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INSIDE Allerton Road office celebrates its third anniversary
Issue 129 – January 2018
see pages 14 and 15
WIN, WIN, WIN
HOME SWEET HOME By Stephen Guy
THE smallest homes can be warm and inviting despite the challenges created by lack of space. Long ago houses were often limited in size because of a number of factors, from construction issues to necessities such as the availability of land. Some people created their own living space in what were little more than hovels. They were essentially mud huts made from wattle and daub, with thatched roofs. These could be built relatively quickly, sometimes on common land where they were known as squatters’ cottages. Others were squeezed into any available space, particularly in towns. People created this type of basic housing over many centuries but it does not happen today. This is because modern planning, building and public health regulations have outlawed housing which, although sometimes picturesque, was often not good for physical and mental wellbeing.
The Fisherman’s Hut (pictured) at Otterspool was among the last of a number of waterside cottages which flourished when the river teemed with life. Buttressed by timber and heaps of stones, it stood near the end of Jericho Lane. The hut was occupied by one of the last fishermen and his family until 1927. Although it was tiny, 95 High Street in Wavertree had a big claim to fame. Until the last family moved out in 1925 it was the smallest house in England. It was next door to a coffee house (later a pub) and on a bustling street where the residents would have spent much of their waking hours. The house was probably built about 1850 in an alleyway. Just six foot wide and 14 ft deep, a couple are said to have brought up their eight children within its walls.
Win tickets to John Lennon’s Banjo
page 22
The interior stairs were 16 inches wide so that large people could only go up and down by turning sideways. The little house remained empty for years before being incorporated into the Cock and Bottle pub in 1952. A tiny thatched cottage called Sparrow Hall stood for centuries off Hogginson’s Plat (an old word for plot) until the 1860s when the track
became Greenhill Road as the district developed. Generations of poor residents of Sparrow Hall lived off the land. The cottage was swept away when this part of Allerton was built up after the First World War. ■ Learn more about the history of Liverpool at the Museum of Liverpool, Pier Head, open 10am to 5pm every day, admission free.
An interview with Tony Hadley
page 5
LIFE ‘n’ STYLE with Jade Ainsworth
page 18
Car review – Fiat Tipo Station Wagon
page 27
Strange Tales by Anton Valdemart SERVICES LINK
page 8
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