---

Known as Love Lane or Rookery Road until about 1928, Stoke Place is a cul-de-sac that becomes a bridleway at the north end. It had no significant buildings until the late nineteenth century. Prior to that date, the area to the east of the lane was known as the Meadows, and there were probably some old cottages here (including the seventeenth-century one that was rebuilt as the present Stoke House).

The Rookery and its fields (now Ruskin College, whose main entrance is at the start of what is now Dunstan Road), occupied the entire west side of the path that became Stoke Place down to the bypass and beyond.

---

The path to Elsfield

As this sign at the entrance to Stoke Place shows, it is still the start of the 1¾-mile; path between the villages of Old Headington and Elsfield, which would have provided easy access to the Bayswater Brook before the Northern Bypass bisected the path. Today Stoke Place is a bridleway as far as the bypass, while on the other side the route is now classified as a footpath (as shown here on OpenStreetMap).

---

Headington Enclosure Award of 1805

The above extract from the Headington Enclosure Award of 1805 (with North roughly to the right) shows the present Stoke Place marked as “No. XVI Private Road”, petering out as it does today into a narrower path down to the Bayswater Brook. The Award states that it was a private road for the owners and occupiers of three allotments, which were all on the western side.

Allotments 78 & 79 became attached to of The Rookery and are now the Ruskin Fields, while Allotment 80 is now cut off by the bypass and is occupied by the electricity substation and part of Barton Park:

Also one other private Carriage Road and Driftway of the breadth of twenty feet numbered XVI leading in a North Eastward direction from the lane between certain old enclosures now or late belonging to Richard Finch [the owner of The Rookery] Which said last-mentioned Road is hereby set out for the use of Owners and Occupiers of the Allotments numbered 78, 79 and 80 for the time being.

George White Esquire of Newington, Oxfordshire was the surviving Trustee in the Settlement made upon the marriage of Richard Finch the Elder, gentleman and wine merchant of The Rookery, and Laetitia or Letitia White (c.1750–1846). Richard was buried in St Andrew’s churchyard on 28 December 1802. (See more on the Finch family here.)

George White was awarded Plots 78 and 79 in lieu of his copyhold lands held under the Manor of Headington:

78   One Plot of Land or Ground numbered 78 containing fourteen acres and four perches situate in the Meadow bounded on part of the North East by the allotment numbered 79 on the South East by the allotments numbered 82 and 83 and certain Cottages and gardens on the South West by certain old Inclosures in Headington and on the North and remaining part of the North East by the allotments numbered 76 and 77

79   And One Other Plot of Land or Ground numbered 79 containing three acres three roods and twelve perches situate in the Meadow bounded on the North East by the allotment numbered 80 on the South East by the allotments numbered 89 and 81 on the South West by the allotment numbered 78 and on the North West by the allotment numbered 77 – And which said allotment numbered 79 is hereby set out for the purpose of being exchanged with the said President and Scholars of Saint Mary Magdalen College and their Lessee Letitia Finch

Letitia Finch effected an exchange with George White for Plot 79 and was also was awarded Plot 80 directly as a Lessee of Magdalen College:

80   One Other Plot of Land numbered 80 containing ten acres situate in the meadow bounded on the North East by the Brook on the South East by the Allotment numbered 92 on parts of the South West by the Allotments numbered 79 and 77 and on the North West by the Allotment numbered 75

The description of Dunstan Road in the Enclosure Award shows that, unlike Stoke Place, it was a public road:

Also one other public Carriage Road and Driftway of the like breadth of forty feet numbered XI beginning at the end of an inclosed Lane on the North West End of the village of Headington and extending first in a Northward and afterwards in a North Westward direction across a Common called Hen Grove into another inclosed Lane leading towards Marston being part of the public Road leading from the village of Headington aforesaid to Marston aforesaid

---

Development from 1883

Stoke House (1883)

In 1883 The Revd J. W. A. Taylor of the Rookery built Stoke House (after which the road was later named) for his retirement. This is the oldest building in Stoke Place today

 

Rookery Cottages (1885):
Now Nos. 1–5 Stoke Place

In 1885 the five Rookery Cottages were built, as evidenced by the date inscribed on the middle cottage, now 3 Stoke Place (right).

---

Kelly's Directory for 1930

This is the first Kelly's Directory to list Headington under street names, and the occupants of the east side of Stoke Place were as follows:

• 1. Charles MORRIS
• 2. Cornelius PHIPPS
• 3. John GAMMON
• 4. George JACOBS
• 5. William SOANES
• [7] Stoke House: Major William Lauriston LEE
• The Glen: Mrs Seymour