Hygiea Street

[suzyemm]

In my previous post, Jan44 pointed out that Levi Jacobs lived at Hygiea Street - from the 1860 Liverpool Directory.

This is another street that interests me. The only photo I have seen of this street is of the entrance to a court, and it looked very poor and depressing. I see this street runs into West Derby Road but is all recently built now.

Does anyone have any knowledge about this street in the 1860's? The nature of the buildings, ie, whether shops, etc. I wonder also why it was named thus.

Kind regards
Suzyemm

[jan44]

Hi Suzy,

I found Hygeia St on the 1861, I have the census on cd's, so I can look up a street by name.

RG9 2714 folio 37 page 23 has 55 Hygeia St on, Elizabeth Dunn(e) I am not sure if there is an E on the end! age 47 shop keeper, born Liverpool.

I have no idea where the street name comes from.

Jan

[MaryA]

Thanks for the references Jan, reading the Enumerator's Walk I have found he went down a number of streets, including Hygeia Street and also mentions No. 1 Court and Back Hygeia Street, which could explain the differences in the housing, so yes there will be Courts and probably "Back" would not be the best housing either, but perhaps Hygeia Street itself will be slightly more affluent, however, looking up and down the street and the occupations there seems to be a diversity amongst some that might have been done from their own home, rather than commercial premises - Charwoman, Grocer, Hair Cutter, Upholsterer, Dress Maker, Green Grocer, Cotton Porter, Brick Layer, Coach Man, Housekeeper, Printer Compositor, Carter, Bread Baker, Provision Dealer, House Painter.

I think we have to remember that many people turned their hand to whatever they could but likely couldn't afford separate premises for trade and often merely used an area of their own homes and worked from worked there - my own grandfather apparently did this in nearby Boaler Street as recently as 1911 despite being a Master Hairdresser, this would be similar even if they stored provisions or vegetables for sale, don't know about the likes of a bread baker.

Unlike some censuses there doesn't appear to be noted how many rooms are occupied by each family in a household, although each family does seem to have it's own house number, that's not to say how large the premises are, sorry.

Like Jan I have no idea where the name of the street would have been derived from, it seems not to have any connections with nearby roads and googling just brings up links with Greek and Roman mythology

[dickiesam]

I think whoever named Hygieia Street either did it with tongue in cheek or lived on another planet... Talk about wishful thinking!

From Wiki..
In Greek and Roman mythology, Hygieia (also Hygiea or Hygeia, Greek Ὑγιεία or Ὑγεία, Latin Hygēa or Hygīa), was the goddess/personification of health, cleanliness and sanitation. She was a daughter of the god of medicine, Asclepius.

Not very far away we have Castor St, Apollo, St, Venus St and Jupiter St, to name but a few with Greco-Roman connections, all off Belmont Road. It is worth reading this from the Liverpool Mercury...
http://www.old-merseytimes.co.uk/liverpoolstreets.html

[suzyemm]

Dear Mary, Jan & Dickie
Thank you for checking this out for me. I enjoyed Dickie's comments about the name Hygiea. Wishful thinking indeed. And yes, I agree, from what I have learned, most people who worked for themselves, generally operated from their homes, so it could have been a home address rather than a shopfront.

[Daisycakes]

My grandmother age 6 at the time (census 1891) lived in 57 Hygiea Street in what was I found after a bit of searching a common lodging house and there was also another family living there. I wonder if it may indicate the size of the properties in the street....we had a little nostalgic trip to Liverpool last year and yes all of that area has been redeveloped but most still have the original names.

Ann

[Hilary]

Hygeai Street is shown on the 1847 60 inch town plan of Liverpool. My 3x great grandfather George Glover was living there in 1841 when he was listed as a cowkeeper. Other evidence christenings etc suggested he was there from laste 1837. His brother was also there in 1838 when he died at a young age. The street was right on the edge of the city and one end of the street was opposite the then Liverpool Botanical Gardens. There was a paper works at the other end of the street and Thomson and Greenwood Street where off to the right near the end of the street. The map shows some terraced houses some semis and a number of courts. There was also Strawberry PlaceThere was a lot of open space to either side of the street. My guess is that the area was in the process of being developed.

Interestingly most of the even munbered side of Hygeai Street had gone sometime between 1908 and 1928 when it has become part of an enormous Tobacco Factory.

George's son James my 2x great grandfather continued living in Hygeai Street after his father returned to farming and went to Rainford. The 1851 census gives them living at 24 Hygeai Street (I don't know if this was the same house). James was a stonemason. He lived there with two siblings. In 1861 by now married James is still at 24 Hygeai Street. This is listed as the house after Strawberry Place which would make it a corner house so possibly the same house as his father 20 years earlier.

I imagine the street is also shown on the 1880/90s 25 inch to the mile maps as well. The even numbers are on the right and the odds are on the left.

If you go to http://www.old-maps.co.uk and use the postcode L6 2DY you will be able to see the street on a range of maps.

[Daisycakes]

Hi Hilary....on that 1891 census I mentioned is the following...

Strawberry Gardens...head hotel keeper

then written below "see page 40 for persons in caravans" wonder if they where the old gypsy caravans ???

Ann

[Hilary]

The Strawberry Gardens have gone by the 1890s but there's a Strawberry Hotel. It's behind Hygeai Street. What was the garden is an empty plot later to be Ogden's Tobacco Factory.

[Daisycakes]

Interesting it just adds a little more to my research Thank You

Ann

[suzyemm]

Really interesting posts. Thanks very much. Greenwood St is another one that I was interested in, as our family were located there in the 1871 census (after being at 21 Tue Brook), so interesting to hear how close it was to Hygiea St. Greenwood St no longer exists so have no idea what sort of housing it had.

Suzy

[Hilary]

My great grandfather was born at 16 Greenwood Street in 1854!