Taken around 1910 as a postcard, the original of the picture for this shop belonged to the late Jim Lines at Minchinhampton, who kindly had it copied for me.

It shows the type of external meat display which health and safety today would quite rightly forbid.

Now a boutique, the shop is important to my family since it was occupied by my great-grandfather’s tailor’s business for the last quarter of the 19th century.

Frederick Lee, 1846-1906, came from Bridport in Dorset.

At various times later his sister-in-law and younger brother also ran concerns in Stroud: Emma (Laurie Lee’s grandmother) had a shop at Wallbridge, while James operated a stationer’s two doors up from Frederick.

A family that had for several centuries been sailors and rope makers certainly diversified on arrival in Gloucestershire.