James Bridges was clearly a versatile and talented character; it seems that talent ran in his family. Following on from his father, the creator of a marvellous invention which is celebrated today at the British Museum, James Bridges was a skilled surveyor, architect and travelling showman with a keen interest in science. Bridges took on many projects throughout his lifetime, including the Bristol bridge, to name but one. In this article, Barb Drummond follows the story of this intriguing character - although the end of his story remains elusive.
Tag: eighteenth century
Re-interrogating the Idyll: Slavery and Country Houses in Gloucestershire
The country house, centrepiece of the heritage industry, is something which is sold to us as being quintessentially British. In the South-West and throughout England, these sites have welcomed visitors for decades to come and enjoy the elegance and grandeur of this heritage. In this article, Madge Dresser highlights the sanitisation of the histories that are presented by these stately homes. Drawing our attention to the complex web of links between aristocratic wealth and the Atlantic slave economy, Dresser seeks to persuade readers that unearthing these links is a worthwhile historical enterprise.
‘An extraordinary fellow in his way’: Robert Cadman and Steeple Flying in South West England
This article tells the extraordinary story of Robert Cadman and his renowned steeple-flying performances throughout the South-West of England. Remarkably, Cadman hadn’t been the only one. John Penny follows the stories of the original ‘daredevils’ who gathered huge crowds at their dangerous performances and even appeared in the work of William Hogarth. These shocking spectacles were studded with moments of both calamity and ingenious choreography.
Sites of memory and neglect: John Thelwall and the art of dying quietly
'The burial fields around St Swithin's Church at the top of Walcot in Bath contain some pretty impressive mortal remains. There's Fanny Burney for instance, and Jane Austen's dad. And Sir Edward Berry, one of Nelson's captain's, a veteran of the Nile and Trafalgar. These three eminent visitors to Bath all have more in common than approximation in death however, for their monuments are also the subject of expensive recent face-lifts'.
‘A silly, ridiculous Jack in Office’: Bath’s Town Clerk and the Keppel Affair of 1779
'Admiral Keppel's trial for cowardice in 1779 made him one of the most talked-about naval figures of the age. The political ramifications of his recovery and reinstatement as a popular Whig hero are well-known; much less familiar however, is the enormous impact the affair had upon Georgian Bath. Trevor Fawcett probes the local angle'.
Wood-taking and customary practice: William Hunt’s Justices Notebook, 1744-49
'The surviving notebooks of eighteenth century magistrates can be used by historians to investigate the extent to which customary culture was constrained and regulated by law. Wood-gathering may have been essential to the economy of the rural poor, but it remained theft in the eyes of the law. Carl Griffin opens the notebook of William Hunt of West Lavington in Wiltshire and finds that it was a crime that kept the magistrate peculiarly busy'.
Oldbury Court: The Place and the People
.The Oldbury Court Park and housing estate is situated about 3.5 miles from the centre of the city of Bristol. It has a recorded history dating back to 1086 and the core of the original Domesday land holding has remained remarkably clear of development for over 900 years. Its proximity to Bristol has inevitably meant that throughout its long history it has been intimately connected with the economic and social development of Bristol'. Anthony Nott looks at the events that transpired, and how it has shaped the history of the place.
The Shipwrecked West Indians in Stapleton Prison, Bristol (1796-1798)
Penny follows the story of the captives of the Revolutionary War, and the course of events which led to their housing in Stapleton Prison, Bristol.
St Thomas’ Church, Bristol: From Medieval Splendour to Classical elegance
'There were 18 parish churches crowded in and around the walls of medieval Bristol. Churchwardens' accounts and other sources show that these churches continued to be well-maintained throughout the 16th and 17th centuries , in spite of the destruction of many furnishings of great beauty and value during all the upheavals of the Reformation'. Joseph Bettey looks at the maintenance of parish churches in the Bristol area, and how congregations approached physical alterations to the skin of the building.
Glass Mill, Ashley Vale, 1528-1898 : notes on its history and its contribution to local history – and several outstanding questions
The existence of Glass Mill is still recorded on the street plan of Bristol by a 'mill pond' at the northern, dead, end of Mina Road. Alongside it is now a pumping station which continues to supply water to the city from the brooks which have fed both mill and the town for hundreds of years. Ward discusses its contribution to local history, as well as other relevant questions that have materialised.