By Mike Chapman
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Clyde House, built in the late 18th century, was originally Twerton Rectory House situated on church land. Besides the front garden, there was also a large ornamental garden at the rear (now the site of Clyde Gardens), which overlooked various pasture grounds and orchards beside the river. The present vehicle entrance on the east side led into a separate farm area (now mainly occupied by Springfield View, described below) where the stables and outbuildings were situated. On the 1786 map the pedestrian entrance is shown leading directly from the High Street to the front door. View taken in 1905 of Clyde House with its orchard wall on the right,
and the cottages and entrance of Church Farm opposite. In the distance
is the Full Moon.
In the late 1830s the whole property was purchased by the GWR Company from Oriel College (the then Rectors) for the building of the railway which separated the lower grounds from the house and its gardens. However the premises continued to be held on lease from the GWR until the late 1840s to accommodate the curate, Rev.Charles Nutt, until a new vicarage could be built. In 1850, after the curate had moved into the new vicarage behind the church, the ‘old vicarage house’ was taken over for a few years as a ‘gents academy’ (boarding) run by a John Frederick Hewlett, but by 1860 it was in the possession of Mr.John Hippisley who adopted the name ‘Clyde House’. The presence of this name carved into the lintel over the entrance suggests that this opening and the surrounding high walls were probably constructed not long after this date, although Hippisley continued to occupy the house until about 1906. Since that time the house has remained as a private dwelling except for a period in more recent times when it became a care home for the aged. Indeed, the only change to the frontage in the last hundred years has been the installation of a GVI letter box in the wall, transferred in c.1968 from the orchard wall which formerly stood on the site of nos.26 to 41 High Street (described below).
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