Chelmsford, Queens Head Inn, High Street 1892

Photo ref: 31508X

More about this scene

The town was getting bigger. It began to spread westwards along Brochole Street (now Duke Street). The High Street itself was filling up. Some of the freeholders had been setting up stalls in the middle of the road that were now becoming permanent structures. By the end of the 14th century these had solidified into a block of shops called Middle Row. It effectively divided the street into two - the High Street and Back Lane (or Tindal Street, as we now call it). Middle Row, of course, still exists today. The rest of the street was full of movable stalls on market days. Different parts of the street specialised in different types of goods: poultry, fish, leather. There was a shambles - a slaughterhouse - in Middle Row. The conduit stream was usually awash with blood and market refuse. It was a busy, smelly place.