Yesterday saw the eagerly-anticipated release of the 1921 censuses for England and Wales, giving a fabulous insight into the lives of our forebears. Published online at Find My Past, we were incredibly keen to find who was living at 9 Hertford Street at that time.
Our search found Alice Susan Parker (33), who was living and working here as a caretaker. She lived here with her husband William (49), an employee at the Austin Motor Company which was then based in North Row (Park Lane), and their three-year-old daughter, Elsie Valentine.
From this information, we can surmise that by the 1920s, 9 Hertford Street had been converted into apartments. Indeed, previous censuses and other historical documentation have confirmed that during the early 1900s, some properties along the street were gradually converted into elegant apartments and some altered for commercial use (including 7 Hertford Street, where the Hertford Street Motor Hire Company opened in 1906).
The next property along from 9 Hertford Street, also on the south side of the road, is 10 Hertford Street, which was still a family home in 1921. John and Evelyn Cuttelar lived here with their 18-year-old daughter Mildred and eight servants (including a knitter maid!). This building, once home to playwright Richard Brinsley Sheridan, is of particular historical and architectural importance and is noted for its fine Adam interiors; its interior plans can be viewed in Sir John Soane’s Museum.
8 Hertford Street was also still a domestic residence in 1921. Joseph Gainford (who hailed from Durham) was living here with his Canadian wife Ethel, their 19-year-old daughter Faith and their two servants, Arthur (a butler) and Margaret (a cook).
Sadly, we will have to wait 30 years until the next census will be released as the 1931 records were destroyed by fire and no census was taken in 1941 (due to the Second World War). However, our intrigue in the history of our beautiful and fascinating street remains strong so we can assure you that, whilst leaving no stone unturned, we will continue to share any discoveries we make through other sources.