Thursday 24th June 1819
grand and majestic effect. Thursday June 24th This morning proving rainy and continuing so, we were unable to again visit the beautiful rocks. We dined at three o’Clock and then left Clifton with regret for the Old Passage. In our way we passed
through the pretty and rural village of Henbury we also went to see ten very pretty Cottages built by a Mr Harford for decayed Gentlefolks When we arrived at the Old Passage the Severn was so rough and the wind so high that we found it impossible
to cross the Ferry After having walked some time on the Cliffs whence we have very fine view of Monmouth we returned to our new habitation with the determination of crossing tomorrow morning to Chepstow when the tide served. Friday June 25th
OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS
The Old Passage: The Aust Ferry passage across the Severn estuary between Aust and Beachley, later known as the Old Passage, was used from antiquity. In the 12th century responsibility was granted to the monks of Tintern Abbey and it continued to operate in subsequent centuries. The journey, a distance of over a mile at a point where the tides run swiftly, was a dangerous one, and its reputation, the roughness of the water, and the smallness of the boats deterred travellers. Daniel Defoe visited the crossing from the Aust side in the 18th century, but did not trust the ferry to survive the bad weather, and elected to go via Gloucester instead. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aust and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aust_Ferry
Henbury was historically a very large parish and the centre of a hundred of the same name but is now a suburb of Bristol https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henbury
Cottages: The National Trust, which acquired Harford’s Blaise Castle Estate, describes these as “nine rustic cottages around a green” (Lucy was clearly in error when she records “ten pretty cottages”) https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/blaise-hamlet
Image from the National Trust Blaise-Hamlet website. The memorial at the foreground is to John Harford
John Scandrett Harford, a well-respected Bristol banker and Quaker, bought the Blaise Castle Estate in 1789 and commissioned an eminent Bristol architect, William Paty, to build a new house for him and his family. To enhance his estate, John Harford also built a group of cottages which would improve the look of the estate and provide housing for his servants when they retired. The estate is now owned by the National Trust https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/blaise-hamlet/features/the-history-of-blaise-hamlet
Can you help us?
Old Regency Prints or Pictures and maps of the Old Coaching Routes: Any illustrations of what Lucy would have seen in 1819 will bring our research alive. Any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and sites will enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought.
Thanks
We would like to express our thanks to Stephen, who contacted us using the link, below, and has suggested a source for old Prints of Bath, Wiltshire and further afield. In the coming days we will be exploring Stephen’s suggestion and, if possible, add those that are relevant to past and future blogs. Thank you Stephen!
Please click here if you can help
Share