[1][2] It is now a small museum open to the public and a popular visitor attraction, owned and managed by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.

[2] John Shakespeare, William's father, was a glove maker and wool dealer, and the house was originally divided in two parts to allow him to carry out his business from the same premises.

From north-west to south-east, the ground-floor consisted of a parlour with fireplace, an adjoining hall with a large open hearth, a cross passage, and finally a room which probably served as John Shakespeare's workshop.

[5] Records show that in 1552 John Shakespeare was fined for leaving a pile of muck outside his home in Henley Street, suggesting that he could have resided in a house there at the time.

The entire property remained in the ownership of the Harts until 1806, when it was sold to a butcher, Thomas Court, who also took over the running of the Swan and Maidenhead Inn.

[8] Isaac Watts, Charles Dickens, Sir Walter Scott and Thomas Carlyle were among the notables that visited the birthplace and autographed the walls and windows.

Referring to an engraving of 1769 as well as taking into account surviving architectural evidence, a reconstruction carried out by the Trust between 1857 and 1864 restored the outside of the building to its 16th century state.

The driving force behind its construction, and opening in 1964, was Levi Fox, OBE, Director of the Trust from 1945 to 1989, with a view to properly housing its library, documents and collections.