32 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

The early history of this house is linked to that of its neighbours as the six houses which are now numbers 32 to 42 Castle Street were all built by the same person, Joseph Parslow. 

Click here to read about the early owners of property on this site

The 1840 Tithe Apportionment Map shows that this house was owned by Elizabeth Cole and occupied by Richard Sergent.  Elizabeth Cole owned other property in Thornbury at this time, including 62 High Street.  We know nothing about Elizabeth Cole but she may have been related to Abraham Cole who owned property in Thornbury at a similar time.

The 1841 Census shows that Richard Sergent was a wheelwright aged about 25 and his wife Sophia was about 27.  They had a daughter Fanny aged 18 months.  The family has been hard to trace - partly because there are so many spellings of this surname.  Please note that we have used this version just for consistency.  The 1841 Census spells it "Sarjent" and the other records have other variations.

Richard Sargent married Sophia Boulton in Bristol on 30th September 1838.  The birth of their daughter Fanny was  registered in Thornbury in the September quarter of 1839.  They had three other children while they were in Thornbury; Thomas Sargent was baptised in Thornbury on 11th July 1841, Mary Jane was baptised on 26th April 1846 (she may have been three at the time) and Henry Sargent was also baptised on  26th April 1846. 

By 1851 the family had moved to Manchester.  Richard Sargent was now 33 and a joiner who was born in Iron Acton in Gloucestershire and Sophia was 34.  Fanny was eleven by this time; Mary Jane was eight and Henry six and three year old Eliza was born in Sheffield. 

In the 1881 Census they were living in Eckington in Derbyshire.  Richard was a wheelwright aged 64 and Sophia was also 64.  Living with them at the time of the Census was their granddaughter Clara Hendy aged 21.

The 1851 Census shows that Emma Weeks was now living in 32 Castle Street.  She was  a married lady of 42 years who was "supported by her father" according to the Census record.  She had a 12 year old son who is an errand boy, a daughter Mary aged 9 “at home”, Pamela aged 5 and Fanny 4.  Click here to read more about Emma who was born Emma Cornock

The 1861 Census shows that Mary Ann Salmon aged 22 a grocer, born in Bruton in Somerset was sharing the house with her brother Richard aged 18.  They had a visitor Jane Hore aged 26 from Appledore in Devon.  In 1881 Mary Ann Salmon was a lady’s maid in Wentworth House Clevedon for Mary Ann Bromley.  By 1891 she was with her mother in Bank Cottage, Castle Street with no occupation. The Rate Books of 1894 and 1899 show Mary Ann Salmon was living at at 7 Gloucester Road.  She eventually went to live in the Alms Houses at number 9 St Mary Street.

The 1867, 1869 and 1871 Rate Books do not show the owner of the property but they do show Richard Salmon as the tenant of 32 Castle Street.  In 1871 the Census shows Richard Salmon aged 28 a painter born in Bruton in Somerset with his wife Caroline a dressmaker aged 29 who was born in Morton.  They had four children born in Thornbury; Emily five, Edward four, Ellen two and Selma one.

Click here to read about the family of Richard and Caroline Salmon 12 Pullins Green

In 1870 Henry Knight bought the house in Castle Street for £124.  Click here to read about Henry and Louisa Knight

In the Rate Books of 1876 and 1877 John Powell lived in the house owned by Henry Knight.

By the Rate Book of 1878 and 1880 Edwin Bevan lived in 32 Castle Street.  The Census of 1881 shows that they were Edwin and Elizabeth Bevan.  Edwin was a mason aged 58 born in Thornbury and Elizabeth, his wife was 60 and she was born in Chew Magna.

Edwin Bevan was born about 1823 and was baptised on 1st July 1827.  He was the son of James Bevan junior and his wife Anne nee Ann Lippiatt Thomas.  In the 1841 Census Edwin was an apprentice mason living with his parents in the High Street near The Plain.  Edwin was the eldest of the four children then living at home. 

Edwin Bevan married Elizabeth Trotman in the March quarter of 1845.  Elizabeth was born in Chewton Magna about 1820, the daughter of William and Sarah Trotman who had moved to Oldbury.  They had several children: Edwin born about 1847, Elizabeth born about 1850, Alfred born about 1853, twins, Frank and Jane, born about 1855, Mary Jane born about 1860, Arthur born 1861, Ernest born about 1862 and another Arthur born about 1865. 

By 1851 Edwin was a journeyman stonemason aged 28 and Elizabeth aged 30.  They  had two children, Edwin aged four and Elizabeth aged one. They were living in an unidentified house in the area of Pullins Green.  Living with them were a  "visitor," her widowed brother, Samuel Trotman an agricultural labourer aged 24 and their two eldest children.

They had several children: Edwin born about 1847, Elizabeth born about 1850, Alfred born about 1853, twins, Frank and Jane, born about 1855, Mary Jane born about 1860, Arthur born 1861, Ernest born about 1862 and another Arthur born about 1865. 

By the 1861 Census the family had moved to 36 Castle Street.  By 1869 the family had moved from 36 Castle Street.  We believe at this time the family may have been living next door to The Chantry. 

Thornbury Journal and West of England Monthly Illustrated of March 1870 carried an interesting advertisement for "Edwin Bevan Junior, Castle Street, Thornbury Tuner of the Piano Forte, Harmonium and Reed Instruments. Tuning by the year or otherwise."  This does not to have become Edwin's main profession as by the 1871 Census Edwin junior had become a mason like his father.  His brother Frank had become a "writer", and Jane was a servant.  They seem to have moved to 32 Castle Street in 1878. 

 By 1881 there was just Edwin and Elizabeth living at their home in 32 Castle Street.  Edwin died aged 62 on 8th January 1887 and was buried in the burial ground of the Congregational Church.

The 1890 Rate Book shows that William Symes now lived in the house which was still owned by Henry Knight.  The 1891 Census shows that William Symes a tailor from Shepton Mallett aged 75 was living with his wife Matilda aged 74 a dressmaker.  Also in the house was their daughter Matilda Brown with her son William aged 6 and Daniel Smith a lodger aged 22 who was a gardener from Rockhampton. They lived in four rooms.

William and Matilda had had nine children and we have a family tree of them and some family photographs.  Click here to read more about the family. 

The 1894 Rate Book shows that Matilda Symes was living in a house owned by Henry Knight.  She died in 1893 in Thornbury.

The 1901 Census shows that the house is occupied by Matilda Brown.  Matilda, the daughter of William and Matilda Symes had married John Brown a printer and son of John Brown a printer on 7th August 1884 at St Mary's Church in Thornbury.   She described herself as a "wife" but there is no evidence that she was living with her husband.  Matilda was a 45 year old laundress living in four rooms with her son William aged 16 who was apprenticed to a saddler and Edith aged seven who was still at school.  They had a lodger Henry Maishment, a groom aged 26.  They were all born in Thornbury.  The 1911 Census shows that Matilda Brown had been married for 28 years and had two children.  she was a laundress with two lodgers Lillian Power aged 8 who went to the National School and Victor Kerslake who was a groom for the Mundys.

We have not had access to the deeds of this house and so it is not possible to determine many of the people who lived in it from this time.  However  we believe that Denis and Norah Lily Thompson may have moved into the house after their marriage on July 20th 1926.  The Electoral Records certainly show that Denis Wilfred Thompson lived in Castle Street by 1927, although his wife does not appear in the Electoral Roll at  that time.  In 1935 Denis and Lily both gave their addresses as the High Street, which implies they moved about that time.   Click here to read more about the Thompson family.

The Electoral Register of 1954 has the house numbers so we know that  Dora Braunton and James Braunton lived 32 Castle Street.  We have no information about this couple.

The 1958 Electoral Register says Eulalie  Greenwood lived at 32 Castle Street.

From 1962 we know that Florence and Fred Croker lived in the house.  We have been told that they were a "religious couple who attended Mr Tily’s mission church at Rockhampton.”  After 1975 Florence C Croker appears alone in the registers.

Click here to read about the other five houses which share the same early history.

This page was last updated: 29/01/2012