Henry Street, Ross on Wye (General)

by Jefff , West London, Middlesex, Saturday, September 22, 2012, 05:06 (4448 days ago) @ suecar53

Hi,
first let me say I'm NOT well-versed on the history of Ross, however your query intrigued me into searching the internet. I've looked at several sites wrt the history of Ross, however they are all tourism websites so no great detail,; sadly I couln't find a formal history website such as the Victorian british History site. Hence I have no idea when Henry Street was first named as such, does anyone else know please ?

One reference states "On each corner of Church Street once stood the former Griffin and the Great Inn, both associated with traditional stories that probably contained some grain of truth. The Griffin was said to have been visited by King Henry IV in 1399...."
http://herefordshire.greatbritishlife.co.uk/article/high-up-above-the-river-herefordshi...

Church Street is not particularly near Henry Street, however personally as with George Street for example in Ross & elsewhere, I think it more likely they were named after monarchs rather than local businessmen, particularly if those Kings had visited the town. If not, surely Minett Street would be more appropriate ?

I have searched both the "Minett" name and "Henry Street" in old trade directories to try and establish a link, but the two rarely seem to meet altho' thats no real indicator of course. If you're researching the Minett family in particular I recommend searching the directories, they were clearly influential in the town, from Thomas (Plasterer) in 1840 thro George Frederick (clerk) in 1890 and so on.
http://www.historicaldirectories.org/hd/findbylocation.asp

I also found this Will which may perhaps be of interest.
"MINETT, William Henry[1] - 354 Albany Road, Camberwell, 6 Jan 1902.
Beneficiaries: wife Sophia Emily MINETT*; sons Henry William MINETT, Charles Frederick MINETT and Arthur James MINETT; daughter Sophia Ellen or Ellen Sophia MINETT.
Witnesses: Geo. E CLUSE, Elizabeth SINGLETON.
[1] William Henry MINETT was the first son of Henry MINETT, solicitor, of Ross-on-Wye.
Proved 8 Sep 1909."
http://willsdb.gukutils.org.uk/HEF/WillsM.html

Finally with regard to properly answering your query, I recommend contacting the local Museum at the Market House, hopefully they can help. Contact details etc here:
http://www.herefordshire.gov.uk/leisure/museums_galleries/2857.asp