I went on a day trip to Southsea recently.
The main reason for my visit was to take a look at the place where Sir Arthur Conan Doyle once lived and worked.
I lived in Southsea during my last few terms at primary school and my first few terms at secondary school. I went back there once or twice as an adult, but for personal reasons only: I wanted to lay some ghosts from the past. I didn’t know about the Conan Doyle and Kipling connections at the time. I didn’t know anything about the number 33 either, which by chance is the number of the house that I lived in – and other houses I have connections with.
I have already posted pictures of Kipling’s House of Desolation, which is still standing; unfortunately, what might be called Conan Doyle’s House of Success is no longer there.
Conan Doyle’s life in Southsea
Arthur Conan Doyle came to Southsea at the age of 23 with the intention of establishing a medical practice. He set up as a doctor in what was then No.1 Bush Villas, Elm Grove:
“Victorian doctors lived on the fees they charged their patients, so Conan Doyle researched into the locations of other established doctors in the town before setting up as a GP at No. 1 Bush Villas, near the junction of Elm Grove and King’s Road in Southsea. For the first few months business was slow, but gradually over time Conan Doyle became more well-known as a doctor, advertising his services whenever he could and making sure that his name was mentioned in the newspaper whenever he attended an accident...”
Dr. Doyle became successful and popular. His life in Southsea became a happy and productive one, although he had to struggle to build up a practice in the early days. He spent some of his free time on other activities, including the writing that would later make him world famous:
“Arthur Conan Doyle threw himself into the life of the town. He joined the Portsmouth Literary and Scientific Society, and gave public talks on Edward Gibbon, Thomas Carlyle, and George Meredith, among others. He also played for the local cricket and bowls teams, and was the first goalkeeper for the team that became Portsmouth Football Club. While living in Southsea he also began a second career, writing fiction. Beginning with short stories, he moved on to write historical novels including Micah Clarke, and the first two Sherlock Holmes tales, A Study in Scarlet and The Sign of Four.”
http://www.visitportsmouth.co.uk/conandoyle/arthur-conan-doyle/portsmouth-connection
The doctor outside no. 1 Bush Villas, Elm Grove:
Young Dr. Doyle stands outside his home/medical practice, where A Study in Scarlet and The Sign of Four were written. His doctor’s red lamp is on one side, and his doctor’s plate is affixed to the railings of the gate on the other side.
Unfortunately, heavy bombing followed by essential post-war reconstruction and recent developments of ugly modern buildings and shop fronts have all transformed much of Portsmouth and Southsea. Conan Doyle wouldn’t recognise much of the area, and I didn’t either.
A block of council flats called Bush House has been built on the site of Conan Doyle’s old home:
Elm Grove ancient and modern:
At least we have archive photographs, some published in books.
A Study in Southsea: the complete story
A Study in Southsea: The Unrevealed Life of Doctor Arthur Conan Doyle, an illustrated book published in 1987 by Conan Doyle expert Geoffrey Stavert, describes Conan Doyle’s life in Southsea in great detail.
The author has done much research and detective work; his book will interest anyone who wants to learn more about this period in the life of the creator of Sherlock Holmes.
I got this book from my library; second hand copies can also be found online:
The main reason for my visit was to take a look at the place where Sir Arthur Conan Doyle once lived and worked.
I lived in Southsea during my last few terms at primary school and my first few terms at secondary school. I went back there once or twice as an adult, but for personal reasons only: I wanted to lay some ghosts from the past. I didn’t know about the Conan Doyle and Kipling connections at the time. I didn’t know anything about the number 33 either, which by chance is the number of the house that I lived in – and other houses I have connections with.
I have already posted pictures of Kipling’s House of Desolation, which is still standing; unfortunately, what might be called Conan Doyle’s House of Success is no longer there.
Conan Doyle’s life in Southsea
Arthur Conan Doyle came to Southsea at the age of 23 with the intention of establishing a medical practice. He set up as a doctor in what was then No.1 Bush Villas, Elm Grove:
“Victorian doctors lived on the fees they charged their patients, so Conan Doyle researched into the locations of other established doctors in the town before setting up as a GP at No. 1 Bush Villas, near the junction of Elm Grove and King’s Road in Southsea. For the first few months business was slow, but gradually over time Conan Doyle became more well-known as a doctor, advertising his services whenever he could and making sure that his name was mentioned in the newspaper whenever he attended an accident...”
Dr. Doyle became successful and popular. His life in Southsea became a happy and productive one, although he had to struggle to build up a practice in the early days. He spent some of his free time on other activities, including the writing that would later make him world famous:
“Arthur Conan Doyle threw himself into the life of the town. He joined the Portsmouth Literary and Scientific Society, and gave public talks on Edward Gibbon, Thomas Carlyle, and George Meredith, among others. He also played for the local cricket and bowls teams, and was the first goalkeeper for the team that became Portsmouth Football Club. While living in Southsea he also began a second career, writing fiction. Beginning with short stories, he moved on to write historical novels including Micah Clarke, and the first two Sherlock Holmes tales, A Study in Scarlet and The Sign of Four.”
http://www.visitportsmouth.co.uk/conandoyle/arthur-conan-doyle/portsmouth-connection
The doctor outside no. 1 Bush Villas, Elm Grove:
Young Dr. Doyle stands outside his home/medical practice, where A Study in Scarlet and The Sign of Four were written. His doctor’s red lamp is on one side, and his doctor’s plate is affixed to the railings of the gate on the other side.
Unfortunately, heavy bombing followed by essential post-war reconstruction and recent developments of ugly modern buildings and shop fronts have all transformed much of Portsmouth and Southsea. Conan Doyle wouldn’t recognise much of the area, and I didn’t either.
A block of council flats called Bush House has been built on the site of Conan Doyle’s old home:
Elm Grove ancient and modern:
At least we have archive photographs, some published in books.
A Study in Southsea: the complete story
A Study in Southsea: The Unrevealed Life of Doctor Arthur Conan Doyle, an illustrated book published in 1987 by Conan Doyle expert Geoffrey Stavert, describes Conan Doyle’s life in Southsea in great detail.
The author has done much research and detective work; his book will interest anyone who wants to learn more about this period in the life of the creator of Sherlock Holmes.
I got this book from my library; second hand copies can also be found online:
