Georgian

Timeline

Urban

Georgian

Victorian

20th Century

Horse Trams

Electric Trams

Trolleybuses

Buses

Seven Bridges

High Bridge

Caversham Bridge

Reading Bridge

Street Names

Roads

Georgian

During the early part of the Georgian period the town remained quite small, not expanding far beyond the boundaries of the middle ages. Some improvements were made in the town centre. In 1760 two of the narrowest streets, Sun Lane and Back Lane were altered. These two street ran parallel to each other, and the row of houses between them was knocked down forming one wide street, King Street.

At the end of the Georgian period the expansion of Reading speeded up. One of the main reasons for this was the decision of the Crown Estates to sell of much of their land to the east of the town centre. Since the dissolution of the abbey, much of the land which had belonged to the abbey had been taken over by the King’s (Crown) Estate. The first stage of the development was the building of two new roads across this land, Kings Road (named after King William IV)and Queens Road (after Queen Adelaide) in 1834. Sidmouth Street, named after Viscount Sidmouth was also built in the same area. High class houses were built on some of this land, at Eldon Square opposite the Royal Berkshire Hospital and in King’s Road, built out of Bath Stone brought to Reading by the Kennet and Avon Canal.

On the west side of town, houses gradually moved down the Oxford Road. By 1840 Chatham Street and Oxford Road had been developed towards the site of the later Railway bridge, while Russell Terrace, Baker Street, Sydney Terrace were built between Oxford Road and Castle Hill.