Coley Avenue

(formally Coley Walk and Coley Lane)

Introduction
The main entrance to the original Vachell House and Coley Park Farm was by way of a lane which ran from the intersection of Bath Road and the top of Castle Hill in a fairly straight line to the manor.

We know that prior to 1800 the lane was already tree-lined and flanked on both side by open meadows. On the Castle Hill side of the main entrance were the remains of a much older nursery garden. Some of the meadows surrounding the lane were known as Upper Garden, Eleven Acres and Cockshot Field.

During the 19th century, security to the estate was upgraded. A lodge was built at the main entrance to vet visitors. Later (c1870) stone gateposts were erected on each side of the entrance and they were topped with winged dragons (known as Wyverns). These large gateposts lasted until the 1990's when they were removed to widen the intersection.

In the late 19th century a turnpike was built nearby the entrance for the collection of road tolls for traffic traveling the Bath Road in and out of Reading. Further down Coley Avenue, just prior to the new house, were erected two more lodges, known as the East and West Lodges which remain privately occupied to this day.

As the housing developed along Coley Avenue in the early 20th century, the then tall and overgrown trees that had lined the avenue were completely removed in 1905 and replaced with new saplings. These saplings have now themselves grown into the aged trees that line the avenue today. Thankfully the local Reading council keep the trees trimmed so that they don't become too overgrown and unsightly.

Coley Avenue was popular with photographers especially at the main gate entrance and around the early 1900s when postcards were becoming a very popular and trendy alternative to letters. As today they were convenient when traveling to send a quick note to family or friends and had a nice photo of where you had visited. Many of the images in the gallery below are from postcards of the time.

Coley Avenue over the years ...
When John McConnell purchased Coley Park estate in 1802, the avenue was already tree-lined all the way to Coley Park Farm. There were sweeping meadows on both sides of the avenue and the avenue itself was a dusty unsealed narrow lane.

Over the next hundred years, the meadows on Coley Avenue closest to Bath Road were sold as small parcels of land to wealthy private purchasers for the building of luxury homes. Many of these homes were of substantial size and quality, although not as large as some existing properties on the nearby Bath Road.

In 1860, Samuel Collier (Brick and Tile maker) and his wife Jane, purchased land on the west side of Coley Avenue from the estate owner, John Bligh Monck of Coley Park. Westbourne Villa was built in 1862 on the west side of Coley Avenue (now near the north west corner of the Coley Avenue and Berkeley Avenue intersection).

In 1863, Samuel and Jane Collier, built another house on Coley Avenue called Enbourne Villa, which was renamed to Park Villa, and later Parkfield. In 1875 the house was sold to George Carley. In 1894 the house was purchased by Charles Kaines Thomas of Henley, Oxon.

By the 1880's the following residencies were were located on Coley Avenue. They only had names (no street numbers) and were mainly on the west side of the Avenue. On the west side were: Westbourne Villa (1862), Weddington House, Mansefield, Park Villa (1863), The Elms and then finally the Lodge near the intersection of Coley Avenue and Bath Road. On the east side was a small cottage (lodge) protecting the entrance to Coley Avenue and the large Castlehill House (now Yeomanry House), and then nothing but meadows until Avenue Villa.

Avenue Villa in 2009 on the northeast corner of
Berkeley Avenue and Coley Avenue

Avenue Villa was built near the accessway (now incorporated into Berkeley Ave) to Avenue Works Kilns (then still in production). The villa still survives today on the northeast corner at the intersection of Berkeley and Coley Avenues (see image above).

The other villas except Westbourne Villa have all since been demolished and newer, smaller buildings have taken their place. Westbourne Villa when originally built was accessed from Coley Avenue (as the Berkeley Avenue did not exist). Today Westbourne Villa, built in 1862, sits proudly on Berkeley Avenue and has survived a number of attempts to demolish it over recent years.

Westbourne Villa in 2009 to the west of the
Berkeley Avenue and Coley Avenue intersection

Castle Crescent
Castle Crescent which runs off Coley Avenue, only had housing on the south side of the street in 1880. The housing was detached or semi-detached with large gardens. The earlier homes being stuccoed with italianate details, and the later buildings being built from red and blue brick with heavy decorating. There was a small vicarage located at the corner of Coley Hill and Castle Crescent, named Greyfriars Vicarage. The abandoned house below is believed to be the original vicarage.

This abandoned house at 2 Castle Crescent is believed
to be the original Greyfriars Vicarage of the 1880's

Trams
In 1903, when horse-drawn trams were replaced by electric tramcars, the service was extended to Bath Road. All the tramcars were four wheeled and the top decks were open. A tram stop was provided at the intersection of Coley Avenue. By 1904 the service between Bath Road and Broad Street ran every 10 minutes, thus providing quick transport to the town for the residents of Coley Avenue. Unfortunately the first line to close was the Bath Road branch in 1930.

Trees
As I mentioned previously, the avenue was tree-lined during the 19th century with many of the trees over 150 years old. There had been little trimming of branches during this period and many of the trees had huge trunks and easily reached heights of more than 60 feet (18 metres), with branches that meshed together with the trees on the opposite side of the avenue.

Around 1905 due to increasing pressure from the new residents of Coley Avenue, the then Borough Council cut down the avenue of trees and replanted new trees, whilst at the same time taking the opportunity to widen the road. These are the trees that line the avenue today and are reaching similar proportions as the earlier trees. One wonders how long it will be before they are replaced once again. If you browse through the gallery of images below, you can see the changes mentioned.

Coley Avenue Gallery (click on images to enlarge)
c1830		Early photograph of Coley Avenue with man posing down the lane. Date of Photo is approximate.
c1830		Another photograph taken at same time as previous image. This time the man is seen walking away from the camera. Date of Photo is approximate..
c1845		Looking back along the unsealed Coley Avenue towards the main gate. A house is visible on the left and buildings on Castle Hill can be seen in far distance. What is really interesting with this photograph is the main entrance. Look closely at the enlarged image and you can see pillars and not the large gate posts as in later photographs. Photograph by W.H. Fox Talbot
c1880		Similar to the previous photograph we look back towards the main gate which has the large gate posts. Gas street lamps have now been installed. Again a house is visible on the left and buildings on Castle Hill can be seen. c1880. Inscription reads: 31722. Reading Colley Avenue
c1890		Similar once again to the previous photograph as we look back towards the main gate. Some housing is now in place along the avenue. A wooden fence is seen on the left and a fancy brick wall is on the right. A gas steet lamp of the era is clearly visible in the foreground. c1890.
c1903		A colourised postcard with a gent in a bowler hat and his dog at the main entrance to Coley Avenue. Inscription reads: Reading. Coley Avenue by Francis Frith and Company Postcard #520110
c1903		This image and the next are again from postcards. They are very similar but both have been included to show the different captions. Inscription reads: COLEY AVENUE AS IT WAS Published by the East Reading Library
c1903		See previous description. Inscription reads: Coley Avenue Reading 18/10/03 Publisher: Farrer - Photo: Dee
c1905		This image and the next are from postcards and show the differing colourisation of the images. Even back in 1905 they wished they had 'Photoshop'.
c1905		Also see previous description. Looking north-eastwards to the top of Castle Hill and Bath Road. Inscription reads: Coley Avenue, Reading by Lambert Series
c1906		Another early postcard of Coley Avenue Gateway. A fancy carriage can be seen stopped down the avenue. The old trees have gone and are replaced with new saplings. Inscription reads: COLEY AVENUE AS IT IS, NOVEMBER, 1906.
c1907		Again another great photograph of the entrance to Coley Avenue. The newly planted trees are clearly visible. Inscription reads: Coley Avenue Reading. 133
c1907		A winter photograph of the entrance with a horse and cart waiting patiently at the kerbside. c1907. Inscription reads: Coley Avenue Gateway Reading. 328
c1907		This postcard shows the gateway from the avenue side, with the buildings on Castle Hill in clear veiw. Inscription reads: Reading Coley Avenue
c1910		The sign on the lamppost reads "CARS STOP HERE IF REQUIRED". The cars referring to the Tramcars that once ran along Bath Road. Three workers clear a drain on the right near the lodge. Inscription reads: 328. Coley Avenue Gateway, Reading
c1910		Three young lads pose for the camera. The location is the south side of Coley Avenue, south of Berkeley Avenue. The trees have not been cut down on this side as yet. Inscription reads: 593. Coley Avenue, Reading by P.O. Collier
1914		The Berkshire Yeomanry are seen here in front of Yeomanry House on 5 August 1914. The pillars of one of the gateposts is on the right. (Photo: C. E. May) Inscription reads: At Yeomanry House, Reading
2006		Coley Avenue (South) - looking from Berkeley Avenue towards the East and West Lodges and entrance to Coley House. ©Uli Harder 9-April-2006
2007		Looking up the avenue from Berkeley Avenue towards Bath Road in 2007. ©Andrew Smith 2007 CCL
2009		A very quiet looking avenue in 2009. It gets a lot busier around peak hour! ©Graham Horn 2009 CCL
2009		The southern end of the avenue is quieter. Photo taken looking back towards Berkeley Avenue. ©Graham Horn 2009 CCL
2009		The old cottage located on the east side of the entrance to Coley Avenue. Portions of the cottage can be seen in the photo of 1914 above, if you look carefully. ©Graham Horn 2009 CCL
2009		Another view of the old cottage (lodge) and its proximity the entrance to Coley Avenue.

Example of an early Reading Electric Tramcar (#22).