People of Odd Down

Noads

The Noads family ran a bakery and general store at the crossroads of Bloomfield Road and Frome Road. It became such an important part of Odd Down life that the crossroads became known as 'Noad's Corner', which it is still known as today.

William Smith

William Smith (1769-1839) was a geologist who created the first nationwide geological map of any country, and became known as 'the father of English geology'. He lived in Cottage Crescent in Odd Down between 1793 and 1799 (now known as Bloomfield Crescent) and produced a geological map of the Bath area in 1799, followed by a map of most of the U.K. in 1815.

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(Source: UKOGL, 2025)

The Map that Changed the World - book

(Source: Simon Winchester, 2009)

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The Stride Family

​Thomas Stride (1851-1927) opened the Burnt House Brewery and public house in Odd Down in 1870. He was the first of three generations of brewer publicans in Bath, and also brewed at the Red Lion in Odd Down, and two other pubs in Bath. He was also a local councillor and Chairman of the Bath Board of Guardians.

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(Source: breweryhistory.com, 2020)

Shellards

Henry Shellard was a quarry master in the late 19th and early 20th century, associated with the Union and Beehive quarries. He lived in a house with a large tower called Tower House on Bloomfield Road. He had nine children, some of whom followed him into the quarry business.

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(Source: David Weston, 2025)

Clara Cross and the Cross Family

​Dr Clara Cross (1900-1986) was a trailblazing woman, battling against the prejudices of the day and becoming a medical doctor in the early 1920s. Born Clara Tingle in Sheffield, she moved to Bath in 1928 when she married Roland Cross, the owner of Cross Manufacturing in Midford Road, Odd Down. She worked at St Martin's Hospital and became a consultant pathologist after the Second World War.

Find out more - Clara Cross

(Source: Bath Medical Museum, 2025)

Find out more - Cross Manufacturing