188 Greystoke Avenue

The house in 1915.

"Number 188 was a fortunate house. It had a large oak door with a big wooden door sign. It was nicknamed 'Vic House' due to its Victorian style. It was a terraced house with a toilet in the yard. I remember hearing trains go by on the railway bridge and our house shaking. There was a big open fire, that my dad used to cook marshmallows on sticks. We would all sit around that fire, and our dad would tell us stories about Jack The Ripper, he made one up once about how he caught him and forced him to give himself up, though obviously I know it wasn't true.'

In the words of David Hunter, who loved speaking of the house.

188 Greystoke Avenue, also known as Vic House by many, was a small Victorian house in Stockport, Greater Manchester. It was home to the Hunter family for twenty-eight years, it was blown up during the First Word War in 1916.

The year after they married, Phil and Jane Hunter moved into this house, along with their daughter Amelia. Their six other children David, Leslie, Louise, Thomas, Rupert and Herbert also lived here. Greystoke Avenue's former row of Victorian houses have since been replaced with modern apartments. Very few of the old Victorian houses remain, but a small number of survivors were left standing after World War Two and have recently been saved from demolition by residents, who have successfully petitioned for their restoration.

## History

The house was built in 1876, it was the second house in a row of four, 188 Greystoke Avenue was home to the Hunters, who had moved into this property in 1889, shortly after the birth of Amelia. Nicknamed Vic House by local residents. It was a typicical typical two-up, two-down Victorian terrace, and had a large oak door and a big door knocker. During World War I, the area surrounding the house was known as Homeless Corner, due to the large number of families living in the street who had been evicted from their own homes, due to not being British. Bombs could be heard in the distance, blowing up buildings.

The house contained a small open fire with a small lavatory in the back garden. Situated very near the railway bridge where trains were going back and forth from Stockport Royal Railway Station, the old house was subjected to frequent shaking. Jane's brother Thomas Walker, who was more better known as Tommy, lived across from them. He would often pop in to see his sister and nieces and nephews and would take them out on days out to the local cafés and beaches. The house was not far from the local church, St. Justin's and to the local Church of England school, of the same name. The back room of the house was converted into a bedroom, where Amelia and Louise would sleep in. Their brothers had a bedroom upstairs, next to their parents bedroom, which was the biggest room of the house, except the living room.

## Demolition

On October 17, 1916, whilst hiding down in the air raid shelter, Phil and Jane were surrounded by their children, friends and neighbours. Whilst the German planes were flying up above Greystoke Avenue. Bombs could be heard dropping to the ground and the explosion would shake the air raid shelter. After about three hours, Phil exited the shelter and discovered that their house had been blown up, all that was left was the door sign.