairfield House and is part of Fairfield School (pic below).

There are a number of people mentioned in this report. Rather than try and explain who they were by inserting the info in square brackets, I’ve included a list towards the bottom of the report. 

So, who exactly are we talking about?

“Marriage of E.W.C. Middleton, Esq.. 

On Tuesday last [7 June 1864], the pleasant town of Ashby-de-la-Zouch was the scene of unusual animation and gaiety, form early dawn till evening, the day being appointed for the marriage of Edward William Craddock Middleton, Esq., junior partner in the well-known banking establishment of Middleton, Cradock & Middleton, Loughborough, with Miss Augusta Sophia Vavasour, youngest daughter of the Rev. Marmaduke Vavasour, the esteemed Vicar of Ashby, and honorary canon of Peterborough.”

What report would be complete without comments about the weather?

“The morning was a most charming one for the occasion; the sun shone forth brilliantly, and everything seemed to wear a joyous aspect.

Two archways, composed of evergreens, and were tastefully ornamented with flowers and banners, were erected in the churchyard.”

This really was one society wedding because:

“By ten o’clock a singularly animated and cheerful appearance presented itself, from the large number of persons who had congregated in the churchyard. It was literally lined with the inhabitants of the town, and almost every pew in the sacred edifice was occupied by a most respectable and well conducted congregation, while hundreds had to content themselves with remaining outside, and others in order to catch a glimpse of the fair bride ascended to the lower roof of the church.”

And what of the bride?

“The bride, on reaching the avenue leading to the church, followed by the long line of bridesmaids, had her path strewed with flowers by the school children who were stationed in the following order:- On the right hand were the boys of the Blue and Green Coat Schools and on the left the girls of the National School, all of whom held a bunch of flowers in their hands.

The bridal party reached St Helen’s church at a quarter past eleven o’clock. The lovely bride entered leaning on the arm of her father, and the bridegroom and his party advanced from the vestry to meet them at the altar.

The bride was dressed in white moiré antique, wearing a wreath of lilies of the valley and range blossoms, with long tulle veil. She also held a splendid bouquet in her hand, and as she passed up the church to the communion she was observed of all the observers.”

Sounds like the bridesmaids were out in force too!

“There were eight bridesmaids, each being dressed in white glace silk, the bodies being trimmed in pale blue. Their bonnets were of tulle, trimmed with bouquets of blue flowers both inside and out, and long tulle veils reaching to the end of the dress behind. Each of them held a beautiful bouquet. The following are the names of the young ladies who officiated on the occasion:- Miss Vavasour (sister of the bride) (2), Miss Monk, Miss Louisa St John, Miss Fanny St John (cousins of the bride) (3), Miss Louisa Echalaz, Miss Beatrice Echalaz, and Miss Smith.”

And the guests?

“The following gentlemen attended:- John Cradock, Esq. (groomsman), William Paget, Esq., Walter Paget, Esq. (4), R.P Laurie, Esq., Bruce Campbell, Esq., Rev C. Anderson, Arthur Douglas, Esq., and Dr Eddowes (5).

Amongst the bridal party were Mrs Vavasour, E.C. Middleton, Esq., and Mrs Middleton, Captain and Mrs Hunter (6), Mr and Mrs Vavasour (7), Mr and Mrs St John (8), Mr and Mrs Denton (9), Mr Balguy, Mr St Aubin, etc..”

The ceremony:

“The nuptial ceremony was performed by he Rev. J.F.S. Vavasour (10), brother of the bride, curate of Sconby assisted by the Rev. J.M.Gresley (11), brother-in-law of the bride, and her esteemed father gave her away in marriage.

At the conclusion of the impressive ceremony the newly-married couple and nearest friends adjourned to the vestry, where the customary registration took place.”

Everyone loves a good wedding, not least the children!

“A very novel but pretty scene was then witnessed. Two little girls, Miss Webster and Miss Denton (12), and two little boys, Master Gresley and Master Denton (13), who, during the ceremony at the altar remained in the rear one of each bearing a basket of rosettes, now followed the bridal party into the vestry and distributed the contents of the baskets amongst them. The bridal party then retired and the organ, which upon their entering the church had given out some chants suitable to the occasion, now played a well-known wedding march; Mr W.Adlington, of Derby (and formerly of Loughborough), most ably presiding at the organ.”

And the sound of church bells -

“The bells of St Helen’s also rang forth one of their merriest peals, and the cheers of the people greeted the bridal party as they returned to the vicarage.”

Sounds like a good feast was had by all:

“The wedding breakfast took place in a spacious marquee on the lawn, in front of which the whole of the school children had been previously regaled with cakes and wine, their happy countenances testifying their share of the happy day’s joy.

A very rich and splendid repast was served out in the most sumptuous manner, to which above fifty sat down; the bride cake, a conspicuous object on all such occasions, being placed in the centre of the table. The healths of the happy bride and bridegroom were cordially proposed and most feelingly responded to.”

And afterwards:

“The bride’s presents, which were very numerous and costly, were displayed in the library, and formed, indeed a most beautiful sight.

After breakfast the happy pair proceeded to Derby, in chaise and four greys, with postillion en route to The Lakes, on their wedding tour.

The day’s festivities were brought to a close by a ball in the National School-room, which was nicely decorated, and at which there was a numerous and brilliant assembly. The band of the Hastings Rifle Corps were in attendance, and enlivened the company until the early dawn.

At Loughborough, too, the fine-toned bells of All Saints Church rang out a merry peal, and continued ringing at intervals during the whole day, and we are sure their music was only an expression of the congratulation of the entire inhabitants of the native town of the bridegroom, - a town which delights to do honour to the name Middleton, thus carrying out the good old principle “honour to whom honour is due”, with all good wishes for the newly married pair.”

From: Nottinghamshire Guardian, Friday 10 June 1864, p.3, issue 960

(1) Edward Chatterton Middleton and his wife, Anna Maria Stanbrough were married in 1834, and had three children: Clara Maria, Louisa Elizabeth and Edward William Craddock. Clara married Robert Hunter, a Captain in the army, whiles Louisa married Edmund Eddowes, a clergyman, son of John Henry Eddowes a doctor in Loughborough. 

(2) Miss Vavasour (sister of the bride) could be Louisa Jane

(3) Miss Louisa St John, Miss Fanny St John (cousins of the bride) would be children of Augusta’s mother’s brother(s).

(4) William Paget, Esq., Walter Paget, Esq., If these were friends of the bridgegroom, then they are likely to be William Byerley Paget and Frederick Walter Paget, sons of William Paget, descendants of the owners of the hosiery firm Paget and White. William Byerley went on to become the owner of Southfield House and later of Nanpantan Hall.  

(5) Dr Eddowes would probably be Dr John Henry Eddowes.

(6) Captain Robert Hunter and Clara, nee Middleton.

(7) This was probably Maramduke Walter and his wife Sybil Catherine, nee Holdsworth

(8) Mr and Mrs St John would be the parents of Louisa and Fanny in (3) above, and brother of May Ann St John, Augusta’s mother.

(9) Mr and Mrs Denton are John Denton who was married to Augusta’s sister Mary Ann Elizabeth.

(10) The Rev. John Francis St John Stukeley, the bride’s brother

(11) Rev. John Morewood Gresley was married to Augusta’s sister Penelope.

(12) Miss Webster was daughter of Frances Barbara, Augusta’s sister and her husband Montagu, so could have been either Louisa (8), or Mary Ann (4), and Miss Denton was either Mary C.P., or Alice Louisa, daughter of Mary Ann Elizabeth, Augusta’s sister, and her husband John Denton.

(13) Master Gresley could have been any of the four boys born to Augusta’s sister Penelope and her husband John Morewood Gresley, so either Nigel (14), Geoffrey (12), William (11), Roger (9) or Lawrence (8) and Master Denton was either Henry St Aubyn, or John Henry St Aubyn, son of Ann Elizabeth and John.

The photos!

St Helen’s Church, Ashby-de-la-Zouch

The grave of John Denton

St Helen's Church

The sundial

Inside the church

Another view inside the church

The pulpit

The Lord Hastings

The memorial to Mary Ann Elizabeth Denton (nee Vavasour)

The White House

The Grove, the Middleton family home

The memorial stone for ECM, EWCM & ASM

The gravestone of the Rev. Henry Fearon

Another view of the White House

The Cedars, formerly Shelthorpe Cottage

Spotlight on Middleton Place

Mysteries of Middleton Place uncovered

Origins

Much of Loughborough in the latter part of the 19th century was given over to farms and farmland. According to Charnwood Borough Council (2006) the area on which Herrick Road, Park Road, and Middleton Place is built, was originally mostly made up of trees:

Coming up to the entrance to Middleton Place

“The estate consisted of several fields, some 17 acres with fruit trees and hovels (presumably agricultural sheds), lying between Far Park Lane [now Park Road] and Middle Park Lane [now Beacon Road] ... It was divided into 50 plots of about a third of an acre each.”

In 1875 bylaws were introduced that specified room sizes and ventilation standards. This meant that the building of small, plain terraced houses, like those on Albert Street and Victoria Street, and Oxford Street, Paget Street etc., stopped and houses became more flamboyant, with elaborate bay windows and being built in a grid, with, what I would call a side passage, but with what you, coming from Leicestershire, would call a side entry.

Middleton Place is named after Mr Middleton, who died in 1878, who may also have been at one time the landowner. Edward Chatterton Middleton was the joint owner of Loughborough Bank, with one Mr Craddock, and his son, Edward William Craddock Middleton. The Borough Council (2006) suggests that Mr Middleton [snr.] died leaving behind debts of about £10,000: This is an over-simplification of the situation, but as this is not the main subject of my discussion here, I refer you to Day (1986) where the matter is fully investigated, and to newspaper reports of the time (Times 1878, London Gazette 1878 & 1882), which make for interesting reading.  

In 1881 Mr Middleton’s debt was cleared, possibly by the surrender of the aforementioned land, which was then freed up for the building of houses, and by 1889 the first six houses had been built on Middleton Place. According to a 1901 map of Loughborough, Middleton Place was called Middle Park Lane, but people recorded their address on the 1901 census returns as Middleton Place. I suspect that the naming of the street was at least in part in honour of the previous landowner: As well as being a respected banker, he was also a Justice of the Peace, Sheriff of Leicestershire, Paymaster to the Leicestershire Yeomanry Cavalry, and laid the foundation stone of the cemetery chapel.

Build, build, build

Right to left: Nos. 3-13

So, these first houses to be built on the street were built on the shorter arm of Middleton Place:
If you imagine the street to be like a letter r then the houses were on the top line of the r.
There were six of them, and they were numbered 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, and 13. There must have been some reason for this numbering, but I admit, that had it been me, I would have used numbers 1-11! 

At the time of the 1891 census, all the houses except number 3 were occupied: If there were any occupants, perhaps they were away visiting relatives!

Right to left: Nos. 53-59 



Right to left: Nos. 61-67

By 1901 a further 14 houses were constructed, in three blocks of four and one of two. These were on the long arm of the street, the upright of the r. These houses may have been built about the same year, and all were characteristic of the Victorian era, but each group had subtle differences from the others. Some (numbers 53, 55, 57, & 59) were quite distinctive, with elaborate wrought ironwork above the bay windows, and church window-style doors.

Others (61, 63, 65 & 67) all had bay windows, were slightly taller than 53-59, with rounded arches over the doors, and with the house name carved into shaped stone above the door (Sunnydene, Lyndene, Rosedale & Avondale), possibly called epigraphs!

Right to left: Nos. 77 to 83 

Numbers 77, 79, 81, and 83, have very similar doorways to 61-67 and, like 61-67, the house names – Mystrayla, Jesmond, Danesford, and Cresford - were carved into a stone block above the doorway, but these were a more plain rectangular shape. NB There is no number 75.

 

Right to left: Nos. 85 and 87

Assuming that the final two houses, numbers 85 and 87, have not been modernised, whilst still being Victorian, they appear to have broken away from the mould of the previous builds, being three-storey properties, with rooms in the attic, decorative woodwork slats above the doorways, and ornate ridge tiles and chimney pots. Although the date carved into the stone between the two houses is 1900, the properties do not appear on the census of 1901, not even being listed as unoccupied.

Victorian house-building often followed a pattern, and this might help to explain why the properties on Middleton Place were built in twos or multiples of twos. Apparently, houses were often built in pairs, and were owned by the same person, who lived in one of the pair, and rented out the other one.  

Left to right: Nos. 22-24

It wasn’t until 1925 that more house-building followed, with the construction of two almshouses. Numbers 22 and 24 were two bungalows, built by the Edgar Corah Trust. They were different from previous builds because, as well as being bungalows, with low roofs and pebble-dashed walls, they were built on the opposite side of the road from all the previous properties.

 

  

To the right of the lamppost - No. 69

Fill the gaps, please

Rather like today, if there were a gap between properties, it was likely to be filled, and this was indeed the case in 1930 when a single property, number 69, was tacked on to the end of one of the rows of terraces. However, this still left a little bit of space, so, between 1941 and 1945, a pair of semi-detached houses were built to completely fill that gap.

Right to left: Nos. 71 & 73

Right to left: Nos. 45 - 51

There followed a hiatus in house-building on Middleton Place, presumably due to the restrictions imposed after the war which stated that you had to prove a need to build new accommodation, and even then there were serious restrictions on building materials. However, in 1959, after the passing of the Housing Act 1957, two pairs of semi-detached houses were constructed on the corner with Oliver Road. In order to accommodate the corner, one pair was set back, well off the road.

Right to left: 15-23

A row of five dwellings, built in 1977, was attached to the first row of six Victorian terraced houses that were built, on the short arm of the road. The juxtaposition of these relatively modern properties, with their obvious low ceilings and up-and-over garage doors, with the stately redbrick, bay-windowed Victorian buildings is quite telling. 

The newest home

Joining the dwellings on the less well-developed side of the street, in about 1986, was another bungalow. So, similar only in that it was a bungalow, but in other respects quite different, with its brick construction, different roof tiles, and concrete and brick garden wall. This was the last of the new-builds on Middleton Place, at least, for the twentieth century!

No more room?

Over the years, and into this, the twenty-first century, there have been a number of developments on the street, with lots of improvements and extensions.

If you look closely at some of the earlier pictures you can see evidence of late 20th/early 21st- century loft conversions, rebuilt garden walls, and changes to windows.

So who lived on the street?

It is unlikely that the occupants of the new houses built on Middleton Place in the early 1900s were the owners; most would have rented their property. It is interesting to note the types of people who were living here and how these changed as the street grew. According to the 1891 census, when there were only five houses lived in, the inhabitants were not natives of Loughborough, with some coming from as far afield as Mauritius! Amongst the occupations of these folk were a schoolmaster, a teacher of classics, and a Methodist minister.

In 1901 about half the people who lived on the street were from Loughborough, and their jobs reflected the industry of the time: there were people who worked in the hosiery industry, an ironmonger and a blacksmith, as well as a nurse, a dressmaker, a watchmaker, and several apprentices.
  

By the time of the 1911 census, slightly more than two-thirds of the house-dwellers were originally from Loughborough, the rest coming from a whole range of areas, including Ireland, Scotland and Wales, Lincolnshire, Yorkshire, Lancashire, Derbyshire, Norfolk, and Staffordshire. The range of occupations they were involved in represented a cross-section of the community: There were several people living under their own means, and quite a number of the inhabitants had live-in servants. If you were to wander down Middleton Place in 1911 then you’d expect to be sweetened up by the local confectioner, measured up by the local tailor, or photographed as you perambulated! Other occupants of the street were engineers, apprentices, draughtsmen, joiners, and brick/tile manufacturers, as well as The Headmaster of the Art School and The Principal of the Technical Institute!

Today, you will find schoolteachers and university staff, librarians, local government workers, NHS employees, landscape gardeners, and retirees living on the street. Some have been living here for many years, while a few are fairly new to the street. Interestingly, number 51 was inhabited by the same owner from the time the house was built in 1959, to well into the 21^st century.

And what of the garages?

Part of the wooden garage block

Apart from the houses, there are also a number of garages on Middleton Place. Some of these are wooden and appear along the street, whilst there is a group of other wooden ones opposite numbers 3-13, which actually look rather spectacular.

One small group of garages on the street

Also, there is a group of 1970s garages with up and over doors, opposite numbers 15-23 and 45-49. Before these garages were built the area housed the school kitchens where they cooked meals for all the local schools. After that, the area was used for a coal merchants depot (possibly called Martins, owned by Edgar Martin's father). Later in the twentieth century, the garage area was the headquarters for a taxi firm, but this was short-lived as house owners in the area complained about the persistent noise, somewhat ironic as now the area seems to be regularly used as a car park by a Loughborough taxi firm!

What does the future hold?

Loft conversion in progress, 2010

We cannot know what changes will be seen on Middleton Place in the future. A recent application to build a pair of semi-detached houses beyond number 85, where there are currently several garages, was refused. The work on a loft conversion at number 49 has been completed, and a loft conversion and extension have recently been added to number 73 and have also been requested for number 71.

Loft conversion completed

The owner of the land opposite numbers 15-23, which is currently given over to garages died a couple of years ago, and the land passed to his beneficiaries; so one does wonder what may be in store for this land, but so far all that appears to have happened is a general clear-up of the area, a small fire in one of the skips, and the Leylandii trees have been severely cut back!

And in a similar vein, the vista changed with the building of a house on a plot on Herrick Road previously occupied by a bungalow.

But, whatever may happen, the history of this street will be documented, through street directories, census returns, and other sources, like newspaper articles, and this will help to put the present day and the future into context for its inhabitants. Hopefully, it will remain the quiet backwater that it is currently.

Text slightly updated as new information comes to light (2022).

Further posts on Middleton Place are available: on the VE-Day celebrations in 2020 contains information about past residents, and the Woodward family once lived on Middleton Place. Middleton Place has also been used as a case study for the blog about the streets of Loughborough.