Hertford. Prince Albert Cottages
Colin Wilson
These are not almshouses but model designs for dwellings for working people. As at least three people had mentioned them as almshouses, it seems worth keeping the record straight.
The original design was by H Roberts for Prince Albert, with some input from The Society for the Improvement of the Conditions of the Labouring Classes. They were displayed near the 1851 Great Exhibition, and were awarded a medal. Replicas were built in other places, including this building in Cowbridge, Hertford. The GoHertford website adds that they were built by The Hertford Building Company, on land given by Baron Dimsdale. They comprised 4 flats, 2 on the ground floor and 2 on the upper.
The blue plaque attached reads, ‘Prince Albert Cottages were built in 1864 for The Labourers’ Friendly Society to Henry Roberts’ Great Exhibition design of 1851’.
They were grade 2 listed by Historic England in July 1971, reference 1268921.
Location
11 Cowbridge, Hertford SG14 1PG
Grid reference: 532363 212782
References
The Buildings of England: Hertfordshire by N Pevsner 1953
(rev B Cherry 1977)
pub. Penguin Books 1977 ISBN 0 14 071007 8, 1977 p193
http://www.hertfordmuseum.org/oralhistory/view-transcript.php?id=158
is a transcript of a talk by Len Green in 1994, which includes some information about these cottages. Accessed June 2018.
https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1268921
Accessed June 2018.
http://gohertford.co.uk/data/uploads/Hertford_Heritage_Trail.pdf
Accessed June 2018.
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We viewed the top left flat in the mid-80s. I think it was on sale for around £40,000?
They must have been very cramped in 1881 when my Great Grandfather was a boarder in one of the flats with a family of 8. The other 3 flats had a family of 5 with 2 boarders, a family of 3 with 2 lodgers and a family of 5 so a total of 26 people living in the four flats.