28A Castle Street owners - Thornbury Roots

In 2022 we discovered and transcribed several old documents relating to the east side of Castle Street. We were surprised to find that in the 1600s there were very few houses on this side of the road. One of those houses was on the site of what is now known as 28A Castle Street (the house on the left of the photograph with the car outside).

The earliest document for the property that we have seen is dated 2nd February 1670 and shows there was just one house (28 Castle Street) between Margery Ayler’s house (now known as 28A Castle Street ) and Wigmore House (now known as 10 Castle Street). Over the next 200 years newer houses were added and sub-divided to create the almost continuous terrace of buildings along this side of the road.

It is also evident that at various times 28 and 28A Castle Street have been two separate properties occupied by as many as five households. At other times what is now two houses have been owned and occupied by one family. The history of the houses is a very long one and it has not always been possible to identify the nature of the property that was here at such an early time.

The Aylers, Aylworths and Ayleworths

It is noticeable that the name of this family varies in different sources and at different times over the 150 or so years that they and their descendants owned the property. When referring to a member of the family below we have used parentheses around the form of the name used in the source used.

From the 1670 document referred to above we believe that “Margery Ayler” was living in the property now known as 28A Castle Street. We know from the will of “James Ayleworth” dated November 1653 that he was a millwright living in Thornbury. The will was proved in June 1654. James made bequests to his four sons, and the rest of his estate was left to his wife, Margery who was made his executrix and was allowed to use his property for her lifetime. He mentions his daughter Anne and sons, James, William, Richard, Robert and John. James divided the property he owned between two of his sons.

Richard was left ‘part of my free land that is to say the hall and the chamber below and the chamber over the hall’ and ‘the Lower Orchard and garden from six foot below the Squires Tree with free ingress egress and regress to come into out of and from at all times at his will and pleasure’.

John was left ‘the other part of my free lands that is to say the kitchen and the new buildings the buttery and the shop and the loft over the shop and the back side garden and juniper trees thereon growing from the back down from six foot below the Squires Tree to him and his heirs for ever with free ingress egress and regress to come into out of and from at his will and pleasure’.

We suspect that this describes the property in which Margery was living in 1670. We are not sure when Margery died but she was mentioned in the 1670 document referred to above and in the 1671 hearth tax listing (which showed she had three hearths).

The next source we have is the two indentures relating to the property next door (28 Castle Street) dated 1684 and 1685. These documents said that property (28 Castle Street) was adjoining ‘the messuage or tenement of one Arthur Ayler wherein one William Reeve now inhabiteth on the northwood part thereof’. This indicates that the next owner of the property (28A) was “Arthur Ayler”.

We can’t say how the property descended to Arthur or what connection he had to James and Margery. We believe Arthur was the “Arthur Ayler” born in Thornbury on 16th November 1653. Arthur was a butcher. In 1703 he was a tenant of the Tayer family in the Vine House (now 8 High Street). He died on 6th June 1710 aged 58. His grave in St Mary’s Church shows his name as “Arthur Ayleworth”. His wife Frances died on 25th June 1711 aged 56. Their daughter Edith died on 1st September 1729.

The next source indicating the owner of the property is dated 1755. This is the will of “Arthur Ayleworth” whom we assume was the son of the previous owner. Arthur died aged 70 and was buried on 24th October 1754. His wife, Ann, had died in 1735. The will described Arthur as a Gentleman of Thornbury. He owned several properties in Kington and two in Thornbury. One of these at 32 St Mary Street he left to his married daughter, Elizabeth Tyson. The other was ‘a messuage in High Street opposite messuage called The Green House’. This was left to his daughter Sarah, the wife of William Taylor and then to his grandson John Taylor’.

An indenture dating 1759 relating to the property next door describes this property of formerly of “Arthur Aylworth” was now occupied by Thomas Watkins. He might be the Thomas Watkins who was a labourer who was died on 21st May 1769.

Samuel Thurston

The schedule of deeds that was drawn up in 1881 to show the right of Abraham Riddiford to 28 and 28A Castle Street refers to two transactions in 1756. The first on 27th January is a release in fee from John Nicholls to Benjamin Leach and on 24th August there is another release in fee from Benjamin Leach to Samuel Thurston. The same schedule also lists another transaction on 5th May 1759 – the feoffment from Mr William Taylor and his wife to Samuel Thurston.

We cannot explain these transactions but they seem to involve the transfer of the property to Samuel Thurston following the death of Arthur Ayleworth. Note William Taylor was married to Sarah the daughter of the previous owner, Arthur Ayleworth, so it’s possible he was acting as a trustee or that John Nicholls and Benjamin Leach had had a financial interest in the property because of a pre-existing mortgage.

On 24th August 1756 Samuel Thurston bought this property where once Thomas Lucas had lived. An indenture of 28th February 1766 shows Samuel was a joiner and that he had been living in the property. An indenture shows that John Thurston sold it to Timothy Cullimore who was living there at that time. Click here to read more about Samuel Thurston

There seem to be some changes around this time. William Taylor and his wife Sarah who owned both the adjoining property (now 28 Castle St) and a large garden behind the property sold part of their garden which may have been used for an extension to the house as the 1766 indenture mentions that there ‘hath been lately erected and built a sidewall of one or more back room or rooms to the said messuage or tenement.’

John Thurston

On 13th February 1760 the property was bought from Samuel Thurston, by John Thurston, whom we assume was Samuel’s brother. In the indenture of 28th February 1766 when he sold the property to Timothy Cullimore, John was described as a gentleman and he lived in Kington. John’s wife Mary Thurston died 2nd June 1780 and was buried on 7th June 1780 aged 66. John Thurston the eldest son of John and Ursula died on 17th December 1788. The memorial inscription says Mr John Thurston of Kington was buried on 23rd December 1788 aged 76 and three days. He was said to have been afflicted in mind and body for upwards of 50 years.

We believe that John married Mary Pearce, a gentlewoman, on 7th February 1736. They had at least seven children baptised in Thornbury: Jane on 29th June 1739, Johannes on 18th November 1742, Edward on 6th August 1744, Judith on 1st October 1746, Toby on 29th May 1749, Josiah on 10th May 1754 and Ann on 14th February 1755. The two adjoining family memorials in the graveyard of St Mary’s church in Thornbury shows the death of a further four children: Rodah, the fourth daughter who died 14th September 1785 aged 33, Ursula, Maria and John.

Timothy Cullimore

Indentures of 27th and 28th June 1766 given to Thornbury Museum confirm that the property, which was still subject to a mortgage, was acquired by Timothy Cullimore.

It was said to be;
“All that messuage or tenement wherein Thomas Lucas sometime since inhabited and wherein Samuel Thurston joyner (sic) afterwards dwelt and wherein the said Timothy Cullimore doth now inhabit with the garden and orchard thereunto adjoining and belonging situate lying and being in the town and borough of Thornbury.

And Also all that piece or parcel of ground whereon the wall lately stood which parted the backside or garden of William Tayler of Almondsbury yeoman and Sarah his wife lately in the occupation of Joanna Brooks but now of George Reed from the backside or garden of the said John Thurston and extending from the northward corner of the back part of the messuage or tenement of the said William Tayler and Sarah his wife late in the occupation of the said Joanna Brooks but now of the said George Reed in length 36 feet and a half towards the east or north east and whereon hath been lately erected and built a sidewall of one or more back room or rooms to the said messuage or tenement hereby or intended to be hereby granted and released which said messuage or tenement garden orchard and premises above mentioned and hereby or intended to be hereby granted and released were lately bought and purchased by the said John Thurston to him and his heirs in fee simple of and from the said Samuel Thurston as may appear”

The room or rooms mentioned here may well be the part of the reason why by 1796 the property was described as two tenements.

We are not sure who Timothy Cullimore was, although Bristol Records Office has documents dated May 2nd 1750 relating to the settlement in Thornbury from Olveston of Timothy Cullimore, Sarah his wife and children William aged about 5, Mary aged about 2 and a son not yet named. We also know that a Timothy Cullimore married Sarah Butler in Thornbury on 6th April 1740.

George Reed

The schedule shows that on 16th Sept 1775 Timothy Cullimore transferred a property to George Reed by a conveyance in fee. The Land Tax record of 1775 appears to confirm the above transaction as it shows that George Reed was liable to 1s 6d tax on a property described as “Cullimores”. The schedule also refers to an indenture dated 2nd February 1776 in which George Reed rented a room in Thornbury to William Williams.

George Reed appears in the land tax records as the owner of what became 28A Castle Street until 1786.

The Land Tax record of 1780 appears to show that George Reed was liable to pay two shillings tax for this house and that he was occupying it himself, although it is possible that he also had tenants here.

In Bailey’s British Directory of 1784 George Reed was said to have a “shoe warehouse” in Thornbury with William Reed. Despite the fact that we have so many references to George Reed in land tax records we know nothing about him. We can only assume he was the brother of William Reed who was associated with the Seven Stars in Thornbury. George died aged 58 and was buried on 2nd September 1788. The record shows he was a shoemaker.

Mark Nash

The schedule shows that on 29th September 1786 George Reed conveyed what became 28A Castle Street to Mark Nash. We have no information about Mark Nash who (according to the schedule) sold the property to Abraham Riddiford on 30th September 1788.