Cottage in High Street West, Redcar prev Coatham, North Yorks, Mabel Birkbeck

[TandRRedcar]

Hello, thank you for providing such a fabulous forum.

We are not related to the Birkbecks of Redcar. Bill Birkbeck was married to Mabel who passed away at the end of last summer, aged 80. Mabel was previously Donaldson and born Whyman. Bill was born in 1918 and has passed some years ago.

They lived happily in a cottage at 43 High Street West, also known as Appleton House.

We are trying to trace the origins of the house - a cottage. High Street West was formerly Coatham High Street and prior to that Coatham Road (not to be confused with the current version) and before that Coatham Lane. The house is shown on the 1853 map but we cannot find any mention whatsoever. Current numbers will not be relevant as this was the only house on this side of the road on the 1853 map and the road names have changed.

We are not experts at this sort of searching. Everything that we have tried has turned up blanks and we can find no records whatsoever.

This seems a fabulous site, with some very wonderful and helpful people. Could someone help us please or advise of how we might narrow the search. The house is probably 1799 - 1840 but everything, why it existed, its name, etc is a total mystery. Who were the Appletons? it might have been a quite lovely house when it was first built...

Thanks in advance, R & T Redcar

We're wondering

[Milliepede]

Do you know if the house was "in the family" as it were?

If so looking it up on census years might give some clues, would presume an Appleton family lived there at one time. 

Have you got any photos of it - was it a large house/cottage?

[TandRRedcar]

Hi, thank you

Really not sure if the house was owned by Appleton, or built by them. might be a fair assumption but not sure. The Birkbeck family don't appear on the scene until circa 1980+

The problem is that the street name has changed 4 times, last was 1935.

Going to try to access the 1911 census and search for what will likely be 43 Coatham High St. Try to find a name. Only a recent photo. Will visit our local museum when it re-opens again in the spring.

[venelow]

Hi R&T

Is the house shown as Appleton House on the 1853 map?  I see from street view it is set back from the road.

Looks like it could have originally been a farmhouse or possibly a pub.  The farmland could have been sold to build the terrace houses sometime in the early 20th century.

I could not find a named house in the 1851 Census. 


Venelow
Canada

[Jool]

Hi and welcome to Rootschat

We are not allowed to post full details of the 1911 census due to copyright as they are on paid subscription sites (Ancestry and FindMyPast). Your local library may have access to these websites.

However there is a free index on Familysearch.  I believe this may be the family in 1911.
(you will have to register for a free account on Familysearch to view this)

The birth place of the head of the household is APPLETON Wiske, Yorkshire - which may be how the house got it's name.

http://www.rootschat.com/links/01lbt/

The 1939 Register may also be of help, only available on FindMyPast, and we cannot do lookups for this either.

[Jool]

To help anyone looking, this is a recent streetview image of the house

http://www.rootschat.com/links/01lbx/

[TandRRedcar]

Thank you to Jool and for the welcome.

Yes, the 1911 census has turned up Robert who, with his wife has raised a rather large family of 10 children in the house. He (or his parents?) have brought part of Appleton Wiske to Redcar (Coatham). That is the house, the house to the left is a more recent addition and was probably a land sale of part of the garden mid 1900's?

Sadly cannot find any other photos of the house in existence, whether brick or a lime render.

Doubt that Robert had the means to build such a house, so it's back to earlier census' to continue.

fascinating 

[TandRRedcar]

Hi R&T

Is the house shown as Appleton House on the 1853 map?  I see from street view it is set back from the road.

Looks like it could have originally been a farmhouse or possibly a pub.  The farmland could have been sold to build the terrace houses sometime in the early 20th century.

I could not find a named house in the 1851 Census. 


Venelow
Canada

Hello Venelow

Thanks for your input. Fabulous. Yes, the house is on the 1853 map and set back from the road - it is the only house on that side of the street, but unmarked. I suspect that the Appleton connection is circa 1900. This was not farming terrain. The street was subject to such battering from the wind, that the entire area was covered in deep sand dunes, often to the height of the eaves (as was chronicled in 1808). The first railway - to Redcar - passed 30m to the North by 1840 and the area immediately to the North of that was just rabbit warrens. This is how Warrenby has gotten it's name?

best regards from England

[TandRRedcar]

Hello. It's been a long time since we were here. On this topic, we bought the property and have unearthed most of its history now. We're in the final stages of renovating it and hope to move in this year.

The house gave up some early clues. Primarily the bricks and the roof construction. The bricks are primitive and all hand made.

The property was 2 cottages circa 1860. Prior to that it appears to have been a grain store circa 1755, we even have the tenants name from the original Kirkleatham Estate Rent book. But it appears that the building was constructed between 1608-1612 and was a store for Alum that was being mined in the local hills. A set of accounts stored in the National Archive in Kew dated 1612 describes it as such and the bricks are of the same period. The current roof appears to be mid 18th C and appears to be a re-roof of an earlier building. Many local historians and a vernacular architecture study group have surveyed it and the consensus is the same.

Quite remarkable to know and of course - we are privileged to be involved with its restoration.

thanks to everyone. stay safe