Rootstrek 33 Prince's Square, London

When my 2nd g-grandmother, Catherine Berry Knights, was 19 years old, she was living in London (Paddington/Westminster area to be exact) working as an "under nurse". The 1861 UK Census shows that her Aunt Elizabeth (her father's sister) was a live-in nurse for the Barker family. Apparently Catherine was invited to come and assist in her aunt's duties.

I don't know how old Catherine was when she arrived in London nor do I know exactly how long she stayed. I do know, however, she was back in Beccles before February of 1863 as that is when and where she married Benjamin Brown.

The census record also shows that the Barker home was located at 33 Prince's Square. A Google map search located it in a beautiful area just north of Hyde Park. The Google search also told me that 33-36 Prince's Square had been converted to nightly rentals known as Prince's Square Apartments. I jumped at the chance to stay there and booked it immediately. Normally I read the reviews before committing. Maybe it's a good thing I didn't do that this time as they weren't very favorable. I think at one time the accommodations were quite high-end, but maintenance and repairs were very much lacking. The management was extremely friendly, though, and since I had included the info that I had ancestral ties to the property with my initial booking, we were given a room in what would have been No. 33. It turned out to be a great location - a short walk from a tube station with lots of small eateries and shops nearby.

When Catherine and her aunt were there, the live-in help more than likely boarded on the 4th floor. Everything on the inside had been remodeled, so all that existed, for the most part, were hallways and closed doors. The "bones" of the building, I believe, were all original. Getting a feel for exactly how Catherine would have lived was difficult except for the huge number of stairs she would have climbed on a daily basis. The railings and banisters from the first floor to the second appeared to be original. It was way cool putting my hands on them.

By the way, as in Catherine's day, there was no A/C. Glad we were there in October. I definitely wouldn't recommend it in the middle of the summer.