A SHORT HISTORY OF

53 MARLBOROUGH ROAD, GRANDPONT, OXFORD

On the 31st October 1879 Charles

Williams of Norfolk Street in

nearby St Ebbe’s submitted plans

(see overleaf) for a block of eight

houses on plots 147-154 of the

Grandpont Estate, which were to

become nos. 43-57 Marlborough

Road. The architect was G

Shirley of New Inn Hall Street.

These were some of the first

houses to be built in the street,

probably in 1880.

The first inhabitant of no. 51 was

James Best. Next door at no. 53

was David Talboy and at no. 55

Mrs Jane Parker. We know from

the 1891 census (see over) that

she was a young widow with two

daughters, Edith and Agnes, who

earned her living as a private

school teacher, probably running

a small school in her house.

Teaching was one of the few

professions open to single and widowed women at this period. Jane Parker

remained at no. 55 until 1896 but at no. 51 James Best was replaced in 1889 by

Thomas Howes, a coachman. With him were his wife, Mary, a laundress, and

their three children: Amos, aged 22, a shoemaker, William (19), a grocer’s

porter, and Annie (16). The family came from Buckinghamshire and they also

had a live-in domestic servant, Mary Winterbourne, aged 17.

This and following pages: Plans submitted by Charles Williams on 31st October 1879

for eight houses (nos. 43-57) on Marlborough Road

The occupations of the Howes family were typical of those living on Marlborough

Road at the time and indeed of the newly-built and largely working-class

suburbs to the east, west and south of Oxford. Before the advent of William

Morris’ car factory in the 1920s, the city was still very much one of service and

commerce, rather than of manufacturing. The university’s rapid expansion in the

1870s had stimulated demand for transport services, food, clothing and other

consumer goods. Mrs Howes was one of a large number of women employed in

the laundry trade: washing was brought by cart from the colleges and from

wealthy households in town out to the suburbs, distributed to the laundresses,

washed by hand in large coppers in the outhouses at the back of their houses,

and hung to dry in the long narrow gardens typical of these properties.

The fact that the Howes employed a domestic servant suggests that they had a

degree of wealth but not that they were, in any way, middle class: working-class

families frequently employed their own live-in servants at this period,

particularly if, as in the case of Mary Howes, the wife had a paid occupation of

her own. Servants were often young women who were given board and lodging

and a minimal wage.

At no. 53 the first inhabitant David Talboy remained only a few years and was

replaced in 1888 by Cornelius Doughton, a gardener originally from

Hertfordshire. He probably worked for one of the colleges or large private houses

in town. Living with him were his Irish wife Catherine, their son Cornelius, a

porter, daughter-in-law Fanny and two small grandsons William and Henry.

Multi-generational households of this kind were relatively rare and it may be that

the children and grandchildren were staying only briefly: three-year-old William

had been born in Oxford but his younger brother Henry had been born in his

mother’s home town of Leamington the year before, suggesting that the family

were moving around.

The Howes family remained at no. 51 until 1899 but the Doughtons stayed at

no. 53 only until 1892 and were replaced by another multi-generational family,

that of Richard Graham, a carpenter who had been born in Oxford. The house-

building boom which was going on all over the city meant that there was high

demand for skilled labourers such as carpenters, plasterers and bricklayers. The

census shows that in 1901 Richard Graham was aged 71 and living with him

were his wife Elizabeth, originally from Berkshire, his two adult daughters Emily

and Fanny, Emily’s husband, Mark Williams, and Fanny’s illegitimate daughter

11-year-old daughter Ethel. Fanny was a dressmaker (probably working from

home) and Mark a plasterer.

1891 census for nos. 43-53 Marlborough Road. Cornelius Doughton at no. 53 is the last entry on the page. The rest of his

family is recorded on the following page.

Continuation of 1891 census for 53-59 Marlborough Road.

1901 census for 51-77 Marlborough Road.

The Graham family were to live at no. 53 for 21 years; Mr Graham appears to

have died in 1908 (aged around 78) but his widow remained at the property

until 1913. Meanwhile, at no. 55 schoolteacher Jane Parker was replaced by

Charles Pratt in 1896, and in 1899 Thomas Howes and family left no. 51 and

moved two doors down into no. 55. By the time of the 1901 census only

Thomas, Mary and their son William were living in the house, the latter now

aged 29 and a driver for the Oxford Train Company, a high-status job and

certainly a step up from his previous occupation ten years earlier of grocer’s

porter.

At no. 51 The Howes were replaced briefly by James Dubber and then, in 1900,

by Alfred Cleaver, a tailor working from home, his wife Annie and their two

young children Reginald and Margaret. They remained in the house for ten years

until 1910. Meanwhile The Grahams were still at no. 53 and at no. 55 the Howes

were replaced in 1906 by Francis Lee who in turn left in 1909 and was replaced

by Mrs Hind, a widow.

In 1910 the Cleavers moved out of no. 51 and Mrs Cooper, another widow,

moved in. At no. 53 Mrs Graham was replaced in 1913 by Mark Williams (who

stayed only a year) and then by Nathaniel Baker. He was to remain at no. 53

throughout the First and Second World Wars until 1944. At no. 55 Mrs Hind was

replaced in 1913 by John Waldron, whose family stayed for 47 years until 1960.

John himself appears to have died around 1956 but his widow Frances remained

in the property for another four years. It was common in this period for families

to supplement their income by taking in lodgers and the Waldrons had a number

of lodgers throughout their long stay at no. 55.

Mrs Cooper at no. 51 appears to have died in 1920 and the property was taken

over by Walter Cooper, probably her son. Until 1936 there were a number of

changes of tenant until the arrival of Joseph and Florence Perks, who remained

for 20 years until 1957. Next door at no 53. Nathanial Baker was replaced at the

end of the Second World War by Frank and Phyllis Wilkins who remained in the

property for 50 years until 1994, Frank on his own for the last four years. Like

the Waldrons at no. 51, the Wilkins had a number of lodgers.

At no. 51 the Perks were replaced in 1957 by William and Mary Roe, who stayed

only two years, and then by David and Margaret Styles who remained until

1965. At no. 55 Mrs Waldron was replaced in 1960 by Thomas and Beryl Forbes,

who have lived there, with various combinations of their many children and

grandchildren, for almost 50 years to this day.

Anthony and Emily McDonagh moved into no. 51 in 1965, followed by Hugh and

Emma Dunford Wood in 1977. In 1984 Helen Davies moved in and lived there

for just over 20 years, first with William Herbert and later with Paul Geddes.

When she left in 2005 the property was rented to sharers briefly before the

arrival of Jan and Eleanor Holloway in 2007.

At no. 53 Caroline Lawrence moved in in 1994 after the long tenure of the

Wilkins family. With David Grant she extended the property to the back and side

in 1997. She remained until 2005 when the current occupiers took up residence

- Patrick, Mellie, Joe and Ollie Budge.

NOS. 51, 53 & 55 MARLBOROUGH ROAD: 125 YEARS OF CHANGE

51 53 55

1884 James Best

1885

1886 David Talboy Mrs Jane Parker, teacher

1887

1888 Cornelius Doughton,

1889 Thomas Howes, coachman gardener

1890

1891

1892 Richard Graham, carpenter

1893

1894

1895

1896 Charles Pratt

1897

1898

1899 James Dubber Thomas Howes, coachman

1900 Alfred Cleaver, tailor

1901

1902

1903

1904

1905

1906 Francis Lee

1907

1908 Mrs Graham only

1909 Mrs Hind

1910 Mrs Cooper

1911

1912

1913 Mark Williams John & Frances Waldron

1914 Nathaniel Baker

1915

1916

1917

1918

1919

1920 Walter Cooper

1921

1922

1923

1924

1925

1926

51 53 55

1927 Walter Cooper Nathaniel Baker John & Frances Waldron

1928

1929 Cyril William Jackson

1930

1931 Thomas Henry Dallimore

1932

1933

1934 Philip Cose

1935 John Wright

1936 Joseph & Florence Perks

1937

1938

1939

1940

1941

1942

1943

1944 Frank & Phyllis Wilkins

1945

1946

1947

1948

1949

1950

1951

1952

1953

1954

1955

1956 Frances Waldron only

1957 William & Mary Roe

1958

1959 David & Margaret Styles

1960 Thomas & Beryl Forbes

1961

1962

1963

1964

1965 Anthony & Emily McDonagh

1966

1967

1968

1969

1970

1971

51 53 55

1972 Anthony & Emily McDonagh Frank & Phyllis Wilkins Thomas & Beryl Forbes

1973

1974

1975

1976

1977 Hugh & Emma

1978 Dunford-Wood

1979

1980

1981

1982

1983

1984 William Herbert

1985 & Helen Davies

1986

1987 Helen Davies only

1988

1989

1990

1991 Frank Wilkins only

1992 Beryl Forbes only

1993

1994 Caroline Lawrence

1995

1996 plus Paul Geddes

1997 plus David Grant

1998 Helen Davies only

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005 Patrick & Mellie Budge

2006 Four sharers

2007 Jan & Eleanor Holloway

2008

2009

PRIMARY SOURCES

• Map accompanying Daniel Trinder’s award, 1844.

• Map of GWR and surrounding land at Grandpont and St Ebbe's, 1845.

• 1:2,500 Ordnance Survey maps of Oxford, 1876, 1900, 1921 & 1939.

• Grandpont Estate map, Oxford Building & Investment Company, 1879.

• Census returns for St Aldates, Oxford, 1891 and 1901.

• Jackson’s Oxford Journal.

• Kelly’s Directory of Oxford and Neighbourhood. Volumes for 1876 – 1976.

• Oxford City Council: planning applications on-line, www.oxford.gov.uk

• Oxford City Council: Registers of Electors, 1947 – 2009.

• Oxford City Engineers: Deposited Building Plans, Marlborough Road.

• Oxfordshire Sites & Monument Record

• Valter’s Oxford Post Office Directory. Volumes for 1880 - 1885

SECONDARY SOURCES

• CR Elvington, (ed): Victoria History of the County of Oxfordshire, Volume 4:

The City of Oxford. University of London, Institute of Historical Research, 1979.

• Malcolm Graham: On Foot in Oxford, no 4. Folly Bridge and South Oxford. Oxfordshire County Council Libraries Service, 1987.

• Malcolm Graham: The Suburbs of Victorian Oxford: Growth in a Pre-industrial

city. D Phil thesis, University of Leicester, 1985.

• Christopher & Edward Hibbert (eds): The Encyclopaedia of Oxford. MacMillan

London Ltd, 1988.

• Rob Kinchin-Smith, “Oxford, Paisley House, 436 Abingdon Road, Oxfordshire” in South Midland Archaeology, 29 (1999).

• Paul Marriott: Oxford Street Names Explained. Self-published, 1977.

• Paul Marriot: Oxford Pubs Past & Present. 1978.

• Carole Newbigging: The Changing Faces of South Oxford and South Hinksey, Books 1, 2 & 3. Robert Boyd Publications, 1998.

• JS Reynolds: Canon Christopher of St Aldates, Oxford, 1820-1913. Abbey

Press, 1967.

• Robert Sephton: A Kennington Miscellany. Self-published, 2006.

• Geoffrey Tyack: Oxford, an Architectural Guide. OUP, 1998.

• Laurence Waters: Rail Centres: Oxford (no 9). Booklaw Publications, 1986.

• Simon Wenham, “Salter’s of Oxford: a History of a Thames Boating Firm over

a Century of Evolution (1858-c.1892)” in Oxoniensia LXXI (2006).

© Copyright Liz Woolley, Oct 2009