Clifton Down

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Clifton Down
Bristol cd 041004 kites.jpg
Clifton Down
Bristol UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Typepublic open space
Location Bristol, England
Coordinates 51°28′10″N2°37′08″W / 51.46945°N 2.619°W / 51.46945; -2.619 Coordinates: 51°28′10″N2°37′08″W / 51.46945°N 2.619°W / 51.46945; -2.619
Area400 acres (160 ha)
OpenAll year
1955 OS map of Clifton Down and Durdham Down 1955 Ordnance Survey map of Durdham Down & Clifton Down.jpg
1955 OS map of Clifton Down and Durdham Down

Clifton Down is an area of public open space in Bristol, England, north of the village of Clifton. With its neighbour Durdham Down to the northeast, it constitutes the large area known as The Downs, much used for leisure including walking and team sports. Clifton Down is the part of the Downs south of Stoke Road.

Contents

Close up view of the natural rock slide at Clifton Down Natural Rockslide - Bristol, England at Clifton Downs - Dec 30th, 2004.jpg
Close up view of the natural rock slide at Clifton Down
A kite aerial view of the Via Julia, captured during a visit with the Bath and Bristol Young Archaeologists Club in 2009 Roman Road - The Via Julia, Bristol.jpg
A kite aerial view of the Via Julia, captured during a visit with the Bath and Bristol Young Archaeologists Club in 2009

History

There is an Iron Age hill fort at Clifton Camp on Observatory Hill on the down, and there are remnants of an Iron Age or Roman field system between Ladies Mile and Bristol Zoo. The Roman road from Bath to Sea Mills crossed the Downs near Stoke Road, and a short length is visible as a slightly raised grassy bank. William Worcester described a presumably turf-cut figure of the giant Ghyst on Clifton Down in 1480. [1]

In the Middle Ages Clifton Down was the commons of pasture for the manor of Clifton. It was also valuable farmland used by many farms in the area. In 1676 and 1686 the manor of Clifton was purchased by the Society of Merchant Venturers. During the 18th century Clifton became a fashionable summer spa, and Clifton Down was increasingly used for recreation. There were also lead mines in the 18th century, which account for the bumpy surface in the area by Upper Belgrave Road known as the Dumps. A gibbet was erected opposite the top end of Gallows Acre Lane (now known as Pembroke Road).

By the mid-19th century Clifton Down ceased to be used for grazing. Clifton became a desirable place to live, and large houses were built close to Clifton Down. Bristol Corporation became concerned at the threat to this public amenity, and in 1861 promoted an Act of Parliament, under which the Society of Merchant Venturers undertook to secure Clifton Down for public enjoyment free of charge. [2]

Since 1861 Clifton Down has been managed, with Durdham Down, by the Downs Committee, a joint committee of the Society of Merchant Venturers and Bristol City Council, which owns Durdham Down. [3] The committee appoints a Downs Ranger to oversee the Downs. [4]

Suffragette meeting

On 20 September 1908 there was a meeting across the road near the water tower to support the Suffragette movement: some 10,000 people were there. [5]

World War II

Stone cairns were placed on all open spaces to deter landings of enemy aircraft: the cairns were removed in 1944. In May 1941, 32 acres were requisitioned on the east side of Ladies Mile to store military vehicles in six canvas hangars. There was a tank repair area near the Sea Walls. An area of 42 acres to the west of Ladies Mile was used from February 1944 to store heavy army equipment. [5]

Features

The downs, Clifton and Durdham, are separated by the busy commuter road of Stoke Road, passing the prominent 'concrete elephant' water tower and adjoining tea room. At right angles to Stoke Road runs the dead straight 'Ladies Mile', to the South West corner of the Downs and Bridge Valley Road. In Victorian and Edwardian times this was a promenading and horse-riding spot for the affluent, similar to Rotten Row in London. After the Great War, it remained a promenading spot, but now on a more commercial basis. [6]

From the southwest corner of Clifton Down, in an area known as the Sea Wall, there are panoramic views of the Avon Gorge and the Clifton Suspension Bridge.

Near Clifton village is the site of the Observatory, a small tower with a camera obscura at the top. Located close to the observatory is an open face of rock that has been used as a slide by generations of Bristolians and students. This "rock slide" has become polished and is now an attraction to visitors. [7]

A railway tunnel, Clifton Down Tunnel, passes underneath Clifton on the line from Temple Meads to Severn Beach. One portal is in Clifton near Clifton Down railway station; the other in the Avon Gorge far below Clifton Down. There are three air shafts for the tunnel: two in vertical tower form (near the zoo, and in Walcombe Slade gulley) with the third being a horizontal tunnel on the Portway.

Part of Clifton Down was used by gay men as a cruising ground. In 2008, there were concerns by some gay men at the removal of vegetation as part of the Avon Gorge Management Plan, on the grounds that this was discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation. [8]

See also

Related Research Articles

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The Clifton Suspension Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Avon Gorge and the River Avon, linking Clifton in Bristol to Leigh Woods in North Somerset. Since opening in 1864, it has been a toll bridge, the income from which provides funds for its maintenance. The bridge is built to a design by William Henry Barlow and John Hawkshaw, based on an earlier design by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. It is a Grade I listed building and forms part of the B3129 road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clifton, Bristol</span> Suburb of Bristol, England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Durdham Down</span> Area of open space in Bristol, England

Durdham Down is an area of public open space in Bristol, England. With its neighbour Clifton Down to the southwest, it constitutes a 400-acre (1.6 km2) area known as The Downs, much used for leisure including walking, jogging and team sports. Its exposed position makes it particularly suitable for kite flying. Durdham Down is the part of the Downs north of Stoke Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Downs, Bristol</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clifton Rocks Railway</span> Former (1893–1934) funicular railway in Bristol, England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stoke Bishop</span> Human settlement in England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sneyd Park</span> Human settlement in England

Sneyd Park is a suburb of Bristol, England, lying on the western fringe of Clifton Down, adjacent to the Avon Gorge and the Sea Walls observation point. It is part of the Stoke Bishop district. Home to many millionaires, Sneyd Park was originally developed in Victorian times. Many Victorian and Edwardian villas line the edge of the Downs. More modern housing has since been built down over the slope, towards Sea Mills, Bristol. Much of this development was carried out by the Stride family builders whose practice was "to purchase an estate freehold and to erect thereon their own houses, with the knowledge that none will be able to come along and dump a lot of cheap houses down in the neighbourhood, thereby spoiling the amenities of the place and detracting from the value of the houses erected by the firm." The 'Stride brothers' specialised in constructing individual style homes with the emphasis on location, finish and design. Buildings were never duplicated and no two were built to the same design. They often have solid oak interior doors, oak-panelled hallways, the hallmark Stride letterboxes and impressive staircases. Brothers Jared and Jethro Stride founded the business in the 1920s, followed by Jared's sons Arthur and Frederick, and then their sons Leslie and Raymond. In 1864 Jared and Jethro's brother Lot was killed in an accident in a sawmill in Cardiff when his hair was caught in the revolving saw. The incident made the newspapers around the world. Prior to developing Sneyd Park Edwin Stride and his sons Jared and Jethro had set up the Crown Brick Works in Shirehampton to supply bricks for the docks then under construction.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clifton Observatory</span> Observatory in Bristol, England

Clifton Observatory is a former mill, now used as an observatory, located on Clifton Down, close to the Clifton Suspension Bridge, Bristol, England.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alderman Proctor's Drinking Fountain</span> Building in Bristol, England

The Alderman Proctor's Drinking Fountain is a historic building on Clifton Down, Bristol, England.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hotwells railway station</span> Railway station in Bristol, England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">William West (artist)</span> English painter

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References

  1. Clark, John (2016). "Trojans at Totnes and Giants on the Hoe: Geoffrey of Monmouth, Historical Fiction and Geographical Reality". Report and Transactions of the Devonshire Association. The Devonshire Association. 148: 110. ISSN   0309-7994 . Retrieved 5 November 2022.
  2. The Downs Committee, The Downs: Clifton and Durdham Downs, 1861-1961 (Bristol, 1961)
  3. Cameron, Amanda (24 January 2022). "Merchant Venturers asked to give Clifton Down to city of Bristol". Bristol Post. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
  4. "History of The Downs".
  5. 1 2 Friends of the Downs and Avon Gorge "Welcome Issue" pamphlet 2016.
  6. 1 2 Hughes, Victoria (1977). Ladies' Mile. Abson Books. ISBN   0902920316.
  7. Batten, Rhiannon (28 March 2014). "Top 10 outdoor activities in Bristol". The Guardian . Retrieved 7 May 2018.
  8. "Concern over scrub clearance work". BBC News . 8 July 2008. Retrieved 7 May 2018.