The Strand Lane 'Roman Bath': outline chronology

Strand Lane Bath – outline chronology 1547: approx. date of establishment of Strand Lane in present position, by Edward and Thomas Seymour, as public route from Strand to Thames between their properties (the nascent Somerset and Arundel Houses), replacing a former route which was inconveniently close to one of them 1583: mention of a "tenement … commonly called The Talbott" in Arundel document (though apparently not Arundel property at this stage): Arundel Castle MXD 30; cf. MXD32 (1585) 1611: mention of "messuage or inn … formerly known as the Talbott" in Arundel document (MXD27); cf. MXD304 (citing document of 1659), MXD28 (1666) 1611/12: construction of Parnassus grotto-fountain in Denmark House Privy garden by Salomon de Caus for Anne of Denmark; Somerset House Works Accounts for 1 October 1611 to 30 September 1612 record of payment to “Richard Barnewell for makeinge and settinge upp of an Engine to force upp water from a well at the end of the Terrasse in the garden to the great Cesterne over the Strand lane wch serveth the new fountain with water” (National Archives E 351/3246, fol. 12v) 1669: Talbot Inn and adjacent properties taken by Simon Fox on 1,000 year lease from Henry Howard at peppercorn rent 1671: Act of Parliament for redevelopment of Arundel Estate; some houses built by 1680, but some up to a decade later 1680: Simon Fox (Arundel agent) in possession of property on what will be site of 33-34 Surrey Street [R. Bowdler] 1687: marriage of Nevison Fox to Mary Moore, St James Duke's Place 1688: contract between S. and N. Fox and Thomas Howard for opening up and development of top end of Surrey Street 1694: rates on Fox property rise from £1/5/- (1692) to £3 [R. Bowdler]. So maybe 1692-4 for the grandification of the house that included the painted stairwell by L. Laguerre. Paintings judged by Vertue to be among L.'s early work, which should mean period 1683-1700 (L. born 1663, came to England ca. 1684, died 1721). Strype says mansion was of Nevison's "own building": this fine if Nevison is main occupant from roughly the time of his marriage onwards (which the theme of L.'s decoration – Omphale – would fit with too) 1697: death of Simon Fox, bequeathing to Nevison Surrey Street house, plus Talbott Inne, plus other property in Surrey Street, Strand Lane, Milford 1 Lane, and elsewhere in London; Nevison already in residence in Surrey Street by this time 1708: death of Nevison Fox, leaving 'Mansion House' with vault behind on Strand Lane, plus Talbott Inn and other property (itemised in will) on Strand, Strand Lane, Surrey Street and Milford Lane, to wife Mary 1710: Fox property (mansion, Talbott Inn, not clear how much else) sold to Thomas Vernon. Vernon has to buy out one Anne Lloyd to take possession of Talbott Inn, and approach Thomas Duke of Norfolk to secure a proper reversion [R. Bowdler]. Anne Lloyd was N. Fox's sister in law (presumably sister of Mary, thus née Anne Moore), so presumably has had Inn passed on to her by Mary Warrant Book for April 1710, Treasury reference to A. Travers, Surveyor General of Crown Lands, of the petition of Thomas Vernon for the grant of a little old shed in Strand Lane, adjoining the parish prison of St Clements Danes, being about 14 feet square, formerly a waterhouse to a grotto in Somerset House but now in a ruinous condition and like to fall into petitioner’s yard (Calendar of Treasury Books, Vol 24, pp. 224-238, entry for 6 April) 1722: agreement between Vernon and Arundel about Talbot Inn 1724: Arundel estate map by Cornelius Blackwell (Arundel MS H1/49) shows boundary just south of bath complex (back houses of both 33 and 32 Surrey Street) Calendar of Treasury Papers, 1724, 4 May: following inspection of buildings adjoining Somerset House, the Surveyor General (John Pulteney, Esq.) reports that in Strand Lane, next to the house occupied by one of the beadles of St Clement Danes, which extends over the Lane, there is a building called the Old Waterhouse, belonging to the palace, which is also built across the lane and joined to the palace wall. It is a decayed building of no use. (J. Redington (ed.), Calendar of Treasury Papers, Vol. 6: 1720-1728 (1889), 270-1) 1726: mansion house and Talbot Inn sold outright to Vernon (March); death of Thomas Vernon; property passes to Mrs Vernon 1741: property sold to Joseph Danvers (baronet 1746) 1744: severely damaged by fire while in occupation of Sir Philip Meadows, Comptroller of Army Accounts 1753: death of Sir Joseph Danvers; property passes to son Sir John Danvers 1765: mansion (but not Inn) destroyed by fire, burning through to Strand Lane (but stopped to N. by walls of Talbot Inn alehouse, and to S. by Mr Troughton's house = 32 Surrey Street) 2 1766-7: construction of current 33 and 34 Surrey Street [KCL Archives] 1775: Arundel Castel Archives MXD373-374 shows James Smith in residence in property to north and west of 32 Surrey Street (James Troughton) 1776: ad. in Daily Advertiser, 2 Nov: Cold Bath at No. 33 Surry-street now open. Subscription rates. 1776-: progressive demolition of old Somerset (Denmark) House; nb pavilion at far east end of east wing, hard up against Strand Lane wall by Watch House, had at time of demolition a marble-lined chamber containing hot and cold baths [?? possible source for marble cladding of 'Essex' bath??]. Salvaged materials from East Wing advertised for sale in The Daily Advertiser for 4 October (via Strand Lane). 1777: news item in Public Advertiser, 12 Nov: fare-dodger chased down Strand Lane by coachman, jumps into 'a Cold Bath which is in the passage' and has to be rescued. [Is this 'Roman' or 'Essex' bath? But NB fact that there is a Strand Lane entrance.] 1778: ad. in Gazetteer (20 May) and Morning Chronicle (22 May): baths now "much enlarged", separate entry for ladies (Surry-street) and gentlemen (Strand-lane); slightly increased subscription rates. 1780: J. Smith in Rate Book for 33 (in 1770 was Mr Alderman Crosby [Lord Mayor; "Brass" Crosby] – R. Bowdler) 1782: will of James Smith, leaving 33 Surry Street to Robert Simpson of Esher, 1 Sept death of James Smith, late October, described in notice in St James's Chronicle as 'Master of the Cold Bath, in Surrey-Street' 1783: leases on both front and back houses at 33 Surry-street advertised for sale, along with "two excellent and convenient good-accustomed ColdBaths and Dressing-Rooms adjoining." 1784: Robert Simpson in 1784 assessment for property in both Surrey Street and Strand Lane [MBT]; but 1790 Rate Book has Sarah Smith for No. 33, and 1800 Rate Book at 5 Strand Lane [R. Bowdler] Pinkerton's ref to 'fine antique bath' 'in the cellar of a house in Norfolk Street', Essay on Medals, p. 9 footnote 1792: death of William Weddell, M.P., 'suddenly, on entering the cold bath in Surrey-street, in the Strand'; Gentleman's Magazine 62:5 (May 1792), 481 3 1797: January: Danvers lands auctioned at Christie's. No. 33 Surry-street bought by David Rigge of New Bond St. [R. Bowdler; KCL Archives] February: Stamp Office and 'Bow-street light infantry' raid on lottery insurance scam headquarters in Surrey Street, in property let to a Mr Hoare by Mr Davies, who holds lease from Duke of Norfolk; some of gang escape 'through a hole in the wall, which let them into a back house in Strand-lane, where Hoare kept a cold bath': Lloyd's Evening Post 22 Feb 1797; Oracle and Public Advertiser 14 July 1797 and True Briton ditto (court hearing). [Norfolk link makes it look as if house must have been 32. If correct that the bath was Hoare's, then either the bath mentioned is the Essex bath (directly behind 32), or Hoare had some stake in back-buildings of 33 as well.] 1802: Old Bailey papers (http://www.oldbaileyonline.org/browse.jsp?id =t18020602-51&div=t18020602-51: Fifth Session, 1802, no. 469) give name of bath attendant as James Talboys, son of Beadle of St Clement Danes, also James Talboys, living in the Watch House. 1806: James Talboys still the bath keeper (Westminster Pollbooks, Jan- Dec 1806). 1813: ownership of 33 passes from David Rigge to son-in-law and business partner Robert Brockbank (still in possession in 1843) [R. Bowdler; KCL Archives]. 1815: ad. in Times 28 June, Smith's Cold Bath, Strand-lane … is now OPEN. Subscription rates. 1827: ad. in Times 18 October, the 'long-established and celebrated COLD BATH in Strand-lane' to be let. 1830: plan of (probably) 1830 in Norfolk estate papers shows building marked 'Bath House' behind No. 32 Surrey Street [R. Bowdler] 1837: Charles Scott becomes keeper of Bath (but not yet leaseholder; lease at this stage held from Brockbank by John William James Dawson – R. Bowdler; KCL Archives). 1838: Robson's London Directory … for 1838, p. 314: sole entry for Strand Lane: 'Scott Chas. Roman Spring Bths" = earliest reference so far identified to the Bath as Roman 1841: Census shows Scotts as one of several families living at Bath address – unnumbered, but between 4 and 7; this ought to be the old No. 5 1842: Knight's London, vol. II, description of Roman Bath; "The proprietors … rightly estimate its value, and have long ago caused another bath to be built and supplied from it; and it is in the latter alone that persons are allowed to bathe." (This other bath being the one subsequently 4 called the 'Essex' or 'Elizabeth' bath, in basement of the old 5 Strand Lane, level with 32 Surrey Street.) 33 Surrey Street leased from Brockbank to Henry Clarke of Great Pulteney Street on 21-year lease; lease excludes Old Roman Bath, which is described as in tenure or occupation [apparently tenure rather than occupation, to judge from 1841 census return - MBT] of John William James Dawson. [R. Bowdler; KCL Archives] 1843: Charles Scott takes over lease of Bath from Dawson; lease contains agreement with Brockbank about connection between the two baths, and about access for Brockbank to water from the 'Roman'. [R. Bowdler; KCL Archives] 1850: ad. in Times, 15 May: freehold of 33 Surrey-street and Old Roman Bath for sale: "The dwelling house is let to a highly respectable tenant at £75 per annum, and the bath to a yearly tenant at the almost nominal rent of £10". 1852: sketch of position of both baths added to ground plan in title deeds to 33 Surry Street, now in KCL Archives; unclear how soon or long after the making of the deed this was added 1865: bath passes to Henry Cutler; summary of owners in London Met. Archives file claims Cutler occupies 5 Strand Lane along with boxwood preparer John Howell (the old 5 Strand Lane, behind 32 Surrey Street), but Cutler not in 1871 census return for 5 Strand Lane ad. in The Lancet, 29 July: The Old Roman Bath is Reopened with great improvements. This celebrated bath is perpetually supplied from the above Spring at the rate of ten tons of water per diem. Single Bath, One Shilling. The old Spring can be viewed gratis. For further particulars apply to the proprietor, H. CUTLER, 5, Strand-lane, near Somerset House. 1868: death of Charles Scott. Diprose (Some Account, I, 266) reports epitaph describing him as 'for twenty-eight years proprietor of the old Roman Bath, Strand Lane.' 1874/5: bath passes to John Howell [transcript of letter from his daughter in Statutory Planning File in London Metrop. Archives; also follow-up interview notes] 1891/2: bath passes to Henry Glave, draper, New Oxford Street, along with 5 Strand Lane and the 'Essex' bath. 'Roman' bath now owned, not leased from owner of 33 Surrey Street 1893: Glave sells 5 Strand Lane to proprietor of 31-32 Surrey Street for hotel extension – as Howell had formerly refused to do; has marble and tiles, plus busts and plinths, stripped out of 'Essex' bath and transferred to 5 the 'Roman' bath; makes over bath to the Misses Glave. '5 Strand Lane' now address of 'Roman' bath, not 'Essex' bath building, or the complex of the two. 1922: Bath bought by Rev. William Pennington-Bickford; marble and tiles in main chamber removed; some small-scale excavations, with unfulfilled plans for more (including reconstruction under supervision of Sig. Fortunino Matania) 1941: deaths of both Rev. and Mrs Pennington-Bickford; she in will leaves freehold house at Kew in trust to maintain the Bath 1945-7: Min. of Works, about to return from Wales to Whitehall, take up question of transfer of Bath to corporate/public ownership. Executors of Mrs PB finally in position to find a purchaser. NT willing if someone else will administer, suggest Westminster; Westminster not set up to do this, so taken on by LCC [only gets onto Westminster books when GLC abolished … ]. Money for purchase put up by Mr Montague L. Meyer. In process, LCC and MoW officials investigate authenticity of Bath, and conclude against; this result accepted by NT, who feel case for preservation not thereby removed. MBT June 2010, rev. October 2011 and January 2013 [Note: 'R. Bowdler' refers to materials in EH file WM645 Strand Lane: - "Roman Bath", researched and compiled by Dr Roger Bowdler in 1992-3; I am very grateful to Dr Bowdler for making this material available to me, and have gained much from it.] See further: Trapp, M., "New light on the Strand Lane 'Bath'", National Trust Historic Houses and Collections Annual 2012 (London: Apollo Magazine, 2012), 44-7 (online at http://www.apollo-magazine.com/nationaltrust/#/1/) Trapp, M., "The Denmark House Helicon: iconography and surviving traces", Studies in the history of Gardens & Designed Landscapes 32.4 (2012), 241-57 Trapp, M., "The Georgian history of the Strand Lane 'Roman Bath'", forthcoming in The London Journal 39.2 (July 2014) http://www.strandlines.net/story/romans-bathing-strand-lane-bath http://www.londonopenhouse.org/london/search/factsheet.asp?ftloh_id=18096 6