2 Horseshoe Lane

Occupants

The two Sarah Trayhurns - the 1840 Tithe Survey shows the owner of this house was Sarah Trayherne and that that she was occupying it at the time.  Other records show the family name as Trayhurn or Trayhurne.  Sarah and her husband Samuel came from Oldbury.  Samuel was a yeoman and he married Sarah Cullimore on 29th December 1788. They had several children including Samuel born on 19th May 1789 and baptised at Thornbury on 8th June 1789, James born on 10th August 1792 and baptised at Oldbury on 4th November 1792 and Sabina born on 27th June 1802 and baptised at Thornbury on 24th April 1810.  We know that they also had other children: Sarah born about 1791 and Richard born about 1792.

Samuel, Sarah's husband, died and was buried at Oldbury on 3rd July 1808 aged 45 years.  Of their children, James and Richard were both buried at Thornbury on the same day, 7th July 1798 and Samuel was buried at Oldbury on 25th February 1831 aged 40 years.

We don't know how Sarah came to own her two houses in Horseshoe Lane or when she moved from Oldbury to Thornbury to live.  She was there in the 1841 census when she was described as being of  'Independent' means, aged 73 years.  Living with her were her unmarried daughters, Sarah aged 47 years and Sabina aged 36 years.  The house was shared by Sarah Pearce, also independent, aged 65 years.

The elder Sarah died and was buried in Oldbury on 28 June 1844.  She was aged 79 years.

In 1851 the house was occupied by the younger Sarah still unmarried and described as an 'owner of houses' aged 60.  Living with her were her unmarried sister, Sabina, aged 50, two unmarried visitors, Lavinia Greenway (aged 26) and Frederick Greenway (a builder aged 26) from Downend and a married lodger, Matilda Watts, aged 49 from Bath.  We believe that the two Greenways were Sarah's nephew and niece, children of an, as yet, unidentified sibling of Sarah's.  We know this because in her will of 1866 Sarah left her estate to her niece, Laura Collins, who had been Laura Greenway before her marriage to William Collins.  The census records show that Laura also came from Downend like Lavinia and Frederick

In 1861 Sarah was described as a grocer aged 69.  Living with her were Ann Wetmore a widowed boarder aged 79 and Emma Jefferies a twelve year old servant.

Sarah died on 19th October 1866.  She was said to be 'of Morton'.  Estate left to Laura Collins, her niece, wife of William Collins of Morton who was executor.  From the will we know that Laura Collins owned the two house, numbers 2 and 4 Horseshoe Lane, but there is no record that she lived in either of them.

We cannot be confident in identifying which family occupied which house after Sarah Trayhurn until the Riddiford family moved in around 1914.  Our best guess is:

Alfred Harris -  in the 1871 census we think that the house was occupied by Alfred Harris, a police constable aged 26 and his wife, Sarah Ann aged 22, both from Mitcheldean.  They lived there with their daughter, Edith aged 3 months.  

In 1881 census, we cannot hazard any guess as to who was living in the house, it may have been vacant.

George Henry Exell - in 1891 the house was occupied by George Henry Exell and his wife, Eliza.  George's will dated 1905 confirms that he bought the property from William Collins.  The 1891 Census show that at this time George was a County Court Bailiff and House Agent aged 60.  Eliza was aged 66 born in Cheddar.  Click here to read more about George Henry Exell.  At the death of George Henry Exell in 1908 the house was left to his son, Thomas Exell.  We have not found any evidence that Thomas actually occupied the house.

Alfred and Charles Riddiford - during the 1900's the house was mainly recognised as being the home of the Riddiford family.  Click here to read more about this family

This page was last updated: 10/07/2008