Godington Road

Ashford

Above photo 1910, sent by Rory Kehoe, showing what could be a pub, off-license or beer house. Or perhaps just a restaurant.

Anyone know anything about this area?

Bob Shrubb of the Ashford Borough Museum tells me that this is a photo showing the "Invicta" addressed in the directories at 20 Godinton Road  and 78 Hempsted Street. This is located to the left of the building showing the words Dining Rooms and he goes on to say the following about the Dining Rooms:-

From Kelly's Directory, searched on Ancestry.co.uk, a Mrs. Lydia Maylam ran dining rooms at an address variously given as 5 or 16 Hempsted Terrace or 16 Godington Road. [The 1898 25" OS Map shows this section of Godinton Road as Hemsted Terrace (without the 'P'). The 1907 map does not show Hempsted Terrace and includes the 'P' in Hempsted Street.]

The 1887 Post Office Directory (became Kelly's) lists a Henry Clayson as operating 'refreshment rooms' at 16 Hempsted Terrace. Mrs. Maylam's Address is given as 5 Hempsted Terrace in the 1891 Directory under 'Coffee rooms'. 1891 Kelly's shows him as operating from 40/42 New Street. It seems that Lydia Maylam was running a separate establishment on the opposite side of the road in 1891 and moved into Mr Clayson's Hempsted Terrace/Godinton Road premises between 1891 and 1903.

 In 1899 her address is given as 16 Hempsted Terrace again under 'Coffee rooms'. The 1903 directory is the first to list dining rooms and the address is given as 16 Godinton Road. The establishment remained listed until 1938, the latest available on ancestry.co.uk, with Mrs. Maylam as proprietor.

The 1911 Census shows her as being 58 years old and married for 39 years. I can't be sure whether her status is shown as married, overwritten widowed, or vice versa.

It does show that the premises were in use as serving refreshments from at least 1887 through to 1934 with a possible short break around 1891