Cottage waved goodbye to thatched roof
Herbert Skitt of Higher Heath has done some on-the-spot research to tell us more about this distinctive property which we featured in this old postcard view in Pictures From The Past.
The postcard gave the location as Painters Green, Whitchurch, and we wondered if the cottage was still there and still had that distinctive wavy thatched roof.
Mr Skitt dropped us an email to say: "I was surprised to see the photo of the thatched cottage at Painters Green, Iscoyd, although I haven't managed to go over and look to see if the thatched roof has been repaired.
"I was born at nearby Whitewell and remember the house being empty for some time when the lady who lived there, Mrs Robinson, passed away."
He said there was a tale that when Captain Warburton-Lee was killed during the Second World War the deeds to the property went down with the ship.
"Whether this is true I am not sure. The next time I am passing I will have a look and contact you again if there is any further development."
Captain Bernard Warburton-Lee was born at Broad Oak in the parish and won a posthumous Victoria Cross at Narvik, Norway, on April 10, 1940, being mortally wounded while in command of the destroyer HMS Hardy.
There is a memorial to him at Whitewell parish church.
As promised, Mr Skitt did subsequently take a look next time he was in the area, and happily was able to confirm that the property still stands, but its appearance has been changed.
"I have been to have a look at the house, and there have been a lot of alterations carried out. The roof is now tiled and solar panels have been added," he tells us.
