From Almshouses to Burgess’ Stores

The Sanchez Almshouses

The Tudor Balthazar Sanchez was one of the most intriguing of Tottenham’s residents. A Spaniard, born in the Moorish city of Jerez, he travelled to England in July 1554 with King Philip II of Spain, who came to marry Queen Mary I. Balthazar was a ‘comfit-maker’, or confectioner to the Spanish king - an art at which he apparently excelled. Once in London he seems to have decided he preferred living here and bought the estate of Stone Leas in Tottenham when Philip returned to Europe. 

(Sanchez Almshouses, 1890. From the collections and © Bruce Castle Museum and Archive)

Sanchez owned a large and magnificent house on the east side of the High Road, almost opposite the lane which is now Bruce Grove. For years that lane was called George & Vulture Walk, after the name of his house. The house certainly became an inn known as the George & Vulture and it is possible that Sanchez himself ran an inn on the premises. The George and Vulture Inn survived as a pub (although a different building) well into the 20th century.

In his will, Sanchez left money to provide dowries for poor girls and apprenticeships for young men. He also set aside part of his estate to build almshouses for eight poor men and women in Tottenham on the High Road. These were completed in 1600, before Sanchez’ death in 1602. 

The almshouses were single room tenements, brick built, each with a garden. In the middle of the row of almshouses was a stone plaque with an inscription recording the bequest from their benefactor Balthazar Sanchez. The plaque from the Sanchez Almshouses survives today and is now part of the collections and on display at Bruce Castle Museum and Archive. The dwellings were for many years neighbours to the Quakers’ Tottenham Meeting House. Support for the almshouses continued with additional bequests from local benefactors until the early 20th century. 

Re-building the almshouses was discussed in 1868 as the buildings were damp and inconvenient, due to the raising of the road level. The sale of the buildings was agreed in 1919. 

(The Tudor Sanchez almshouses, seen in a very poor state c.1907, with the Friends’ Meeting House in the distance. From the collections and © Bruce Castle Museum and Archive)

You can read more about the history of other almshouses in Tottenham.

Burgess’s Department Store

The Sanchez Almshouses stood empty and dilapidated and unfit for habitation since 1905. In 1923 they were finally demolished to make way for Burgess’s department store opening here at 578 – 592 Tottenham High Road in 1924. The store was one of the finest drapery emporiums in North London. The building was named Sanchez House, recalling the past Tudor benefactor of the almshouses that had stood there for over 300 years and remembering all those that once lived there. 

Many still recall Burgess’s modern layout, spacious interior, arcades and beautiful island window displays. Across the generations there are many fond memories of visiting Father Christmas at Burgess’s – who arrived by horse and carriage at the shop - it was magical! 

(Burgess's window displays at night, c.1931. From the collections and © Bruce Castle Museum and Archive).

It seems the employees of Burgess’s must have enjoyed their time there as well as the shoppers. In the early 20th century, companies took advantage of the new transport networks to organise pleasure trips and days out for their workers as a thank you for their hard work throughout the year – Burgess’s was no exception, who took their employees on excursions to the seaside!

(Charabanc outing on the 'Enfield Belle' from Burgess' Stores, July 1920. From the collections and © Bruce Castle Museum and Archive)

Burgess’s operated for the next 60 years, reaching its heyday in the 1950s. It was replaced by the Co-op that moved there from its Lansdowne Road corner site. The Aldi supermarket, a gym and a row of small shops now stand on the site once occupied by Sanchez House.