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Attleborough Streets – Their Names and Origins

ALBION STREET, where the Albion buildings are, now part of Attleborough Road.

BUCHANAN’S ROW, a collection of cottages at the end of George Street named from James Williams Buchanan (           ) a local lawyer, and partner of George Greenway who lived at Attleborough Hall.

BROOK STREET, a narrow lane that led off Hall End down to the Wem Brook.

BULL STREET, from the Bull Inn (still extant) the village’s principal inn. The Bull might have been the model for “The Rainbow” in Silas Marner. There has been a pub by this name on the site since the 18^th century.

CHURCH STREET, named after the church built in 1842. It later became part of Attleborough Road.

FREER STREET, named after the local family of Freers. These were Leicestershire people who settled in the village in the 18^th century. A narrow and very short street where the original chapel was said to be located.

COTON LANE, now Avenue Road, the lane that led to Chilvers Coton village less than a mile distant. The parish boundary was the Wem Brook a tributary of the River Anker.

GADSBY STREET, named after William Gadsby (           ) a local man who became a nationally known preacher.

GARRATT STREET, a local family of Garratt’s who lived in this street were the originators. It was one of the most populous streets in the village in the 19^th century with some good houses.

GEORGE STREET, led off the Square and had a row of cottages lining it. Presumably the name comes from George Greenway (           ) who owned nearly Attleborough Hall which he had had built.

THE GREEN, there was at one time a village green with roads leading off  to Lutterworth (later turnpiked), the streets we know now at Kem Street, Hall End and Bull Street probably enclosed the Green at the time this enclosed fields and acted as a pinfold or stockade for enclosing local farmers animals during the winter. There was a need to keep them together as feeding animals out in the lonely fields beyond the village was difficult (and dangerous).

HALL END, originally called Town Street. It originally was one the lanes enclosing the Green but its cottages were built by the early nineteenth century, whereas Kem Street appears to be built up later. The Hall was Caldwell Hall whose grounds it overlooked.

KEM STREET, named after the legendary character, Teddy Kem. At one time a stream ran down one side from a spring near the Green.

LISTER STREET, named after the factory of  Listers of Manningham whose mill was in the street.

THE LYNCH, a cul-de-sac now but used to be lined with cottages, named after the Lynch Spring which was in Marston Lane. Th spring water was said to have curative properties.

MARSTON LANE, the lane that once led to the hamlet of Marston Jabbett over the fields near Bedworth.  

MOORE’S YARD, A courtyard of cottages at the back of  the Royal Oak public house, in Garratt Street. A publican of the Royal Oak in the 19^th century was Joseph Moore.

PARK AVENUE, built in the early 19^th century as part of “New Attleborough” the name derives from the grounds of Attleborough Hall whose parkland it overlooked.

THE SQUARE, principally a continuation of the Green. Whereas the Green was open in the 19^th century, the Square was lined with properties, shops, cottages, the Fox Inn and at its centre a mysterious building existed in the 1840’s about which nothing is known other than to say it has every appearance in plan of being some kind of market hall. Of course, that is probably unlikely as Attleborough did not have its own market.

TOWN STREET, the 18^th century name for Hall End. Presumably before Caldwell Hall was built and the street lined with old cottages faced the main road to Nuneaton Town.

THE WIDE YARD, Off Garratt Street. As its name implies this was a wide court yard or alley which narrowed and led across the Attleborough Hall grounds, a dark and scary track on winter nights. The wide section was lined with cottages. One of the occupier was a man named Batchelor who made a living out of firewood which he collected in Nuneaton Market in the form of wooden crates which he collected from the fruit and vegetable vendors. These he reduced to short pieces wired up with a special contraption he acquired for the purpose. He was often seen sitting in the yard busily wiring up bundles of firewood for sale locally.

WILLIAM STREET, the originator of this name is not known but might be the William of William Gadsby.

(Of course there are many more streets in Attleborough today but their names have little relevance to the history of the village)

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