This is not just a story about the house, but more a memorial to the family who breathed life into it and made it a place of nostalgia for generations to come. In 1840 the property was little more than a holiday cottage for Duncan Gibb and his family from Liverpool, but two decades later it became their permanent home, Duncan being forced to retire to this smaller property on the Isle of Man as a result of his diminishing wealth.

Born in Scotland, Duncan Gibb was lured to Liverpool as a young man eager to make his fortune. By 1830 he was a successful shipping merchant, and a well respected figure among his Tory colleagues. Now 38 years old, financially secure, and of good civic standing, Duncan decided it was time to marry. Janet Blake, aged 21, was also from an eminent shipping family and the union was blessed.

Four years later Duncan built a new ship named 'Blake' in honour of his acceptance into Janet's family. They lived in a mansion in the suburbs of Liverpool, and had seven children in all, although two boys did not survive. Following his purchase of the cottage on the outskirts of Ramsay, Duncan Gibb secured several acres of farmland and, at the same time the house was being extended to accommodate his growing family. In 1867, just five years after he retired to The Grove, Duncan died leaving his home inhabited by his widow, three daughters, sister-in-law, and his only son, Duncan.

Duncan died aged only 48, leaving a wife, two daughters and a son. It was his daughters, Janet and Alice, that came to live at The Grove with their grandmother, and stayed there for the rest of their lives. Some years after Janet Blake's death, her grandaughters were summoned by their Auntie Janet Douglas and asked to agree to a bizarre condition. They were asked to promise not to leave The Grove, or get married in order that they could continue to look after the house, the garden, and the pony.

The sisters seemed to manage well enough, enjoying a full and active social life until the outbreak of the First World War. From then on their finances became stretched, but with an unending resourcefulness, and a strong commitment to their family home, they somehow managed to survive. It is because of these financially restrained circumstances that the house remained virtually unchanged for a century, and it epitomises the Victorian way of life for ladies of their means. Alice died in 1971, aged 90, and was followed by her sister Janet three years later who died shortly after her 96th Birthday.

The Grove and most of its contents came to the Manx nation to represent an important way of life created by one family until its natural end. As property goes, the house is not necessarily regarded as one of architectural importance, and it is certainly not grand. But the atmosphere within, created by all the personal knick-knacks and mementoes that formed part of the Gibbs' lives, make this an unusual legacy of Victoriana. Outbuildings, farm implements, and the familiar sight of domestic fowl wandering around their territory are all part of the famous story of The Gibbs of the Grove, and make a visit to The Grove Rural Life Museum a unique experience.