Thomas Quiney and Judith Shakespeare marble plaque

This marble commemorative plaque records: The home of Judith Quiney, Shakespeare's daughter Artists impression of the house in Shakespeare's day Behind the early 20th facade to No. 1 High Street lies an important. timber-framed building, which may well date back to the 1440s. For a time it was known as the 'Cage', perhaps because a temporary lock-up was attached to it. It belonged to the Stratford Corporation and in the summer of 1616 was leased to Thomas Quiney, who had married William Shakespeare's younger daughter, Judith, earlier that year. Quiney was a vintner - or wine merchant - by trade and ran his business from this prime corner site for at least twenty years. The couple's first child, Shakespeare, died in infancy, in 1617, followed by their other two sons, unmarried, within a month of each other in 1639 The building has been refronted on at least three occasions, most recently in 1923, but the original timber frame survives basically Intact. The building is now administered by the Stratford Town Trust.