Public Water Supplies in North Somerset

Safe clean drinking water is currently supplied to the whole of North Somerset, Bristol, South Gloucestershire and parts of Somerset, Bath & North East Somerset and Gloucestershire by Bristol Water.

A group of prominent local citizens in Bristol formed a group in 1845, with the aim of supplying clean drinking water to the City of Bristol.  The city had suffered a cholera epidemic in 1832 and the disease was spread via contaminated water supplies.  The Bristol Waterworks Company was established on 16th July 1846 by an Act of Parliament.  The following year the first water flowed from Chewton Mendip via Barrow into Bristol.  Bristol was hit by another cholera epidemic in 1849.  The first of three reservoirs at Barrow was constructed in 1850.  Sand filters were later added to treat the water.

In 1888 parliamentary permission was given for Blagdon Reservoir, which captures water draining off the Mendips via the River Yeo.  Work on the construction of the dam began in 1898 and the reservoir was filled to its top level for the first time in 1903.  The associated pumping station was completed in 1905.

Pumping Station, Blagdon Reservoir

Blagdon Lake

In 1888 Bristol Water were also given permission to take water from the springs at Langford and Rickford.  In around 1895 they built a ornate gauge house in the style of a Swiss chalet at Rickford to regulate the flow of water into the village brook and into an underground pipe, which flows into Blagdon Lake.

Gauge House at Rickford

Springs at Cheddar were first tapped in 1922 and Cheddar Reservoir was built there in the 1930s.  Chlorination of the water began in 1935.  However until the 1940s or later many villages still relied on wells and springs for their water supply and communal pumps were a common sight.  Although no longer in use, a few of these have been preserved.

The construction of Chew Valley Lake was delayed by the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939.  Work on it eventually began in 1950 and it was formally opened by the Queen in 1956.  

Bristol Water helped with the construction of the Clywedog Reservoir in Mid Wales in 1967.  This reservoir regulates the flow of the River Severn.  Over half the water supplied today by Bristol Water is extracted from the River Severn, via the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal. Bristol Water’s treatment works at Purton and Littleton in Gloucestershire purify the water extracted from the River Severn.  Other sources of water currently used by Bristol Water in North Somerset include a well at Clevedon, a spring at Banwell and a borehole at Winscombe.

Parish Pumps, Coronation Road, Bleadon

In Bleadon there are two cast iron parish pumps outside Well Cottage in Coronation Road.  They were the main communal source of spring water for the villagers until mains water arrived in Bleadon in the 1940s.  The higher pump was used to fill containers on carts while the lower one was used by pedestrians.  

Old pump and trough at Wrington

Old pump or standpipe in Rickford

Village pump in Christon

Village pump in Chelwood

Pump cabinet, Compton Martin 

The Metropolitan Free Drinking Fountain Association was set up in London in 1859 by Samuel Gurney (an MP and philanthropist) and Edward Thomas Wakefield (a barrister) to provide people with free drinking water. In 1867 the organisation changed its name to the Metropolitan Drinking Fountain and Cattle Trough Association to also support animal welfare.

Old Cattle Trough at the junction of West Town Road and Chelvey Road, Backwell

Public drinking fountains were also sometimes provided by wealthy philanthropists or in memory of someone who had died.

Cattle trough with small drinking fountain on the left hand side, Marine Hill, Clevedon

Drinking fountain, Marine Hill, Clevedon

This cattle trough & drinking fountain on Marine Hill was erected in memory of Edward Long Davis, who died in 1899. There is a quotation from the Bible carved into the side above the drinking fountain, which says “Many waters cannot quench love” (Song of Solomon).  Users of the drinking fountain were instructed to “Keep the pavement dry”.

Charles Hardwick and the Highwayman

On the evening of October 21st 1830 Charles Capell Hardwick, who lived and farmed at Hewish, was riding his horse back from Bristol market.  He had a considerable sum of money with him.  He got talking to Richard Hewlett, who was travelling in the same direction, and they rode along together for a while.  When they were about 1.5 miles from Congresbury, Richard Hewlett drew a pistol and shot Charles Hardwick in the shoulder.  Hewlett galloped away towards Congresbury, but Hardwick caught up with him half a mile away at the bridge over the River Yeo on the edge of Congresbury Moor.  Hewlett then hit Hardwick on the head with a bludgeon and rode off towards Congresbury.  Hardwick followed him.  At Congresbury Bridge Hewlett's horse fell down as it swerved to avoid a cart.  Hardwick and Hewlett fought each other.  Hewlett hit Hardwick on the head and then stabbed him with a dagger.  Despite his injuries, Hardwick held on to Hewlett until some local men, who had heard the sounds of a fight, arrived to apprehend Hewlett.

Charles Hardwick was seriously injured, but eventually recovered from his injuries.  Hewlett was tried at Taunton Assizes in April 1831and found guilty of attempted murder.  Later the same month he was hanged at Ilchester Gaol.  

Charles Hardwick lived for another 19 years and died in July 1849, aged 50.  He was buried at Hutton near Weston-super-Mare.  In 1871 money was raised to pay for a granite cross to commemorate the event.  This was erected in the churchyard of St Andrew's Church in Congresbury.

Charles Hardwick's memorial in St Andrew's churchyard, Congresbury

The inscription on the memorial is as follows:

He was of such courage 

that being attacked

 by a highwayman

 on the heath in this parish

 Oct 21st 1830

and fearfully wounded by him

he pursued his assailant

and having overtaken him

in the centre of this village

delivered him to justice

Bandstands

Bandstands are usually located in parks or on seafronts.  They are designed to provide shelter from the sun and rain for performing bands.  Most of them are circular, semi-circular or polygonal in shape.  They are usually raised up above ground level and the roof acts as a sounding board, so that the music being played can be heard more widely.  

The first cast iron bandstands to be erected in Britain were at the Royal Horticultural Society's gardens in South Kensington, London in 1861. They became popular during the later Victorian period, when many public parks opened in towns and cities to provide green open spaces where people could relax.  They were often funded by local authorities or wealthy benefactors.  It was thought that music had a positive influence on moral health.  At their greatest extent, there were more than 1,500 bandstands in Britain.  They flourished until the Second World War, but nearly 600 were demolished between 1945 and 1980.  However, since the 1990s many of the surviving bandstands have been restored.

Somerset's surviving bandstands are located in Taunton, Wellington, Bath, Minehead, Burnham-on-Sea, Shepton Mallet, Wells, Clevedon, Weston-super-Mare, Frome, Keynsham and Bridgwater.

Vivary Park, Taunton

This octagonal bandstand was supplied by H. Phillips and Sons in 1895, when Vivary Park became a public park.

Morrison's Bandstand, Taunton

I don't know if this bandstand is ever used for its original purpose, given its rather odd location on the banks of the River Tone and very close to Morrison's Supermarket.

Blenheim Gardens, Minehead

Former bandstand, Jubilee Gardens Café, Minehead

This building started life in 1935 as the Jubilee Bandstand.  It was built on the site of an earlier bandstand.  In 1948 it was converted into a tearoom.

Clevedon

This bandstand is located on Green Beach.  It was erected to celebrate Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1887.

Wellington Park

Wellington Park was designed and laid out by the landscape gardener F.W. Meyer.  The park opened in 1903.  The bandstand, which was constructed by Messrs Follett Bros of Wellington, was part of the original design. It originally had a turret on the roof.

Collett Park, Shepton Mallet

Collett Park was given to the town by John Kyte Collett in 1906.

Manor Gardens, Burnham-on-Sea

This bandstand was built by Burnham and Highbridge Town Council in 1995 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of VE Day.

Grove Park, Weston-super-Mare

This cast iron bandstand was built in the late 19th century by Hill Bros, Sun Foundry of Alloa.  It has a lead ogee roof with a weathervane on the top of it.

Blake Gardens, Bridgwater

Blake Gardens opened to the public on 9th August 1902, as part of the town's celebrations for the coronation of King Edward VII.  I think the bandstand was built in 1902.  It was renovated in the summer of 2003 by Bridgwater Prince's Trust Team 12 with help from Chisletts Tool Hire, Bridgwater College Community Service and Sedgemoor District Council.

Royal Victoria Park, Bath

This semi elliptical bandstand was built in around 1887 by Major Charles Davis.  The rear is made from limestone, the columns are made of cast iron and it has a lead fish scale roof.  The interior is timber lined.  The bandstand was designed with acoustics in mind and is aligned with the centre of the Royal Crescent. The park was opened on 23rd October 1830 by the Duchess of Kent and her daughter, Princess Victoria.

Parade Gardens, Bath

The original bandstand in Parade Gardens was designed and built by Henry Goodridge in 1870.  It was replaced in 1925 by the current octagonal bandstand.  The balustrade was replaced in June 2018.  A public forging event was held, which involved a team of blacksmiths from around the United Kingdom.  The musical score shown on the new balustrade is from Hammer & Anvil, which was composed by Jake Garrett.  There are also 8 musical themed panels, which were designed by the blacksmiths.  They feature a gate, big brass, Bridge over Troubled Water, a Celtic harp, tuning forks, a Roman cithara, melody and The Dancing Fiddler. School children from all over Bath forged the treble clefs, which adorn the finial on top of the bandstand.

Celtic harp panel, Parade Gardens, Bath

This panel was made by Gerard Loughran.

Wells Recreation Ground

Thatched bandstand, Victoria Park, Frome

A wooden bandstand was erected in Sidney Gardens in Yeovil in 1898.  It was paid for by James Bazeley Petter.  It was burnt down by vandals in 1972 and not replaced.

Mounting Blocks

Mounting blocks are used to assist people in mounting and dismounting from horses or carts.  They were very common in Britain until the late 18th century, when the roads were improved enough to allow carriages to be used on them.  Carriages had their own steps and so the need for mounting blocks decreased.  Mounting blocks were especially useful for women, who were riding side saddle or pillion, as they allowed them to mount and dismount without any loss of modesty.  Use of a mounting block puts less strain on the stirrup leather and reduces the chance of the saddle slipping to one side.  It also reduces the strain on the spines of horses.

Most mounting blocks were made from stone or wood and usually had 2, 3 or 4 steps leading to a platform.  Mounting blocks were often located outside churches, public houses, inns, country houses, farms and along the main streets of market towns.

Outside St Gregory's Church, Weare

Old Church Road, Clevedon

B3227, Norton Fitzwarren

This mounting block came from Morse Farm.  It was rescued from the old cider site by John Rendall, who was a former chairman and parish councillor 1993-2015.

Quaker Meeting House in Long Sutton with mounting block in front

Torre House, Torre near Washford

Gatchells Lane, Bicknoller

Former stables at Dunster Castle

Double-ended mounting block

Church Street, Wedmore

Outside Bishop's Farm, Shurton

Former stables, All Saints' Church, Kingston Seymour

United Reformed Church, Mid Lambrook

Weston, Clevedon & Portishead Railway

The Weston, Clevedon and Portishead Railway ran from Ashcombe Road in Weston-super-Mare to Portishead via Worle, Wick St Lawrence, Clevedon and Walton-in-Gordano.  

A single track branch line from the Great Western Railway at Weston Junction to Weston-super-Mare opened in June 1841 and another from the GWR at Yatton to Clevedon opened in July 1847.  A branch line from Bedminster to Portishead opened in 1867.  A loop line from the main GWR line opened in March 1884 to serve Weston-super-Mare.  However there was no direct link between the growing towns of Weston-super-Mare, Clevedon and Portishead.  

A railway line from Portishead to Clevedon was first proposed in 1865.  In 1884 the Weston-super-Mare, Clevedon & Portishead Tramways Company proposed building a standard gauge tramway to link the three towns.   The Weston-super-Mare, Clevedon & Portishead Tramways Act was passed in August 1885, but work on the Weston-super-Mare to Clevedon section didn't begin until 1887, due to financial and legal problems.  

The original plan was to run from Weston-super-Mare town centre on the street along the Boulevard.   However the track along the Boulevard was taken up before the line opened, due to complaints from the local council and the terminus station in Weston-super-Mare was at Ashcombe Road.  

The 5 years allowed by the 1885 act for the completion of the line expired in 1890 and another act had to be passed to allow a time extension.  The line finally opened from Ashcombe Road to Clevedon on 1st December 1897.  In 1899 the tramway was designated a light railway and the name of the company was changed to the Weston, Clevedon & Portishead Light Railway Company.

The extension to Portishead was delayed due to financial constraints and finally opened on 7th August 1907.  There were objections to the extension because the line had to run through the streets in Clevedon.

The 14 mile long line was a standard gauge light railway.  It had 19 stations, but most of them were only halts, with no platforms and only a hut for shelter.  

There was no connection with the main railway line at Weston-super-Mare.  It did connect to the Bristol to Portishead branch via a siding at Portishead and it was also connected to the Great Western Railway's Yatton to Clevedon branch at Clevedon for a few years by a very sharp radius link. 

The WC&PR served Conygar, Nightingale and Black Rock Quarries in the Gordano valley and they each had their own sidings. The gasworks at Clevedon and a nail factory in Portishead also had their own sidings off the WC&PR.  In about 1913 a short branch line was constructed to a wharf on the River Yeo at Wick St Lawrence.

Colonel Holman Frederick Stephens managed the WC&PR from 1911 until his death in 1931.  He was based at Tonbridge in Kent and was known as the Light Railway King, because he also ran several other similar railways.  William Henry Austen was the manager from 1931 until 1940.

In 1919 the WC&PR started to manufacture and use concrete sleepers to replace worn out wooden ones. Concrete sleepers were not widely used by other British railway companies until after the Second World War.  In 1921 the company bought its first petrol railcar.

The WC&PR operated on a shoestring and was rarely profitable.  Most of the engines and carriages used on the line were bought second-hand from other railways.  Only two engines were bought new.

The increasing importance of road transport in the 1930s and the decrease in output from Black Rock Quarry made the line even less profitable and it finally closed on 18th May 1940.  The track was taken up between October 1942 and the end of 1943.

Map of the Weston, Clevedon & Portishead Railway

Archway that linked the High Street to the station in Portishead

Former railway offices on Ashcombe Road, Weston-super-Mare

Former trackbed of the railway at Weston-in-Gordano

Colonel Stephens Way, Weston-super-Mare

WC&PR steam engine mural, Salthouse Fields, Clevedon

This mural was painted by local artist Damien Jeffrey.

 

WC&PR steam engine, Station Road, Clevedon

This mural was painted by Damien Jeffrey in 2019.  It was commissioned by Clevedon BID.

Further Reading: 

Maggs, Colin G: The Weston, Clevedon & Portishead Light Railway. The Oakwood Press, 1990

Millennium Commemorations

Communities in Somerset chose to mark the year 2000 in a number of ways, including seats, monuments, parks, halls, gardens, village signs, sculptures, stained glass windows, sundials, mosaics, standing stones, woods and even a stone circle.  A quarter of a century later, most of the millennium commemorative items are still extant.

Millennium Window, St Peter & St Paul's Church, South Petherton

Millennium Window, St Martin's Church, Worle

Millennium Window, St Andrew's Church, Old Cleeve

Millennium Window, Church of St John the Evangelist, Staplegrove, Taunton

This window was designed by Dorset-based Henry Haig A.R.C.A (1930-2007).  It was dedicated by Bishop Peter Coleman on 26th November 2000. The right hand panel depicts images from the Old Testament, such as the burning bush, pillar of fire and Hebrew script in which the Law was written.  The left hand window contains images from the New Testament, for example the Crown of Thorns, the Cross and the tomb of Jesus.  At the top is an image of a rainbow, which represents God's ongoing promise to humankind.

Millennium Window, St Mary's Church, Stoke St Mary

The window was commissioned by Stoke St Mary Church Committee and Stoke St Mary Millennium Committee and was dedicated on 10th September 2000.  It was made by Patrick Reyntiens (1925-2021), a leading British stained glass artist, who moved to Somerset in 1982. The window depicts the story of St Anne and her husband St Joachim, teaching the Virgin Mary to read.  It was chosen because the window formed part of St Anne's Chapel.  St Anne and Mary are linked by a scroll on which the following verse from Isaiah Ch9 v6 is written in Hebrew: For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given.

Millennium window, Church of St John the Baptist, Biddisham
On this window it says "Of his kingdom there shall be no end". This is a quotation from the Gospel of Luke Ch1 v33.  The window was made by Gilroy, Bristol Stained Glass.

St Mary's Church, Luxborough

I presume this is a millennium window, as it has the date 2000 on it.  It also says "All generations shall call me blessed.", which is what Mary, the mother of Jesus is quoted as saying in Luke Ch1 v48.  

Church of St Nicholas, Corfe

This millennium window was made by Roy Coomber.

Millennium seat, Chipstable

Millennium Bench, Kingston St Mary

Deer on the Kingston St Mary bench

Wool trade and dragon on the Kingston St Mary bench

Bishop's Hull Millennium Mosaic

Peace Stone, Oxhouse Wood, Winford

Oxhouse Wood is owned by the Woodland Trust.  They acquired it in 1998, as part of their Woodlands on your Doorstep millennium project.  The Peace Stone was designed by Winford Parish Council.  The stone was donated by a local quarry and carved by a local craftsman.

Spirit of Clevedon

This sculpture on the seafront at Clevedon was designed by the residents of Clevedon in 2000.  According to the plaque on it, the forward pointing sail shape, port hole rings, plaques and panels represent the pioneering and community spirit of the town and highlights the links with Clevedon's European twin towns of Ettlingen, Middelkerke and Epernay.

Lady Smith Memorial Institute/Parish Rooms, Somerton

This vertical sundial was commissioned by Somerton U3A to mark the new millennium and was unveiled on 8th July 2000.  It was made by Peter Walker and features a dragon at the centre. It shows the hours from 7am to 5pm in hours and half hours.

Ham Hill Stone Circle

This modern stone circle consists of 15 standing stones made of the local Hamstone.  It was erected as a Millennium project to commemorate the many centuries of quarrying that have gone on at Ham Hill and all the men who have worked there.   Pieces of shell and other small fossils can be seen in the stones.  Grid reference: ST 478 171.

Othery's millennium village sign

Millennium Glass Doors, The Minster, Ilminster

Angel Gabriel and Mary on the Millennium Doors

Village sign, Shapwick

Ham stone village sign, East Lambrook

Burrington Millennium Stone

This stone has the latitude and longitude of the village (51° 19.8 North, 02° 44.9 West), its altitude (68 metres) and population (448) carved on it.

Millennium stones in the Old Station Millennium Green, Winscombe

Old Station Millennium Green, Winscombe

Brick sculpture of the 1904 booking office and waiting room at Winscombe Station

Standing stones, Millennium Green, Congresbury

There is an inscription on one of the standing stones, which says "Forever Green, Sue Grant, Her Vision".  The late Sue Grant was Clerk to Congresbury Parish Council in the 1990s and she was instrumental in making the millennium green project happen.  The two halves of the village are now joined by the Millennium Bridge over the River Yeo.

Footbridge, Millennium Green, Congresbury

Millennium Sculpture, Yatton

This 6 metre high metal arch sculpture is located at the start of the Strawberry Line next to Yatton Station. It depicts a cyclist, a rambler, a dragonfly, a fox, a rabbit, a cow, a squirrel, a heron, a frog, a butterfly, a woodpecker, some flowers, a tree (possibly an apple tree) and of course some strawberries.  It was made by blacksmith Alan Cooper of Engine Forge, Winscombe.  It was funded by grants from North Somerset Council, the Countryside Agency and the Forest of Avon.

Ash Millennium Wood

This wood is owned by Ash Parish Council.  It was established as a community wood to mark the Millennium.  Local parishioners planted 150 trees (including ash trees!).  Volunteers have planted many more trees since then and also set up a wildflower plot.

Millennium Wood, Nether Stowey

800 trees were planted by children from Nether Stowey Primary School and local residents in 2000 and 2001. The site, which was previously used as a rubbish dump, was cleared in 2000. The trees planted include ash, cherry, beech, oak, hazel, hawthorn and apple.  The wood was extended in 2012 to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee. 300 trees, which were given by the Woodland Trust, were planted in the extension by local adults and children.

Millennium Garden, Higher Road, Woolavington

The Parish Council has gone for a "natural" look in 2025.

140 Smiles, High Street, Street

This Millennium work of art was made by Brookside School in Street.  It is comprised of pottery self-portraits made by the children of years 3 & 4 in January 2000, with the help of the ceramic artist Julia Gatrill.

Millennium Green, Frome

Seavington Millennium Hall

Kneeler, St Mary's Church, Ashill