The Dutch House

The Dutch House, Old High Street, Grays.

The Dutch House in the Old High Street was built in 1726, it was the first shop to be used by the Grays Co-operative Society from 1867 to 1871. The Society built it's own shop in the High St. at this time.

The top picture shows it's position in the Old High Street, the building on the left approximately halfway down the picture which is taken looking south toward the River Thames.

It was known originally as the "Brickhouse" as brick at this time was used chiefly as the building material of the better class houses. It is thought it was built for the Clerk of Works for a group of Dutch workers employed to work on the embankment of the River Thames.

1726.	Date of erection according to Charrington and Co.
1731.	Gravesend poor trustees (possible one of two houses adjoining).
1739.	marked as The Brickhouse on Pinnock's Charity map.
1765.	James Theobald £150 on a brickhouse on the east side of the road at Grays abutting north .
1842.	Occupant William Flower, Draper.
1848.	Occupant William Flower, Draper (executors).
1855.	Flower, Thomas., tea dealer and agent to the Phoenix fire and Life assurance office (probably the house).
1859.	Flower, Thomas. Grocer, High St. or Bannister, William. Lighterman
1860,s.	William or Walter Bannister moved from the Dutch House to the Green Man and Bell.
1860,s.	Captain Mitchell of the Blue Boot lived at the Dutch House.
1867.	Grays Co-operative Society, Mr. Robson manager.
1871.	J.W. Sparkes, Greengrocer.

"Hi Steve, thank you for the excellent Grays Pictures. The one of the old High Street is particularly interesting as it shows the scene just a few doors from our house. On the left is Millers store and the Dutch house, Tony Pighini's place. On the wall of the corner of West Street on the right there appears to be a sign in chalk. When I was a kid we used to play a game where we would blaze a trail for others to follow which involved getting a piece of chalk and going around making signs just like that. That's a real blast from the past." Part of a letter from Gino Reeve who emigrated to Australia with his family in 1951.