Wake House

WAKE HOUSE on the west side of North Street was the birthplace of Charles Frederick Worth, son of a local solicitor and founder of the famous Paris fashion house, who was born here on 13th October 1825.

Charles set off for London to seek his fortune while still a boy and after a spell as an apprentice with Swan and Edgar, the linen drapers, moved to Paris in 1846 where his interest in French fabrics and styles became the basis of his success as an international fashion designer which brought him many distinguished customers including Princess Metternich, wife of the Austrian Ambassador, and later the Empress Eugénie herself and his establishment in the Rue de la Paix became the centre of the fashion world.

He was awarded the Legion of Honour and remained in Paris until his death in 1895 but he maintained his links with Bourne through his friends and his sons made occasional visits.

A coveted blue plaque to commemorate Charles Worth's birth was erected on the front of Wake House in December 2002. Blue plaques are the responsibility of English Heritage to draw attention to buildings of interest because of their associations with famous people, provided they have been dead for at least 20 years and (1) are regarded as eminent in their profession, (2) have made some important contribution to human welfare or happiness, (3) had such an outstanding personality that the well-informed passer-by immediately recognises the name, or (4) simply that they deserve recognition. Charles Worth has been adjudged as falling into one or more of these categories and has been so honoured, the first such distinction for Bourne, and so perhaps the time has come to change the name of this building to Worth House which would be more in keeping with its history.