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How could Earlsdon mark the Millennium? That was the question being asked in Earlsdon as the year 2000 approached. Following two years of hard work and a range of suggestions the 'Earlsdon 2000 Committee' created the "Earlsdon Heritage Trail", an idea promoted by Earlsdon's highly successful community newspaper ECHO. The Trail was put together by the late Mary Montes, a local historian, who identified sites of historical interest in Earlsdon. Each has now been marked by a plaque giving a little information about the significance of the building.
The cost of the trail was covered by a grant from the City Council, donations from local traders and the sale of an excellent little book written by Mary Montes and financed by ECHO and other contributors.
On Sunday 30th April 2001 Mary led a guided walk around the Trail. This page gives you a taste of the Trail but if you want to know more, you can buy Mary's book at £2.95 from Earlsdon Library.
| Graham Partridge explains the background to the project and how the Trail was developed. The Lord Mayor, Cllr. Joan Wright (right), Jim Cunningham MP(left) and Mary Montes (far left) listen. |
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Mary Montes explains that the Elsdon Jetty outside Earlsdon School is the remaining section of the original walkway which people took from the City of Coventry on Sunday walks into the countryside around what was then known as Elsdon |
| There has been a pub on the site of the current City Arms building since the 1850s. "Ma Cooper" was its most famous landlandy and she ran the pub from 1896 until 1921. You can see a picture of the old City Arms here. |
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This is the old Nail Factory in Moor Street which was built by a William Pitt in 1886. From about 1889, it became a cycle works and then, with the introduction of the internal combustion engine, the pedal cycles were replaced by motor cycles. Sadly, today the building lies empty. |
| The building was until recently used by J.B.C. Computers and was in 1852 known as Earlsdon House. It was built by John Flinn and was one of the very first buildings on the newly laid out Earlsdon Estate. He was a watch manufacturer and came to Coventry from Preston. The building is currently at the centre of a battle between the local community and a developer who would like to convert it into another bar. |
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This building curently owned by D.B.S. was, in the 1890s, a Tubular Bell Foundry owned by the Harringtons. It made bells for churches as well as door bells and dinner gongs. DBS have recently announced their intention to vacate the premises and so soon the site will be redevelped. |
| No. 15 Clarendon Street was built in the 1860s by Joseph Richardson who was a watch manufacturer. He and his family lived in it and he had his factory in the rear of the building in a top shop. Fredrick Gibberd lived in the house in the early 1900s and it was he who designed Liverpool R.C. Cathedral and Harlow New Town. |
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The shop now used by the Samaritans was Earlsdon's first shop. It was owned by Mr. Samuel Ward in the mid 1860s and sold provisions to residents of the new Earlsdon Estate. |
These last two pictures are taken from the rear of Moor Street and show two examples of the "Top Shops" used by the Watchmakers of the 1800s to ply their trade.
These and many more sites across the area are covered in more datail in the Millenium Heritage Trail booklet. |
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This page is dedicated to the memory of Mary Montes who did so much to research and record the history of our area.
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