Keynsham & Saltford Local History Society

Almost twenty members enjoyed a walk along the front and into some of the lesser-known streets in Clevedon with local historian Jane Lilly. Our guide explained the origins of the town and the ownership of the main buildings, starting with what is now the Salthouse and moving north to The Beach and ending near the pier.
Clevedon was a farming community with most land belonging to the Elton family of Clevedon Court and it grew only slowly until the fashion for sea-bathing started in the early 1800s. Strips of land were sold for building and the development along what is now the seafront did not start until the 1820s. The town grew rapidly in Victorian times and we saw along Copse Road, parallel to The Beach, the different styles of various builders. We learned the history of the Marine Lake, features such as the Bandstand and the Drinking Fountain and the precautions built-in to prevent flooding of sea-front properties.

Clevedon Pier

Our group in Berkeley Square

MAY 16^th GUIDED WALK - “OFF-CENTRE” BRISTOL

Society treasurer, Keith Norton, led members on a tour of part of the central area of Bristol, to discover the history of some of the buildings that we pass so often but rarely notice. Starting from The Centre, we crossed to Zed Alley and Host Street, past the hidden remains of the original Bristol Grammar School to Christmas Steps. At the top of these we saw the Chapel of the Three Kings of Cologne. One of the windows shows a nativity scene, which may be the reason the steps are so named. Next to these are the Foster's Almshouses. We then made our way to Park Row, by the Red Lodge Museum. Opposite this is Bristol’s Victorian synagogue, opened in 1871, and next door the site of Bristol’s Industrial School for Boys, established by Mary Carpenter in 1859, and the subject of one of the Society’s talks last year.

In Berkeley Square we saw what remains of a 19th century replica of the Bristol High Cross, which was moved in 1768 to Stourhead Gardens, where it remains to-day. We then moved to Brandon Hill Park. The Hill was given to the council in 1174 by the Earl of Gloucester, and used for grazing until 1625 when it became a public open space; it has a claim to being the oldest public open space in the country. The Hill has fine views over the Docks and thousands stood there to watch the launch of the SS Great Britain in 1843.
Our final stop was outside the Georgian House on Great George Street. This house, built around 1790 for a wealthy merchant, is now a museum and can be visited during the summer and at weekends.

JUNE 6^th COACH TRIP TO MOTTISFONT AND MARLBOROUGH

Society members visited Mottisfont in Hampshire to discover a most interesting National Trust property that started life as a priory and went through several major re-buildings, so that the only signs of the original structure are visible in the cellars and a few cut-outs in more recent walls. The house has belonged to several families but the final owners, Maud and Gilbert Russell who arrived in 1934, gave us the building we have today. They made Mottisfont the centre of a fashionable artistic and political circle and under Maud's guidance, rooms were reconfigured and redecorated, creating a neo-classical, luxurious look with some unique features. As well as the house, the rose gardens were well worth seeing and a stop at Marlborough for tea on the way back made for an enjoyable day.

Mottisfont

JULY 5th VISIT TO BRISTOL DOCKS AND M-SHED MUSEUM

Above left - View from the Crane by M-shed, Bristol Docks.
Above right - A demonstration of crane-driving by Alan Salter

Above left - The Pyronaut demonstrates its fire-fighting jets in Cumberland Basin.
Above right - Society members on the Pyronaut at Bristol Docks

On one of the few hot days of the summer the destination was Bristol docks, where Society member and M-Shed volunteer Alan Salter had arranged a range of experiences for those with a head for heights and liking for boat rides. The group were lifted to the cab of one of the dockside cranes where Alan demonstrated his crane-driving skills, had a cruise down to the Cumberland Basin on the old fire-boat Pyronaut, which showed the range of its jets for us and finally were given a fascinating tour of the storage areas of the M-Shed museum. This holds a vast stock of artefacts large and small relating to domestic and industrial life in Bristol over the last 200 years.

Badminton House, north frontage

JULY 20th VISIT TO BADMINTON HOUSE

This was an opportunity to visit one of the great houses of England that it not normally accessible to the public. With a most knowledgeable guide, we visited many of the grand rooms of the house, built in the 17th century but extended later. It is the home of the Dukes of Beaufort and contains many fine artworks including paintings of the house by Canaletto. The first room we saw was the hall, where the game of badminton was first devised and played in 1863. The group also saw the south gardens and a most enjoyable visit was rounded off with afternoon tea.

SEPTEMBER 13th COACH TRIP TO CLEEVE ABBEY AND DUNSTER

A varied day started with a call at Watchet for a coffee and a stroll round the harbour. The town’s small museum was open and gave those interested a good summary of the history of the port and the industries that depended on it, although the working harbour has now been largely replaced by a marina for pleasure craft.
Our party then travelled the few miles to Cleeve Abbey, near Washford, where we had a guided tour of the remains of the Cistercian Abbey.
We then moved on to Dunster, with its distinctive yarn market, where members visited the Castle or explored the old streets and interesting buildings such as the dovecote.

Watchet Harbour

Above Left - Our guide shows the tiled floor of the refectory at Cleeve Abbey.

Above Right - Cleeve Abbey, looking across the cloister to the later refectory building.

Left - The Yarn Market, Dunster