Sotonopedia

Vaudrey Street (now Close) is one of only a few streets in Southampton named after a woman. Originally Bevois Street, it was renamed in 1901 to avoid duplication with a street in Southampton. Its new name commemorated Marianne Vaudrey, a local landowner whose estates included land in Millbrook and Shirley. Originally Marianne Ibbotson, she inherited her father’s estates at Eling in 1871. Her inheritance included Langley Manor House at Colbury, in which she lived for much of her life.

She married a Liverpool solicitor, William Vaudrey, in 1872. He is said to have married her knowing she was the heir to the extensive Barker-Mill estates, but without telling her that she was. She then inherited those estates in 1887, including land in Shirley, Millbrook, Redbridge, the New Forest and Mottisfont. In 1903 she changed her name to Barker-Mill. She continued to live at Mottisfont and Langley Manor until her death in 1932. She was a temperance worker and closed pubs on her land. She gave 12 acres of land to create the public park, Green Park, at Millbrook.

See also:

Mill family (and Barker-Mill)

Newspaper clippings (available at the Local Studies Library):

• "Vaudrey Street" - (Southern Evening Echo, 11/04/1985). Article describes Marianne Barker-Mill's life and the story about her marriage.
• "A local dynasty" - (The Daily Echo, 28/11/2000). Article describes some of the notable people in the family.

Further reading:

More Stories of Southampton Streets, by A. G. K. Leonard, p115-116. (HS/h)
The Barker-Mill Story: A Hampshire Family Since the Sixteenth Century, by Tessa Lecomber.

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