XLII., XLIII.—Nos. 46 and 48 CHEYNE WALK.
Ground landlord, leaseholders, etc.
No. 46 is owned and occupied by L. A. Harrison, Esq., and No. 48 by
W. J. Disturnal, Esq., B.A., LL.B.
General description and date of structure.
Originally three separate houses, these buildings now contain the two
residences Nos. 46 and 48, the former including the original Nos. 46 and 47. The
property on which they stand adjoined that of Shrewsbury House on the east,
and the fine Tudor wall which forms the boundary has already been mentioned.
We quote the following from Mr. Randall Davies (fn. 1) : "The western boundary
of Shrewsbury House was 66 feet east of the house at the corner of Cheyne Row,
formerly called 'The Feathers' or 'The Prince's Arms'; the intervening space
being originally occupied by another tavern called 'The Three Tuns,'belonging
to the manor, which was pulled down some time before 1711 (Middx. Registry
1711, March 26, Clarkson to Turton)." No. 49 Cheyne Walk, which has been
rebuilt, is on the site of "The Feathers," and Nos. 46 and 48 occupy the frontage
of 66 feet mentioned by Mr. Davies as the site of "The Three Tuns," the
bowling green of which had been built upon a few years previously to form
Cheyne Row. The houses may have been built soon after the date of the lease
(1711), but they have been somewhat altered, and No. 48 was evidently remodelled about a century and a half ago. Externally they preserve their early
Georgian character, without possessing any striking features, and No. 48 is
cemented over the brickwork.
No. 46 has a nice little iron grille in the fanlight over the front door,
and an original archway in the hall with beautifully carved Ionic capitals. The
western portion has been made into one large room on the ground floor, and
has been panelled in keeping with the early 18th century fashion. Above there
are two good chimney-pieces, one understood to have come from No. 21
Cheyne Walk, and the other a copy of this. On the second floor there is an old
chimney-piece with dentil-cornice in the front room, and at the back is an old
hob grate. Several portions of the old cornice mouldings to the rooms are left.
No. 48 is an interesting house, in that it shows something of internal
architectural effect, dating from a period when decorative work was in decline.
The front room on the ground floor is curved in plan at its north end. This
was done to give sufficient space on one side for the stairs, the other side being
occupied by a little cupboard. In the recess is an arch which was inserted later
as it cuts into the cornice. The back room has been papered over the panelling,
but preserves its wood cornice. On the first floor the back room and "powder
room" are covered with plain panelling, and there is a small original chimneypiece. On the second floor is an early grate of reeded pattern.
Although there is little left to show conclusively that the houses date
from 1711, yet that is probable. There seems to have been some rearrangement
in addition to the merely decorative alterations. The houses retain their three
"powder room" projections on the garden side, the two towards the west
having kept the original wood cornice at the eaves, and old hipped roofs.
Condition of repair.
The houses seem in good repair.
Historical notes.
Although it is easy to identify "The Feathers" Inn in the rate-lists, and there is
no difficulty in tracing the residents in Shrewsbury House, yet it is not altogether plain
which entries refer to the three houses, Nos. 46, 47 and 48 Cheyne Walk. This
is perhaps due to the fact that houses were built in the front of Shrewsbury House at various
times, and their occupants may not have all been entered in the same order. The names
may be, however, of interest, and with the above reservation we will put them down in
the order which seems most probable.
In the position in which we should expect to find No. 46 is the entry "a new house"
for 1766–1768. The residents after this date are: 1769–1783, Charles Pinfold; 1790–1798,
Abel Vyvyan; 1799, Sarah Vyvyan; and 1800–1802, Richard Wilkinson.
The chief tenants of No. 47 appear to have been: 1713–1718, Madame Bendall;
1718–1722, Miles Arnold; 1723–1728, Forde Rodgers; 1729–1731, Lady Northcliffe;
1736–1760, Mary Errick; 1761–1768, Hon. Mrs. Verney; 1768–1775, Susan Nicholas;
1778–1779, Arabella Warrington; 1778–1779, Elizabeth Ward; 1781–1783, Hannah
Wills; 1790–1794, Stephen Artaud; 1799–1802, Joseph Munday.
In No. 48 were: 1714–1723, William Bockett, followed in 1724 by John Tey;
from 1730–1734 Mrs. Rose Tey lived here, and her name appears again after a short
tenancy by Thomas Tey (1735–1740). She stayed here until 1766, but the assessment
of the house falls from £26 to £15. The house was empty in 1766, occupied by John
Philips in 1767, and empty again until 1769, when the assessed rateable value rises to £28
with the tenancy of John Hall, who stayed till 1776. Then follow 1777–1781, Anne
Calloway; 1782–1783, Dorothy Sydenham; 1790–1796, John Morrison; 1798, George
Fielder; 1799, William Brook; 1800–1802, William Coleman.
Bibliographical references.
Randall Davies, Chelsea Old Church (1904).
In the committee's ms. collection are—
Views of front (partly) and back, with those of Shrewsbury House (vide ante
Nos. 3282–3284).