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Opening date by Mandy
and Harry Owen posted 10/11/23
Hi everyone. I’m Mandy
and my husband Harry, are opening the tearoom in the village.
I just wanted to post on here to let everyone know what our plans are.
We were planning on opening in mid November but unfortunately, we have
had a setback due to some family issues and I have to leave the country
for a week.
We still hope to be open before Christmas.
At the moment we don’t want to give you a specific date, but we will
keep everyone informed about our opening date.
Thank you for all your interest. We are very excited to open soon
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In the meantime this is
the history of the Building
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No8 and 9 Bridge Street,
Bures St Mary.
Bank House is listed at Grade
II building in Historic England's records, dated 1978.
An 18th century timber-framed and plastered house, altered in the 20th
century. 2 storeys and attics. 3 window range, 20th century casements.
The ground storey has a 20th century shop front at the east end. Roof
tiled (old tiles), mansard, with 3 gabled dormer
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Timber frame appears
to date from C14/15, with decorative carving to ground floor joists.
Rear wall of timber frame has holes for mullions. Roof structure
has been replaced, reusing timbers, some of which are carved, with
a date '1656', and appears to match the detail to the bressumer
on the front elevation.
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Bank House occupies a position directly
opposite St Mary's Church in Bures. In its present form the timber-framed
and rendered structure dates from the late-18th or more probably the early-19th
century and is likely to have been built as either two or three tenements
by John Garrad who also owned a Tannery
to the rear.
John Garrad (1796 -1874)
1851 lived at Secretaries, Malster,
farmer, merchant and brickmaker employing 67 men. Of those, 8 were employed
on two sailing vessels based at the Hythe, Colchester, with which he traded
in bricks, malt, farm produce and coal.
1862 owned Bakers Hall, Butlers Farm, Ravensfield Farm, Pricketts Hall Farm
and Pudneys Farm. Malting and Tan buildings.
Brick Kilns in Alphamstone, Lamarsh and Bures Hamlet.
1838 purchased the White House from the Guardians of Sudbury Union
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Exposed Beams during the 2023 renovation.
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The 1885 Ordnance Survey shows the building with much the same outline
as today,
To the left of the building was the entrance to the Tannery.
Today, that has been replaced by Bridge House. |
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Left:- By 1910 Ernest or 'Ernie'
Bays ran the newsagent and confectionery shop, while a smaller shop
operated as Barclays Bank from 11 until 1 on Fridays.
The 1911 census has Ernest Bays as a 31-year-old shopkeeper selling
Newspapers and
Confectionery' living with his wife and two young daughters: Muriel
aged 5 and Violet, 3.
The 1921 census records an addition a son, Colin, who was born in
1913.
Extract from Kelly`s Trade Directory
1912
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Circa 1920 the shop was transferred
to Ronald Mansfield either during or shortly before the Second World
War, and was rebuilt in roughly its present form after an American
Jeep from the USAAF at nearby Wormingford who crashed through the
window.
Ref "Book, Bures at War"
Third from Left, Ron Mansfield.
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Barclays Bank was still operating
for a few hours a week in the late 1930s (1937 Kelly`s Directory)
but Doctor Brown took over the building in the 1960`s.
However during this interim period (1937 - 1960`s), it may well
have been used for some other retail purpose, possibly an Estate
Agent because of the brass plaques by the entrance door.
Left Photo
(Ref:-Bures-online)
Both No8 and No9 were owned by Ronald Mansfield, who served as Chairman
of the Parish Council in the 1950s and 60s, and his newsagent's
shop closed on his death in the mid-1980s
Ronald lived along the Sudbury Road, virtually the last house on
the right before the parish boundary with Lt Cornard.
It then passed to Paul Wade, Ron`s Nephew sometime during the 1970`s
He was certainly trading in 1976 when I visited the shop to see
Paul behind the counter,
The front awning still carried the "Mansfield" name.
The Doctors Surgery moved to Church Square on 1st April 1989, but
unfortunately the empty property became a target for Squatters.
Babergh District Council made numerous efforts to trace Paul Wade
to take responsibility of the property, but as far as I am aware
he was never located.
Consequently, it laid derelict until the Auction Purchase in 2021.
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Miscellaneous Photos
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Ernest Bays circa 1930`s
Artificially coloured from the original Black and White.
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Mansfields circa 1950
Friths Commercial Postcard
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Access to the Tannery far left
Date unknown |
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Other Historical refreshment outlets in
the village
References
Published 23/10/23
Alan Beales
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