Stewartville to Stewartby
When the plans for the model village were submitted to the council in 1926, the proposed name was Stewartville. At some point the name was changed to Stewartby, although no official explanation survives. What is clear from newspaper reports is that the change had taken place by 1930, the year the Village Hall opened.
The layout of the model village did not remain exactly as first proposed. The early plans showed a road running from Stewartby Way to the bottom of Church Close. the photograph to the right indicates where that road would have been with number 22 Stewartby Way on the left. This explains why the path and the surrounding grass are so wide at this point. Instead of creating the road, further houses were built opposite numbers 1 to 12 Stewartby Way.
The Stewart family were acquainted with the Quaker Cadbury family, who had already created the model village of Bournville for their workers. Perhaps the similarity of the names prompted the change. Or it may simply have been because a Stewartville already existed in Minnesota, USA.
Montgomery Roundabout
Before Montgomery Roundabout was created, this area was home to a pair of farm cottages belonging to Rousbury Manor Farm, which stood directly opposite. The farm has long since disappeared, and retirement homes now stand on its former site.
The cottages were demolished about 1935 when the next section of Stewartby Way was developed, continuing the line of houses that had already been built along the road.
The photographs below show the cottages during demolition in the left‑hand image, and the photograph on the right was taken in 2026 on the exact same spot. The houses to the left of the cottages are 115 and 116 Stewartby Way, and you can also see them in the 2026 photograph behind the trees.
Montgomery Roundabout Flower Display
Each year the Montgomery roundabout was planted with around 3,500 bedding plants. One side spelt out Stewartby, and the other LBC, followed by George, the company emblem and the year.
Stewartby Way was always kept in immaculate condition. As the main approach into the village, it served as a showcase for the London Brick Company. The company’s own gardeners maintained the lawns and flower beds to a high standard and raised all their own bedding plants and roses.
Stewartby Way
Left – A photograph taken before 1935, showing the view looking up towards what is now Montgomery Roundabout. The farmer’s field from Rousbury Manor Farm lies on the right, edged with a hedge. The cottages visible on the right, partway up the image, once stood on the ground now occupied by the roundabout.
Right – A photograph taken in 2025 from the exact same spot, shown to illustrate how Stewartby Way looks today.
