67–68: Oxford Rendezvous
The shop at No. 67–68 awkwardly straddles two buildings: on the left, it cuts into the last, maroon-coloured house of a Georgian terrace; on the right it occupies a tall black-and-white building. This unlikely looking pair was already a single shop by 1846.
Nos. 66 to 68 are all Grade II listed (under the single ref. 1485/406).
At the time of the Survey of Oxford in 1772, before the widening of Magdalen Bridge and the rebuilding of this area, the houses/shops on this site were occupied as follows: Mrs Howel (67) and Mr Barnet (68).
The 1851 census shows John Hounslow, grocer and wine merchant, living over his shop at No. 67 with his wife and daughter, plus an apprentice and servant. Living over No. 68 was a shoemaker called Samuel Hounslow (probably his brother) together with his wife and four children. Hounslow was described as “the Radical grocer in High Street” by William Tuckwell in his Reminiscences of Oxford, and is recorded as giving this advice on sermons in Oxford: “’Obhouse and ’Ansell are below par; go to ’Olywell and ’ear Goulburn.”
In 1859 James Jenkin, a schoolmaster, married Hounslow’s daughter and came to live at No. 68 with his wife. By 1867 Jenkin had become the grocer and wine merchant here. He was elected Mayor of Oxford in 1881. At the time of the 1881 census James Jenkin lived over No. 68 together with his wife, five children, his half-brother (described as a grocer’s assistant), and a general servant.
When Jenkin died in 1898 his only son, Herbert Jenkin, took over from him, and he remained in business until 1923. Directories indicate that he did not change the shop to his name from James to Herbert Jenkin until 1914. The postcard below probably dates from the early 1900s.
The shop continued to be occupied by a wine merchant’s business until 1962. The photograph below comes from a promotional booklet of photographs produced by W. H. Ryder & Son (Reading) Ltd, Architectural Woodmasters. As well as much work for churches, banks, and breweries they did shopfitting, and included in their list of clients Courage, which had taken over H. & G. Simonds. Their shopfront remains in place today, with the door on the right that led upstairs changed to a third narrow but matching window.
This shop was Narda Artwear until 2007.
| Occupiers of 67 & 68 High Street | ||
| Date | 67 High Street | 68 High Street |
| 1839 | John
Hounslow Grocer and Wine & spirit merchant |
Richard Brown Gunmaker |
| 1846–1853+ | J.
Hounslow Grocer and wine & spirit merchant (also Richard Brown, Gunmaker in 1846) | |
| 1867–1913 | James
Jenkin Grocer & wine merchant — Over No. 67: E. W. Glanville, Coal merchant (1875), Central News Telegraphic Agency (1889–1899) | |
| 1914–1923 | Herbert
Jenkin Grocer & wine merchant | |
| 1924–1954 | H.
& G. Simonds Ltd Brewers | |
| 1956–1962 | Arthur Cooper,
Wine merchant Upstairs: H. & G. Simonds Ltd, Brewers |
|
| 1964–1969 | Hugh Hall Business Equipment Centres Ltd (to 1970) |
|
| 1970–1980 | Caron
Records (1972–1975) Upstairs: Athena Reproductions |
|
| By 1996–2007 | Narda
Fashion Studios |
|
| 2008–2010 | Vacant | |
| 2010 | Café Crème | |
| 2011 | Oxford Rendezvous Upstairs: part of Stanford House |
|