OLD PLYMOUTH . UK
www.oldplymouth.uk
 

©  Brian Moseley, Plymouth
Webpage created: April 25, 2021
Webpage updated: April 30, 2021

        

ROADS AND STREETS IN OLD PLYMOUTH

BASKET STREET

Basket Street is the narrow roadway from the Pig Market eastwards towards the conduit at the southern end of Old Town.

The roadway that became Basket Street is shown un-named
on Benjamin Donn's map of Plymouth in 1765 running eastwards
from the Pig Market towards the conduit at the southern end of Old Town.
The upper roadway became Bedford Street.

Basket Street, which was extremely narrow yet had tramlines running through it, ran from Catherine Street westwards to Westwell Street, parallel with and to the south of Bedford Street.

The origin of the name is not known.  It is usually suggested that it must be where baskets were either manufactured or sold but there is no known evidence to support this claim.

Basket Street is shown on Benjamin Donn's 1765 Plan of the Town and Citadel of Plymouth, reproduced above, but was un-named.  On Richard Cowl's map of Plymouth, dated 1778, it was shown as Love Street.  The earliest known reference by the name Basket Street is in 1812.

In the Plan note the curved "Island House" area, just above Saint Andrew's Church.  This was later demolished to tidy up that end of Bedford and Basket Streets.

Plymouth's first milk bar was opened in Basket Street on March 27th 1936.  The exact location has not been pinpointed.  It was owned by Mr Reg Hillier.  The first pint of milk was drunk by Lady Astor.

For a list of the occupants of Basket Street in 1812 CLICK HERE.