Laburnum Terrace

Occupants of No. 2 Gloucester Road

Following the deaths of John and Emma Williams in 1897, the house was occupied by their grandson, John Henry Williams and his wife, Emily Lilian.  They continued to live there until about 1935.

Having been occupied by the Williams family for almost 90 years, the house seems to have changed hands many times in later years.  Although we haven't seen the deeds of the house, we have extracted from the electoral registers the details of some of the people known to have lived in the house since the Williams family.  This information has been supplemented by the memories of local people.  Without seeing the deeds, we do not know whether these people occupied the house as owners or tenants.

1939 Adrian Morgan Squire and his wife Marion - Adrian was killed in the blitz on Bristol Aeroplane company works at Filton on 25th September 1940.  He was a Private in the 13th Gloucestershire (City of Bristol) Battalion Home Guard. The record shows he was aged 30, the son of George Frederick and Miriam Terry Squire of Chesham, Bucks. 

1946, 1947 John S Rocke and Sarah B Rocke

The Electoral Registers show that between 1948 and 1954 Gabriel and Alice Pippett lived in the house.  Gabriel (shown here in 1920) was born in Solihull in 1880. 

He was a talented artist, sculptor, illustrator and woodcarver. His work showed both Medieval and Pre Raphaelite influences and is mainly of a religious nature, including paintings at Douai Abbey and at the Sacred Heart Chapel at Oxford Oratory.  He also designed the mosaic over the door of the Catholic church of St Thomas More in Ilford.

One of his sculptures can still be seen in the statue of Madonna and Child over the doorway of St Mary's Church in Thornbury, which is shown here.  It was commissioned by the family of Frederick William  Davies in memory of his work there as churchwarden.  Gabriel also lived at  Hare Street House, Buntingford Hertfordshire where he founded a community of Christian craftsmen.  He died in 1962 aged 82 years.  He is buried in Droitwich with his wife, Alice, who died just two days before him, next to the church of the Sacred Heart whose mosaics he designed.

1957 and 1959 Mary and Terence Henderson

1960 Dorothy and Joseph Burge

1962 and 1965 Glyn and Marjorie Williams

1970 Maurice, Angela and Eileen Holland
 

November 1970 -June 2000  Ken & Kate Wilkins - click here to read Ken's notes on the history of Gloucester House

Arthur Neal mentioned that in the 50’s the house was occupied by “Russ Conway’s” brother.  Mair Johnson told us that she had met the lady of the house in the early 50’s and she recalled that she was the cousin of ‘the famous pianist’.  We have been unable to link any of the names of occupants traced so far with that of Russ Conway, whose real name was Trevor Stanford.


This page was last updated: 29/07/2007