Witham Passage, Boston

[Ann65]

One of my step-ancestors, Maud Peach, was born at 3, Witham Passage, Boston in 1887, d/o Benjamin Peach & Susan nee Redshaw.

I have hunted Boston high and low but cant find this place, does anyone know where it is/was?

From the local street names, one would place it probably in Witham Town (Witham Green area) but I think perhaps it wasnt, cos most of the Peaches seemed to hang out in places like Castle St which is west of the River Witham, not east.

Perhaps Geoffers would know? Id love to know where it actually is/was?

[emeltee]

Hi,
I've had a look for Witham Passage on the 1891 Census and it says that it was in the Municipal Ward of Bargate and that the Ecclesiastical Parish was St Botoplhs (at least I think that was what it said, the handwriting isn't too good.) Nearby streets were Union Place, Witham Place and Union Street. Does this help at all?
Emeltee

[Peter Goodey]

Witham Passage can be found very easily on the 1881 census which, even on Ancestry, has an address search

RG 11/3217 f 127A* p 15

*The foliation has gone wrong in this book. 127A is the way Ancestry describe it. Other suppliers may do it differently. If 127A isn't recognised, use 127 and wind forwards.

You can then look at the description of the enumeration district and work out roughly where the address was.

Landmarks such as nearby pubs can also be useful.

[Ann65]

Many thanks for that, it makes sense for them to be in that area, since they later lived just the other side of the river in Castle St. Next time I go to Boston Ill have to take a walk round that area. Ive walked round there many times in fact but never with a view to finding Witham Passage which I had thought was slightly further north near Witham Town or across the river off Castle Street.


PS Ecclesiastical district is indeed St Botolphs - the massive church known by the locals as Boston Stump.

[Pam Downes]

Hi Ann,
With some help from Peter and Emeltee and then looking at a map and comparing the way the enumerator has completed the 1881 census, I think you will find that Witham Passage is/was a passage running between numbers 10 and 11 Witham Place. There is what appears to be a passage shown on a 1904 Ordnance Survey map of the town, but it isn't named.
However, it seems to have moved on the 1901 census to be between numbers 11 and 12 Witham Place. John Maidens lives at number 2 and Mary Stubbs at number 3 Witham Passage, with 4 and 5 being uninhabited, but there's zilch for Witham Passage on the 1911 census. Doesn't mean it no longer existed then - could have been misindexed, but searching for plain 'Witham' doesn't help with anything similar - just the expected Green, Bank, Town and Street.
Interestingly, in the 1871 census, numbers 1-6 Lysons Court are found between numbers 10 and 11 Witham Place, so perhaps Witham Passage had undergone another name change by 1911.
Pam

[Ann65]

Many thanks for that Pam x

[Patricia Anne]

My memory is probably playing tricks on me but at the Junction of Norfolk Street and Tattershall Road is what used to be the Blue Coat School. When I was at School it was part of Park Board and we were transferred there from the main School in Tunnard Street for a couple of years when we were 7 and then went back to the main school when we were 9 or 10.
We accessed the Blue Coat School Playground from Norfolk street via a passage that led into Witham Place I think. The passage on one side had little workers cottages no more than 2 up 2 downs and I have a feeling that this may have been Witham Passage.
I know that the Park School no longer exists and became something extremely useful............a car park............but I'm not sure if the old Blue Coat building is still there. This is all based on my memories of over 50 years ago so I may be confusing it with something else as Norfolk Passage seems to come to mind for some reason.
PS. When I lived in Boston I knew some Peaches. They lived in York Street. I think the son went to Australia and his widowed mother followed him a while later.

[Ann65]

Many thanks Patricia - Im going to be in Boston end of July and will check that out. Thank you so much x