Rugby, Market Place, High Street And Sheep Street 1932

Photo ref: 85179

More about this scene

Between the shops on the right of 85178 (page 56) lies a narrow tunnel leading into Windsor Court. In the 19th century the court housed a brewery, a malt-house store and a factory producing Windsor chairs. When the High Street was built up, a tunnel was created to maintain access to the court, which has now been opened up onto Little Church Street at the back. Notice the extensive use of sun awnings in the photographs of the town centre. In Victorian times these were supported by poles held in sockets at the edge of the pavements. Some of these socket holes survived into the inter-war period, and were mistakenly believed to have been cattle pen stanchions. The Town Hall housed the Council offices, the Sessions Court, the Assembly Room and the Market Hall/Corn Exchange. The butchers and farmers who attended the cheese fairs now had to set up their stalls in the Market Hall rather than in the street. In 1866 all the hiring fairs were abolished. In 1870 the cattle market was moved to the Glebe Field near Holy Trinity Church. In 1874 it moved again, to Reynolds Field, off Hillmorton Road, and in 1878 it moved yet again, to the bottom of Railway Terrace and Murray Road. No longer in use, the site is to be sold for redevelopment.