HISTORY OF TOWERHOUSE WOOD
History of Towerhouse Wood

History of Towerhouse Wood

Less than 1 km to the north of Nailsea, set on the side of a south-facing hill, this piece of ancient woodland (ST475719) occupying about 6 hectares (16.5 acres), was purchased in 1992 by the Woodland Trust with financial assistance from The Countryside Commission, Nailsea Town Council, and Wraxall and Failand Parish Council and with generous donations contributed by local residents. It is now a part of the ‘Forest of Avon’, the Community Forest that surrounds Nailsea, and it is…

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The Hydrology of Nailsea

The Hydrology of Nailsea

Water is essential for our lives, and until the coming of mains water to Nailsea in 1905 the daily chores of our ancestors were centred on the collection of water for food preparation and washing, as is still the case in many countries across the world. Prior to the 20th century the inhabitants of Nailsea would collect enough water to last the day, a task often assigned to the children. Wraxall Mill was one place where water was freely available….

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History of Moorend Spout Nature Reserve

History of Moorend Spout Nature Reserve

The Origin of the Nailsea Environment & Wildlife Trust About 40 years ago when my son was at primary school in Pound Lane in Nailsea, he used to come home with stories of going to a place called Moorend Spout in a field not far away where he and his friends would play games and catch sticklebacks. He was so enthusiastic about this that I decided to have a look for myself. I found a clapper bridge made of slabs…

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Tree Health – November 2015

Tree Health – November 2015

This account is based on a presentation given by Dom Collins of FERA, organised by the Woodland Trust. It was held at Ashton Court Bristol on 26th September 2015. Much publicity has been given to Ash Wilt disease caused by Chalara fraxinea. This has now been found close to Glastonbury and Radstock, and it seems inevitable that it will eventually devastate the Ash trees around Bristol. Perhaps of even greater significance to the Ash tree is the invasion by the…

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The Glanville Fritillary

The Glanville Fritillary

Tickenham Court, built in about 1400, lies 1 km to the west of Moorend Spout (ST347715). This grade II listed building, which is now owned by Stewart Plant, is celebrated as the ancestral home of Eleanor Glanville (b. 1654), a pioneer entomologist. Eleanor was the daughter of a Roundhead major, William Goodricke, who left her a considerable fortune on his death. Within this legacy she inherited Tickenham Court, and it became her home. Her first husband, Edmund Ashfield, died young…

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Why we should eat less meat

Why we should eat less meat

Why I am (semi) vegetarian Meaning – well, I’m not entirely vegetarian! I do eat the occasional piece of fish – mackerel or a sardine, and (free range) eggs – and I am definitely not vegan, I eat almost entirely plant- or fungus- (Quorn) derived food, in part because I enjoy it, but there are several other reasons – mainly as I care for the environment and for ethical standards in animal husbandry. I have serious reservations about the way…

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Nailsea Historical Heritage Map

Nailsea Historical Heritage Map

Some of these sites are in Tickenham, Wraxall or Backwell parishes Click here to download the PDF file (The map and the text) for printout The Land Yeo is ducted as a leat, raising the level of the river well above the adjoining fields. The embankments for this were probably constructed in the 14th Century by the Augustinian Monks for their mill at Middleton in Tickenham Towerhouse Wood is ancient woodland purchased by the Woodland Trust in 1992. It contains…

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Nature Reserves around Nailsea

Nature Reserves around Nailsea

The town of Nailsea (population about 20,000) grew from a small village in the 1980s. Many of the inhabitants work in the city of Bristol that is about 12km away. Although much of our countryside was used for building new houses, some areas are still relatively undisturbed and remain as havens for wildlife. Some of the nature reserves around Nailsea that are open to the public. See Wikipedia: Nature Reserves in Nailsea Moorend Spout Nature Reserve (ST466715) www.newt.btck.co.uk Moorend Spout…

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Links to other environmental groups

Links to other environmental groups

A list of the other environmental groups in North Somerset England. Bristol Regional Environmental Records Centre http://www.brerc.org.uk/ Bristol Regional Environmental Records Centre (BRERC) is the central repository for biodiversity and geodiversity data for the ’West of England’ area: the same area as the former county of Avon. The Environmental Network of North Somerset (TENONS) http://www.tenons.org.uk/ The Environmental Network of North Somerset (TENONS) is a networking group, with the purpose of raising levels of awareness of environmental issues in our area….

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Tree Names

Tree Names

On reading the book ‘Trees in Your Ground’ (published by the Tree Council and free to registered Tree Wardens) I was intrigued to find the statement ‘the yew ….. has left relatively few examples of its presence in today’s place names’, and I was able to confirm this on consulting my AA gazetteer. I also found that the BT Telephone Directory indicated that no surnames in this area seemed to be directly related to that tree, despite its wide distribution….

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