Historic find in shop cellar
The owner of a shop building in the city got more than she bargained for when she looked in the cellar.
The owner of a Chichester shop said she was ‘amazed’ after an historic find in the cellar of the building.
Koo Popple owns the building of the former Thomas Cook shop in East Street and after working to clear the travel agents she came across the antiquarian curiosity: a Victorian era coal oven.
Named the ‘Belle Portable’, the oven was patented in 1894 and now sits under the floorboards of the shop.
The property was left to Koo by her father who bought the property in 1996.
Koo, who lives in Hemel Hempsted, said she was ‘amazed’ at the find so shared it on social media.
She said: “Oh I was so excited. It had taken a lot of work to clear the building but when we found this it made it all worth while. Until I started coming here I knew nothing of the area and it’s not until we’ve kept coming and talking to locals — there’s something about Chichester I’ve really warmed to.”
Helpful Cicestrians showed Kootheir interest onfacebook and the oven was even bought to the attention of a local restoration company.
“We have had so much support online — it’s a part of history,” she added.
There is also a belief that the cellar leads to the legendary Chichester tunnels, leading out from under the cathedral to various parts of the city, but this remains unconfirmed. Another mystery facing Koo is the ghostly goings on across the four floors after she said she felt a presence and saw a woman wearing a servants had and outfit.