Gosford Street

Thank you for that Duchman. Happy Days and does anyone remember the snooker club under the Tax office in Gosford St I would lie on the pavement to look in the window as the windows were on pavement level to watch my uncle Joe playing snooker.

I don't remember a snooker club Pauline but I do remember seeing blood donors lying on beds in the basement and a strong smell of hospital disinfectant. The building was on my route home from school and in summer they always left the windows open. That would have been directly opposite the Fox and Vivian.

Yes that's the place it was on my way home from school too but I only remember snooker. But the blood thing does ring a bell???

This is a long demolished building between The Palace Yard and Little Park Street (west of the passage to The Sword and Mace) on Earl Street. Roughly number 46. To me it seems to say INNOLV SAILOR. But it could be Tailor or anything else really. The date would have been early to mid eighteen hundreds. Anyone know what it does say and what number it was at?

"CONNOLY TAILOR" (with the "T" written in Olde English style) sounds likely?

That seems very plausible Dutchman. Thanks. I don't suppose you know an address for that? I'm trying to work out which building it matches in the maps/later images.

Hi Helen, it was lovely to bump into you on Wednesday at the record office,nice to put a face to someone There is a J CONNOLLY Tailor and draper advertising in Bull Ring in 1827. In 1832 he moves to High Street. In 1840 the premises were then sold for the benefit of the creditors. Don't know if that is any help.

Hi Anne, good to see you too. As I wrote up thread, if you would like a copy of the Troughton Bastille mill gate pictures and the fancy house beyond, let me know. It could easily be the same Connolly because people often mixed up the High Street and Earl Street. Still do.

According to Robertson & Gray's 1903 directory there was a Charles Crutchlow: ladies and baby linen warehouse at No48, immediately west of the entrance to the Sword & Mace yard so it may have been occupied by a tailor prior to that? Please see below for corrections

There were several tailors along that stretch including the corner of Little Park Street. Unfortunately the maps don't show a Connolly for the relevant space. There were about three shops windows (the first being a butcher (I think) after the Sword and Mace. I can see the Sword and Mace on the picture and the map but it's hard to work out where drawings match the plots. Does each window represent a shop? They don't look big enough but they can be deceptive. There are two, two storey medieval buildings and I'm trying to work out if they were the last before LPS or there was one more. The tall building just behind the medieval pair might be on LPS or the bank on the west corner. If I could pin point Connolly's it would tell me. Thanks.

I completely misread the Robertson & Gray 1903 directory (very small print). From Palace Yard it reads: 41: Herald & Free Press Office 42: Young (butcher) Court No3: formerly the Sword & Mace 43: Crutchlow (ladies and baby linen) 44: Edmund French (silk broker) 45: Samuel Brock (piano dealer) 46: Dalton & Co. (ribbon manufacturers) 47: Midland Counties District Bank 48: St Michael's Temperance Hotel and dining rooms 49: Stilwell & Sons (engravers) 50: Gibberds (clothing)

Helen, The only thing I have come up with so far is a picture in "The Coventry we have lost" that shows some of the buildings opposite the Council House with Gibberds and down the street, if that is any good to you I will scan it tomorrow. Yes, I would be most grateful for any of the Bastille Mill pictures you have to add to my tree, I think you have my email address. I will have a look to see if I can find any other pictures tomorrow. I have looked on the census but that just confirms what Dutchman has given you. You must have so much patience

OK I've chewed the extra information over (thanks Dutchman and Anne) and I've made several conclusions. Firstly I think the windows are deceptive and that they only cover 2 plots on the later map. The third plot No 45 was Connolly's. No 46 and 47 are the big building with 4 windows across the front. It looks similar to the building in that spot in later photos. That makes the Temperance Hotel the first of the two storey medieval buildings. Originally there would have been a third building beyond those, which must have been demolished by the time of the drawing. It made way for the tall building at the right, behind the medieval buildings on Little Park Street. Which must have echoed the bank on the opposite side of LPS because despite the different roof, it had a very similar front and styling. Later the two medieval buildings on the right were demolished and three storey buildings replaced them, partially widening both roads and creating Gibberds. The building on the corner of LPS/Earl Street merged with the tall building on LPS, removing the front so that it became one long curving building you see in the later aerial photos. If anyone come across an address for Connolly's it would still help but without more info, I think I've now got it squared with the data so far. Thanks.

Connolly is listed in Pigot's in 1828-29 as being in Earl Street, It seems that they did not bother with house number then ! It looks as 46 and 47 were always joined as you say Helen. on the census they are listed together as an unoccupied warehouse.

That's confirmed it Anne. 47 and 46 were front and back respectively, rather than side to side. ie the bank was at the front and the warehouse/Dalton's ribbon manufacturers were at the back. Some parts of the upper floors may also have belonged to Daltons, although the 46 may have been the 'address' of the passageway at the side of the building from which Dalton's was accessed.