How old is this building?

[Andy J2022]

Incidentally the streetview image below is what the front of the buildings looked like in September 2008. Assuming the missing two buildings, where the Odeon is, were a mirror of number 30 and 32, the thinner, slightly set-back, central part of the building in between the Picture House Pub and the Odeon Cinema could well have been where the main entrance to the School was located (see extract of map below showing the School facade on London Road).

[ShaunJ]

In 1860 the premises were occupied by the Vey brothers, grocers

[AlanBoyd]

A question for the OP:

Who was your ancestor, what was his occupation, and what is the evidence that links him to 32 London Road?

I have just been trawling through newspaper references to 32 London Road in the 1870s, of which there are many. In accordance with an earlier find in a directory, it is clear that the premises were the home of John Lloyd and Company, trimmers. The company seems to have finally sold all of its stock in February 1880. There are so many newspaper mentions of Lloyd’s business that I may have missed something referring to some other business operating from that address, hence the request for more information.

[AlanBoyd]

Incidentally the streetview image below is what the front of the buildings looked like in September 2008. Assuming the missing two buildings, where the Odeon is, were a mirror of number 30 and 32, the thinner, slightly set-back, central part of the building in between the Picture House Pub and the Odeon Cinema could well have been where the main entrance to the School was located (see extract of map below showing the School facade on London Road).

Two things that I can see that argue against this: first of all I don’t see any evidence of the ‘set-back’ section on the early map; and, more importantly, that truncated structure at roof level isn’t, to my eye, consistent with the proposed symmetry since if it belongs to the proposed central bay and is extended into where the odeon is I can’t see that there is enough room for the other side of the symmetrical structure.

If you see what I mean.

[AlanBoyd]

For what its worth here is an overlay of the earliest map with a later version.

https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=19.8&lat=53.40917&lon=-2.97748&layers=117746211&b=117746212&o=63

[AlanBoyd]

Gore’s 1843 Directory has:

BLIND, SCHOOL FOR THE INDIGENT, 18 London Road

Added: Gore’s 1853 has the same organisation at a different address (Hardman Street, the building is still there today.)

[stevelord65]

Thanks so much for all the interesting replies: it seems like the consensus is that the current building certainly could have been there in the 1870s. My interest in it is that my Gr Gr Grandfather John Lloyd ran a business called Lloyd & Co from the late 1860s, until 1880 when it went bankrupt. The firm was variously described as "drapers", "tailors and outfitters", or "manufacturers of artificial flowers dealers in trimmings and fancy goods". 32 London road was his trimming warehouse.
I know a fair bit about him, helped very much by a previous post on here: https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=886127.msg7594000#msg7594000
I was fascinated to know if any of his premises had survived: his main residence at 24 Oxford street is still there (the terrace that it's in is a grade 2 listed building!) Another shop that he had at 14 Mill street seems to have long gone.

[AlanBoyd]

Just adding to my reply #21 here is an overlay with the Odeon Cinema included, in an attempt to bolster my ‘loss of symmetry’ argument.

https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=19.4&lat=53.40912&lon=-2.97734&layers=173&b=117746212&o=48

[AlanBoyd]

And I seem to have contributed to the previous thread!