Rose Street

Rose Street is believed to be the beginning of Wokingham’s planned development. Its earliest mention is by the name La Rothe, which is descriptive in origin and denotes a cleared area. The street is cigar shaped, not parallel as it might appear at a glance; it remains narrow at either end, although the south-western end was substantially widened in the mid 20th Century to enable the easier passage of vehicular traffic. This form of layout is called an enclosed street and it is easy to understand how, by blocking the narrow ends, the street would in effect be enclosed and contain any activities within its boundaries. This would have been the natural place for the commercial activities of fairs and the market, prior to their transfer into the market place we know today.

Rose Street has a huge number of timber framed buildings, the earliest estimated to date from the 14th Century, although many of them are disguised by the much later addition of brick façades. The street would have provided homes for a variety of townspeople, including both merchants and craftsmen; although it remains substantially residential today, it supports far fewer residents than in the past. Rose Street lost a number of historic houses during the 20th Century, some to replacement housing and others to car park spaces. It remains, however, Wokingham’s most important historic street, and it is hoped that future developments will allow it to retain.

The Wokingham Walk