The Coffee Tavern Craze of the 1880s

Coffee

Around 1880 there was a wave of coffee taverns being opened all over Hertfordshire associated with the Temperance Movement. Some time ago I posted information on the Tring Coffee House, which opened in 1878, and recently I mentioned the Star Coffee Tavern at Shenley. Jon Mein sent me some information about the latter, and I decided to post a page on Coffee Taverns - giving details of some of those which opened prior to 1880, including a long contemporary press cutting relating to the Tavern at Bengeo.

I plan to add more information about the Coffee Tavern that opened in Hemel Hempstead when the British Newspaper Archive finish inputting the relevant years for the Hemel Hempstead Gazette - and would be interested to hear what any of you have about the fate of some of the other taverns.

Dating a picture of Shenley Post Office

The Star Coffee Tavern and Post Office, Shenley

This picture must have been taken by 1905, as it appears on a post card carrying this date. But how much earlier is it. I thought this would be an easy card to date but soon run up with a problem. The big house is clearly the "Star Coffee Tavern" and the Post Office is the shop to the left run by J A Tidey. However the big house is still standing and Google street view shows it is called The Old Post Office, and I could not find (in the limited time I had originally allocated) any reference to Tidey being the post master.

However a bankruptcy in 1903 suggests that Tidey may have become the postmaster when the previous postmaster had gone bankrupt - and if this is the case the photograph cannot have been tahen before 1903 - so it must be between 1903-1905.

The Star Coffee Tavern also gave problems - as the only reference I could find was in 1890 - but the most likely explanation is that the big house was multiply occupied - bu the baker and by a "Club House.

More Information.

Hit a Brick Wall? Looking for a way round

Help Desk

Shenley

Coreen has been researching her ancestor Walter Hewitt - who was born in about 1774 and had a number of children baptised at Shenley between 1804 and 1809. She can't find any record of his birth and has checked the obvious sources at HALS and he may have been the Walter mentioned in a removal in 1782. 

Unfortunately there are no surviving birth/baptism records for many people born before civil registration, especially when there are no census returns to suggest a place of birth. My analysis in HEWITT, Shenley Area, 1780-1851 does not come up with an immediate answer - but illustrates the kinds of questions one should be asking when you are trying to work your way round this kind of problem. 

Was the Lucy Hewitt who married in Hatfield in 1802 his sister and did she survive until the 1851 census?

Could the Mary Marston who witnessed his wedding at Abbots Langley in 1798 be his mother - now married?

And was the other witness, James Smith, a relative?

Was the 6 year old Sarah Yeoman at South Mimms in the 1841 census his granddaughter?

And if so did he have a daughter, Elizabeth, born in London Colney in about 1803?

A History of Shenley Mental Health Institution

I get a lot of queries about the long stay mental asylums in the St Albans area and have just noted that a detailed history of Shenley Hospital had been posted on the BBC web site.

Shenley - Improved pictures and Menu

Colney House from Beauties of England & Wales

The information on Shenley has been reorganised and all early post cards are now available at a high resolution by clicking on the image. I have also rescanned the 1803 print of Colney House (also at high resolution).

If you would like the information on one of the smaller towns or villages restructured and possibly augmented in a similar way let me know, as I would like to do perhaps half a dozen upgrades in the next few months. I have already had a request from Antony for Wheathampstead.

Post Card Views of Shenley

Two Post Card images added to the Shenley Page

Shenley Village, South, posted 1912

Old Thatched Cottages, Shenley, circa 1910

In addition high definition images of the following post card images of Shenley are now available.

The Folly

London Road

The Old Cage

Greeting Card (1924)

Post Office

Multiview (1907)

The Cage

Shenley Church