The Lord Street Sunday School was founded on 13th July 1874 when Francis William Franklin, George Carey Franklin, Stephen Shakespeare Dolby, Thomas Bushill, John Newsome, John Hine, William Pulley, William Lecke Robinson and Thomas Smith signed an Indenture to set up a trust.
The land had been set out as an estate starting on the 6th January 1847 when Joseph Loden and others bought the land from the Sir Thomas White's Trust. The full story can be found under Chapelfields.
The first Sunday School trust deed mentioned lots 21, 22, 23 and 24 Lord Street which still conform nearly to the house numbers.
Other trustees were John Butterworth, draper of Birmingham, John Morton, coal merchant; Lewis Bloxham, grocer; Thomas Gardner, watch manufacturer; Edward Thomas Pearson chartered accountant; Adam Burgess and John Norwood (or Worwood) and Edward Thomas Pearson (or Pierson). All except Butterworth were of Coventry.
A deed in 1860 also mentions Henry Case, George William Goodchild, Josiah Richardson and John Aston Clare. This referred to lots 23 and 24 Lord Street. It is possible that a smaller building was built at this time.
A deed of 1872 mention William Lynes and Joseph Yardley of Coventry as owning the lots in lord Street. Joseph Yardley paid £57 12/- for lots 21 and 22 in Lord Street.
A deed in 1928 recites the deaths of the trustees:-14th August 1892 Adam Burgess died. 8th June 1895 Thomas Gardner died. 14th January 1900 John Morton died. 16th June 1901 William Leckie Robinson died. April 1903 William Hewie Bloxam died. 9th January 1907 Thomas William Bushill died at Dublin. 13th February 1915 William Pulley died. 19th February 1916 Frances William Franklin died. 21st January 1920 John Worwood Died. 11 March 1921 John Hine died. 8 June 1927 Edward Thomas Pierson died.
Thus by 1928 a counsel's Opinion was sought and opined that the two remaining trustees, Sidney and Ernest Pierson could sell the property. An Order was made under the Charitable Trust Act and the land and buildings were sold for £2100 to Charles William Walker.
The Sunday School was a very active local social institution during its life of 54 years and sported a football team, a gym, sewing classes, a pierrot troupe and many similar supporting functions.
The School was specifically deeded to support teaching of the Gospel according to "the views commonly held by Evangelical Protestant Dissenters". The Sunday School had been founded as an "outreach" of the Queens Road Baptist church and was associated with the Cow Lane Baptist Hall.
The Baptist church at the top of Queensland Avenue bears an inscription "1928" over its door which was the year the Sunday School moved from lord street.
This photograph was taken by Ernest Ratledge who took several hundred such photographs across Coventry and Warwickshire around 1895 - 1905 and turned them into post cards. Notice the porch on the Sunday School building on the left and number 21 Lord Street, next door, long before it was destroyed on the 14th November 1940.
The source of this photograph is unknown but the back row features Fred Pailes (sic) who owned and ran the Pails bakery in Craven Street for many years.
The Lord Street Football Team in 1923, clearly successful. The drain pipe and window were still evident in 2010. The house on the right was destroyed by enemy action on the 14th November 1940. Photo courtesy of David Fry.
This photo of the Lord Street Football team was found by David Fry in a photo album of local people which ended in August 1914. The scene looks like Hearsall Common.
The source of this photo is unknown but the brickwork and wood paneling on the walls was largely still evident in 2008. Photo courtesy of Janet Foulds.
A local person gave this photograph to Janet Foulds around 1975. Most of the names can be deciphered. It says it is a Lord Street Sunday School treat to Allesley Fields in 1927.
This photograph was sourced locally by Janet Foulds. Notice that every single person is looking at the camera and not one is smiling. It looks like a May Day party.
As these two photographs contains no females one can reasonably assume that these show the board of governors. Unfortunately they are hard to date but the notices show much local activity. Notice the porch and cast iron railings on the Sunday School building. Judging by the clothes I would say they date from 1900 and 1920 and the Sunday School as clearly highly active. Both post cards are courtesy of David Fry.
The Sunday School also had a well known Pierrot troup on record which performed all over the city. Courtesey David Fry
Colin Walker 2012
