Monday 11 November 2019

Henley on Thames Almshouses



I have been to this town many times and have noticed a couple of blocks of almshouses, the ones near the church being the most seen but there are more and if you walk along New Street towards  the Thames you pass one set near the Teddy Bear Shop





They are called Barnaby Cottages and date back to 1582








They take up this block though the last part on the right is the Teddy Bear Shop





Further along you come to Church Avenue





where you come to more houses dating back to 1664





and another two on the end a bit newer at 1669





The ten older ones go the length of the avenue






With the remaining two going towards the church





On the opposite side of the churchyard is another set




these are the oldest being endowed by the Bishop of Lincoln in 1547, in that year Henry VIII died in January and was succeeded by his son Edward VI





As far as I know they are still lived in today
The also go the whole length of the Churchyard, I always wondered why most almshouses are beside a churchyard.



21 comments:

  1. I love the photos and info in this post. Fascinating. That last shot is my favorite with the above ground burial.

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  2. All the buildings remind me of Downton Abbey …
    Very nice!

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  3. While i was looking at your photos and reading the post, I also wondered if the almshouses were lived in today. Thanks for answering that question in the post, Billy.

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    Replies
    1. Most are still used though I think they had been moderniced to what they were and how many people live in them

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  4. Lots of history to be found in Henley on Thames. I was very interested to see all those almshouses and how they have survived all these years.

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  5. Such a peaceful town. Neat pics and captions!

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  6. An interesting place.
    Thanks for sharing at https://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2019/11/happy-veterans-day.html

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  7. How interesting. I loved the tour around town.

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  8. I always imagined them to be alot bigger buildings like old factories etc and from what I understand people died frequently in those places hence cemeteries right next door.

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    Replies
    1. No being as the go back so far in time they were quite small and normally only for one person who was poor

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  9. Fascinating! I'm delighted to hear that the almshouses are still being used today... centuries later!

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