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WM Hillgrove Guest House by kind permission of Wilf Merrett
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Hillgrove House, formerly the Fleece Inn, was built in 1783 (just after the opening of the new turnpike along the valley bottom) by Sir George Paul and a group of other local gentlemen, to provide a convenient point midway between Petty France and Gloucester where post-horses could be stabled and changed. It is situated at the junction of the A46 and the road to the Bear Inn.
The Fleece used to be a popular meeting place, and became the venue for the Wednesday meetings of the Gloucestershire Medical Society, founded by Edward Jenner and his colleagues in 1788. The inn had closed by 1853 and is now a private residence, although its name has been adopted by two modern hostelries on the A46 - the Fleece at Lightpill and the Old Fleece at Rooksmoor.
From January 2016, this website is managed by Stroud Local
History Society
Revised 2018 EMW
