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Hi,
i have recently been shown some old postcards sent to my grandmother in lydbrook, they are addressed to rock house, and I am wondering if any one would have information as to where Rock house was or still is in Lydbrook? Appreciate any help writing from New Zealand.

1802 views

There is a Rock Cottage

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Central+Lydbrook,+Lydbrook+GL17+9PP/@51.8402435,-2.58...

Might help if we knew the name of your grandmother and the date the cards were sent. Also her husband's name as he may have been listed in voters list but your grandmother might not.

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Peter

1776 views

So that Rock Cottage is in Central Lydbrook, GL179PP, whereas I see there's another apparently larger Rock Cottage at Robinsons Lane, Hangerberry, Lydbrook GL179QN.
Is this your lane Peter ;-) ?

Looks like this is your suggestion in Central Lydbrook Peter, on Bell Hill, photographed in 2009.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/sibadd/3840600151

And also Rocks Cottage, Vention Lane, Lydbrook GL179RL.

Which isn't far north of Rocks Road in Joys Green, still overlooking Lydbrook. Quite built-up now but only a few isolated residences even as recently as 1950 judging by the old maps, when known as The Rocks).

And probably others of similar name in the past, just as you say Peter.

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So that Rock Cottage is in Central Lydbrook, GL179PP, whereas I see there's another apparently larger Rock Cottage at Robinsons Lane, Hangerberry, Lydbrook GL179QN.
Is this your lane Peter ;-) ?

I do have ancestors living on Hangerberry but no connection that I know to the road of our name.

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Peter

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Shame :-(

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The one at GL17 9PP is the one I found but the one in Bell Lane is GL17 9SA. Both very close together. Maybe the first post code is a mistake as the other is clearly correct from the pictures you found. May be relevant that they are both close to a building that used to be a pub but I can't identify it. Maybe it was the Prince of Wales that George's father ran?

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Peter

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To be honest Peter despite Lydbrook being my Dad's home area, I barely know it and have only been thro' the village a couple of times in my life. Several editions of the old OS maps show the same "Hillview House" in the centre of Lydbrook, eg look left of the "L" in "LYDBROOK" on this later edition.
https://maps.nls.uk/view/102343249

You can see that just across the railway line there are two pubs abt equi-distant away. I think the lower one(on the map, NOT down the valley/road owards the Wye) is the Prince of Wales, and the one above it on the map is the Bush. If you then follow the railway line and road down the map, past the station and thro Upper Lydbrook, you'll see a "Hillside House" near Camomile Green. To the right is "B.H." for beerhouse, this was the Jovial Colliers pub. All three are long closed. In the early 1900s there were several pubs in the village and surrounding area, as Geoff Sandles' recently-revised Glospubs website shows, it's just a shame there isn't a map labelling which is which haha, but I have a book which also helps identify which is which. As the GlosPubs site shows several pubs were run by JONES' at one time or another, some were Colleen's ancestors, others were mine, but not related - there's a heckuva lot of Jones' in the area !

http://www.gloucestershirepubs.co.uk/Forest_of_Dean_Littledean-Lydney.php
https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4873965

This prior thread covers Colleen's Jones ancestors at the pub in more detail.
https://forest-of-dean.net/fodmembers/index.php?mode=thread&id=42289#p42371

1660 views

Hi Jeff,

Not sure about the pubs identification. I might be looking at the wrong ones though. If you look at this map https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=18&lat=51.8415&lon=-2.5820&layers=178...
then the two I think you're referring to are the Anchor and the Bell. Further south east there's a bench mark (BM198.8) next to a building identified as a pub. That was the Prince of Wales according to the pictures on the Geograph and the Glos Pubs sites and comparing them to present Street View images. It's right next to the building I previously identified as Rock Cottage - though I'm not sure that's correct any more.

My feeling is the Rock Cottage you identified was Rock House and there's no doubt about the location of Hillview house. And both are pretty close to the pub.

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Peter

1661 views

Hah! It would have been a lot easier if I just looked at Street View more closely. The old Prince of Wales pub is still called 'Prince of Wales' and has a sign outside.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.8400919,-2.5802264,3a,51.1y,72.19h,86.97t/data=!3m6!1...

--
Peter

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And your photo happily (for me) is the same house as the photo I posted, with the distinctive blue porch.
Least I got that one right haha.

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Hi Peter,
well if you will cheat and find a map with the flipping pubs clearly named on it... !!

Seriously tho I cannot fault your logic, altho (no doubt just like you) I did use streetview and a few books etc to come to my conclusions, but I wasn't entirely happy with my thinking so I'm not gonna revisit it all again now (3am). I must however thank you for proving to me that sometimes it is worth looking at the super-detailed 25" maps like you used, and not the 6 inch maps I've preferred until now I. Until today it's been my experience in other areas of the forest that both maps have virtually identical content, so I don't use the 25" maps as they're less user-friendly with their smaller coverage area and my always being on the join between two sheets lol - but now I see that "rule" does NOT apply to some places. Serves me right for not bothering to check this time...Later (tomorrow, Saturday), I'll enjoy studying the 25" maps more closely, but not becasue I doubt your findings, but to learn more about the area my Dad must have known very well. And also try to find the other pubs. I must admit to struggling when comparing the old maps to modern Streetview etc, without having the railway line there which is such an obvious point of reference on the maps.

Thanks again sir.

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Hi,

Thank you for the info regarding rock house.
My grandmother was Harriett Louisa Terrett b ( 1878 ) in Brierly. She married George Edward Jones in (1904 ) and he was the son of William Jones of the Prince of wales Inn in lydbrook.
They emigrated to New Zealand in 1911.
The postcards are wonderful and mainly written between Harriett's sister Alice who was living in Ruardean. The addresses are sometimes "Hill View", upper Lydbrook and also "Rock House" as I have mentioned. I wonder if these would be the same place? Also would there be any pictures of either of these houses? and do they still exist? I so appreciate any information people may have as Im a long way away. Christchurch New Zealand

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Still not finding anything I'm afraid. I can find the people, but not the places. I did find information that said they emigrated on 16 Nov 1912 on the ship ATHENIC bound for Wellington, NZ - which is different to what you said.

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Peter

1612 views

The 1911 census, Monmouthshire, West Dean

George Edward JONES aged 34 married 6 years, Engine Fitter, born Upper Lydbrook Glo
Harriet Louisa JONES aged 33 - born Brierley, Gloucestershire.

Address give: Upper Lydbrook Glos'shire

The following household is

Cornelius SIMMONDS - and the address given is Central Lydbrook, Rofs, Gloucestershire

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This was the address Hill View, Lydbrook, 24 December 1907 - burial of George's mother, 24 December 1907, aged 65 years.

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There is a baptism records at Lydbrook, 18 September 1927

Ella Margery WILCE, parents: Frank WYNDHAM and Doris May Victoria

residence: Hill View, Joys Green, Lydbrook

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I must admit to being a tad confused, but I think this proves there have been more than one place of this general name in the village.

Earlier Colleen saidd "The addresses are sometimes "Hill View", upper Lydbrook and also "Rock House" as I have mentioned. I wonder if these would be the same place?"

Colleen, it's very hard for us to know whether both relate to the same place - if we knew how often and on what dates each name was used, and if for example the usage alternated between each or not and how often, then that would maybe point to both names meaning the same place.
???

Not entirely sure why but I'm still leaning towards my earlier post suggesting it's in the part of Joys Green nearest to Central Lydbrook known now as Rock Lane but in the 1900s as The Rocks.

???

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Thank you everybody for all your suggestions, I hope to make it back to your side of the world again one day.

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