30 Castle Street

1840 Tithe Map
(PDF file format)

Castle Street
Numbers
 1
 2
 3
 4
 5
 6 Oriel Cottage
 7
 8 Oriel House
 9 Lion House
10 Wigmore House
11 Porch House
12 Epworth House
13
14 Bank Cottage
15 Clematis Cottage
17 The Priory
20
22
24
26
28 & 28A
30
32 to 42
44
46
48
50 Munday Cottage
Fairfield House
Stokefield House
The Hatch
Thornbury Cottage 
Thornbury House

We know that what is now 30 Castle Street in Thornbury is a particularly old house and that it is certainly older than at least one of its neighbours (number 32). 

At the moment all we know of its early history is that the land on which six houses which are now 32 to 42 Castle street was described in 1752 as on the north side of "the house wherein James Eley formerly inhabited and now in possession of Elizabeth James widow."  At this time we know very little of James Eley.  However the family tree of the Eleys compiled by Richard Barton shows that this James Eley would have been born in Thornbury in 1688 the son of James Eley and his wife Elizabeth.  James was baptised in Thornbury on 18th January 1688.  Rather confusingly this James Eley also seems to have married an Elizabeth, Elizabeth Morgan.  James Eley the younger died in 1754.  His wife had died earlier in 1747.

In 1766 the same property was said to be north of "the house wherein James Eley formerly inhabited and now in the possession of John Longden junior."

 However we have no access to the deeds and at present we are unable to say anything about its history before the Tithe Apportionment Map which was compile between 1838 and 1840.  This map shows that it was occupied by William Wathen and owned by William White. 

At this stage we know nothing of William White and would like to learn more.  The Census of  1841 gives us more details and the house was occupied by William Wathen aged 35 a beerhouse keeper.  He was living with his wife Ann also aged about 35 and their children Clarissa 12, William ten, George eight (not born in County), Harriett six, Edwin four, Hugh two and baby Eliza aged two months.

It is interesting that the 1841 Census shows William as beer house keeper.  Number 30 Castle Street would have been a “two guinea beer house”.  Under a Licensing Act of 1830 anyone of good character could open a beerhouse for a licence which cost only two guineas.  After this Act Thornbury had quite a number of such places.  To curb the rate of beerhouses opening, the licence was increased to three guineas in 1834 and by 1841 the rateable value of the premises had to be above £8.  This led the closure of many beer houses.

William was born on 18th April 1804 and baptised on 27th May 1804.  He was the son of Joel and Flora Wathen.  Click here to read more about William Wathen.

By the 1851 Census there was another tenant.  This was William Osborne aged 57 who was a carpenter journeyman.  He was living with his wife Ann from Cam who was a laundress aged 52.  They had a daughter Rebecca aged 23 who was a laundress too.  They also had a son Charles aged 14 a sawyer and a servant Elizabeth Ricketts aged 14. 

In 1841 this family lived in Sibland with children John 20, Charles 10, Eliza 15, Rebecca 13 and Mary 7.

Their daughter Rebecca Osborne married Anselm Harvey in the December Quarter of 1853.  The 1841 Census shows the Harvey family living in Gillingstool, not far from the family of William Osborne.  In the 1841 Census Anselm Harvey was a 15 year old mason and the son of George and Catherine Harvey.

Anselm Harvey had first married  Maria Poole, daughter of Thomas Poole, labourer on 10th April 1847.  However Maria died a few years later and was buried on 5th October 1850 aged 33 years.  In 1851 the Census shows that  Anselm Harvey, then widowed, and his son Henry aged two were living with William Harvey the blacksmith brother of Anselm in Gillingstool Cottage.

The  1861 Census shows that the Osbornes were still living at 30 Castle Street.  William was 67 and a carpenter and Ann was 62 and a laundress.  It is possible that the Harvey family lived with them even at this stage, although they are shown as two separate households.  This Census shows that Anselm was a mason, Rebecca was still a laundress, presumably working with her mother and they had a young son, Henry aged 11.  William Osborne  died 20th August 1867.

In the Rate Book of 1867 the name of William Osborne is crossed through and the name of Anselm Harvey was written in.

In the 1869 and 1871 Rate Books Anselm Harvey occupied the house and garden.  However the 1871 Census shows that Ann Osborne had remained in the house.  The head of household was Anselm Harvey aged 48 a mason born in Thornbury.  His wife Rebecca was 43 and born in Cam as was her mother Ann Osborne (who is described on the Census as mother of wife).  Ann Osborne died 22 April 1878 aged 79.

In the 1876 Rate Book Anselm Harvey was the occupier of 30 Castle Street but William White was still the owner.  By 1877 William White had died but Anselm was still the tenant.   In 1878 and 1880 "Mrs White" now owned it.

In the 1881 Census Anselm and Rebecca Harvey had their eight year old granddaughter living with them.  Anselm was a stone mason employing two men and Rebecca was still a laundress.  The Thornbury Grammar School records of 1881 show that Mrs Harvey was cleaning the schoolroom and laying the fire.

Anselm died and was buried on 25th January 1883 aged 59 years.  He was buried in the same grave as Maria, his first wife, in  St Mary's Churchyard in Thornbury.

The Rate Book of 1885 show that 30 Castle Street was now owned and occupied by Rebecca Harvey.

In the 1891 Census Rebecca Harvey was a widow aged 63 and still a laundress but she was living with her granddaughter Ada Rebecca Harvey who at that time was 19 and a pupil teacher at a Board School.

We know a little about Rebecca Harvey because there is a short article written about her by the Society of Thornbury Folk in their bulletin of September 1948.  The Society of Thornbury Folk was a local history society which sadly no longer exists.  The article said;

"many here may remember her (Rebecca Harvey).  She used to carry on a little laundry business in Castle Street, Thornbury.  She was also the caretaker of the Church, that is she was responsible for the cleaning of the church and for this purpose she used to send two or three laundry women to the church every week to do the necessary cleaning.  In addition to that Mrs Harvey was also an official of the church - known as the pew opener, and she used to sit just inside the church door and in the first seat and attended there twice a Sunday, morning and evening.  She knew of course by sight all the regular worshippers but when a stranger or visitor came she spotted them at once and jumped up out of her seat and having made a nice curtsey she lead the way to a pew.  She did that up to a short time before her death and since then there has not been a pew opener."

On 30th April 1900 Ada Rebecca Harvey the 28 year old daughter of Henry Harvey and granddaughter of Rebecca married Frederick Workman a 31 year old bachelor from Sparkbrook in Birmingham.  Frederick was a guard on the Midland Railway.  His father George was also a railwayman.

By 1901 the Census shows that Ada by then 29 and her husband Frederick aged 32 had gone to live in Balsall Heath in Birmingham and her 73 year old step-grandmother Rebecca Harvey was with them.

The 1901 Census appears to show that the house is void.  Presumably the new owners had not yet moved in.

Click here to read about the later occupants of 30 Castle Street.

This page was last updated: 29/01/2012