The village derives its name from one of six common lands in the parish of Bitton - Westfield, Redfield, Longwell Green, Cadbury Heath, Oldland and North Common, which were enclosed in the reign of George III by local act of 1819.

The name was not always spelt "Longwell Green". In 1813, according to the baptism register of Hanham Abbots Church, the Rev.  Charles Wayland wrote "Longways Green". In 1814, the Rev. John Pring wrote "Longhurst Green", in 1815 the Rev. G.D. Bowles wrote "Longmans Green", in 1817 the Rev. T. Hogg wrote "Longhams Green". In 1825 the name "Longwells Green" first appeared and is still used by the older inhabitants of the village. Then "Longwells Green" became the generally accepted spelling by subsequent clergy-men.

In 1906 the Postmaster of Bristol wrote to enquire the correct name of the village. The Hanham Abbots Parish Council agreed that the best name was "Longwell Green", and so it has officially remained.

It is common belief in the original part of the village, commonly termed "The Green", that the name is derived from the existence of a number of springs or wells in the area. The original "Long" well is in the front garden of Mr. C. Pomeroy's house, between the church and the local store No. Bath Road. It was bricked up in 1902, and its position marked in a stone of the wall bordering the footpath. The filled in well can be seen today,

All those who had no well or cistern in their own garden drew water from the "long well". There was another well under a path leading up to Long Well House on the opposite side of the road. An account was given by the late Mr. H. Gully of his fathers early morning trek, now 100 yrs ago, up the lower slopes of Stonehill, via Watery Lane (now Kingsfield lane) to fetch drinking water from a spring near Mount Pleasant farm. Often he arrived tired and hot at the spring before four or five a.m. with his wooden yoke and two buckets. He would find two or three others before him and would have to wait for some time, especially in Summer time when the spring was a mere trickle. When water was scarce, people would go instead to the top of the hill near Sally on the Barn, (this well was only filled in 30 yrs ago), or to the Goldwell on the hill near Willsbridge House. In Shellards Road, where Mr. H. Gully lived until recently, there used to be quite a number of cisterns which tapped rain water from the roof tops.

The Land Enclosure Act marked the beginning of the village of Longwell Green, when the actual piece of land, known as Longwells Green, was enclosed by three people, Abraham Fry, Robert Nurse of Hanham Green, and one of the Budgetts of Bristol, who lived in Oldland Hall within a stones throw of the Green. Prior to this there was only a few farm houses and cottages. Gradually from the building of the Methodist  Schoolroom in 1856, the Crown Inn in 1861, and the erection of a Mission Church in 1896, the village has grown to sizeable proportions. The major advances in building and population growth having taken place during the past 50 years.

It is not possible to calculate the population of the village at any given time, as it is not a parish, but situated on the border line of the two parishes of Hanham Abbots and Oldland. It is thought that there were seven hundred people living in the village during the war years 1939-46. This calculation may have been made from the number of people requiring gas masks; it is certainly much bigger now.

JOURNEYING FROM BRISTOL TO BATH

Coming from Bristol through Hanham, the road descends gradually between green fields stretching to Oldland on the left hand side, and a long low hill on the right hand side named Stonehill. From this point there is an excellent view of Kelston-round-tump - a group of trees at the top of Kelston Hill, which is a land mark for miles around. Much of the land in this area is earmarked for light industry and housing during the next 5 years. On the left hand side is at the moment Longwell Green Coach Works, the only industry at present.

The 'village' begins at Stonehill and stretches for a mile to the top of Willsbridge Hill. It has grown from a few buildings which were erected on or near the Green during the latter half of the nineteenth Century. Both Shellards Road and Watsons Road branch out on the left and meet to form a triangle that encloses the original Green. These once mud tracks led to the California Pit, but now carry on to Cadbury Heath and Parkwall housing estates.

In the middle of the village, on and opposite the original 'Green' - not to be confused with the conventional village green - are the most important buildings - the Church and Hall, the General Stores and Post Office, the Village Inn, the Methodist Chapel and Schoolroom.

A right hand turn after the Village Inn leads into Ellacombe Road, here is situated the modern infant/junior school built in 1960’s This estate of private homes and a small row of shops were added to the village in 1959 built on prime market garden land by Wimpey.

Carrying on along the road Wimpey is building a massive Green to Oldland. the growth in area development joining Longwell These new homes are typical of in the past 10 years.

A right hand turn at the top of Willsbridge Hill leads up to Court Farm Road. Bearing right again at Court Farm, down the hill to Hanham Court Church, and the hamlet of Hanham Green, and Hanham Court, which is historically connected with Longwell Green by the associations of the Creswick family who once occupied it, and the Newtons of Barrs Court.

In 1910 there were only two or three houses in Court Farm Road; then it was known as Lime Kiln Lane, because of two lime kiln works there. The lower ones near Albert Villa, and the others near Court Farm. There is a cottage still to be seen converted from the stables of the upper lime works near Court Farm. This is an interesting cottage and until recently the quarry could still be seen at the bottom of the garden. 

From Court Farm Road one gets views of Bristol to the north-west, the Somerset hills to the west, and of the southern end of the Cotswolds at Lansdown.

The main road from Longwell Green leads down Willsbridge Hill, past Harefield Hall (home of the late Mrs. Jefferies benefactor of the village in the early days), past the site of the old Willsbridge Milling company and Mill Pond on the left (earmarked for Nature Reserve) and Willsbridge House on the right. At the bottom of the hill is the 'Queens Head' an Inn which is marked on an old map of about 1670 in Ellacombe's 'History of Bitton'. This map was drawn by, or for, Francis Creswick of Hanham Court. At the foot of Willsbridge Hill is the Clack Mill Brook, which flows into the Avon between Willsbridge and Keynsham. Beyond the Inn the road crosses over the Brook and continues up Brockham Hill to Willsbridge along the Roman Way, through Bitton and Kelston to Bath.

At the once 'turnpike' house at Willsbridge is a right hand fork leading to Keynsham. On this Keynsham road is Londonderry Farm, an interesting old house with some windows blocked up as a result of the George III 'window tax', also 'Roseneath' once the home of another of the Creswick family.

The parish boundary of Hanham Abbots is just beyond the "Queens Head" and beyond is the parish of Bitton.

Note - Map of Village at present time can be compiled by children marking buildings and streams points of interest i.e. wells, Court Farm, Church Inn, shops. Map can be large and with each child marking in various items - see map enclosed.  Small captions can be added by important spots. Could also make models.

GEOLOGY

Longwell Green is situated, geologically speaking, in what was known in the nineteenth century as the coal basin of Gloucestershire and Somersetshire. Longwell Green, then part of the parish of Bitton, was on the fringe of the Kingswood coal field, and there was a pit only half a mile away near Oldland. It was known as the California Pit, and was closed in the first years of the present century. Pit workings were known to stretch from the Warmley area as far as the market garden near the main road Longwell Green was in the S.E. corner of the Gloucestershire area of the coal basin, the River Avon being a dividing line between the two areas.

The Avon flows between banks of alluvium. From the stretch of the river between Hanham Mills and the confluence of the Mill Clack brook and the Avon, the ground rises steeply through the Cleeves Woods, where there are outcroppings of limestone, to the beds of lower has beneath Westfield. The crown of Stonehill is lower has, and includes a small area of inferior colite.

Much of Longwell Green, including the Green, is on new red sandstone. This area stretches roughly from Watson Road to the bottom of Willsbridge Hill, then across in a westerly direction to Hanhani Green, one section joining the Cleeves near theriver, and finally in a north westerly direction to include the lower slopes of Stonehill.

Stonehill farm, Hinton Green, and Barrs Court are all on the fringe of the coal measures.
Very close to the district near the river, just beyond Hanham Mills, were formerly Pennant Stone quarries in Hanhani Woods. 

Many local houses were built of this material, which is easily recognizable by the reddish marks in the greyish blue stone, and has a very pleasant appearance, particularly when the sunlight picks out the colours.

One little industry, which used to operate at Hanham Green in the eighteenth century, made coffins from this stone. 

THE MILL WILSBRIDGE

The Iron Mills at Wiilsbridge were erected on the site of the ancient manor house at Oldiand, on a stream called Mill Clack brook, which runs through the valley of Southernwood. As early as 1712 Mr. John Pearsall set them up for rolling iron, especially hoop iron, also for making steel. The works were successfully carried on by the family for many years. In 1801 Mr. Thomas Pearsall took out a Patent dated 30th December, for his invention in applying hoop iron for the construction of roofs, instead of timber, but it was a failure - a roof set up over the London Docks collapsed, and after that the works were discontinued. Relics of the old iron rafters, which were made at the mills, were found in several old cottages, only recently demolished. Mr. Pearsall retired to Bath, where he died in March 1825, The premises were sold in 1816, and the mill converted into a flour mill.

Mr. Pearsall made a dam across the brook to form a pond and mill head for his iron works, flooding the meadow and orchard called "Swans' Flat" Mr. Robert Lucas Pearsall was the last to leave the neighbourhood, and he resided at the Upper House before he retired to Germany, after having sold his estate to Robert Stratton Esq. This Mr. Pearsall was celebrated for his musical ability. He was born at Clifton, but the family and his ancestors lived at Willsbridge for many years prior to his birth. 

In 1800 to 1850, there was a stone quarry at Catscliffe, farther up the valley of Southernwood, and this was owned by a family named Caines. There are to this day flagstones which came out of this quarry, still to be found in some old houses in Longwell Green.

Country folk found herbs in the fields and hedgerows, and used them for medicinal purposes, such as making ointments for healing sores, and lotions for inflamed eyes. One man specialised in making a "never fail" cough mixtures.

The Malt House still stands at Hanham Green, where in 1800 the barley corns were turned and dried, and malt delivered to the brewers for miles around the district. The following notes on malting at Hanham Green from at least 1699 (no details prior to that date) in Stratton's malthouse, have been gleaned from the reminiscences of Miss. F.E. Nurse.

Business was bought by Robert Nurse in the late 1700's, and it remained in the family until 1937. Mr. R.F. Nurse, 1855 to 1923, succeeded his father in the business. A new house was built in front of old premises in 1886.

In 1880 duties on malt and maltsters were transferred to beer and brewers by the Inland Revenue act of that year. Two bushels of malt would produce an ordinary barrel of beer, i.e. thirty-six gallons at a gravity of 1057 later adjusted to 1055 . This was adopted as standard. Beer duty of six shillings and three pence imposed on finished product to displace previous malt duty. Excise officers visited the premises during the brewing of the beer, the day and hours being entered in the book. Premises were to be opened for their inspection day and night.

Mr. R.F. Nurse was licensed brewer until his death in 1923, afterwards his second son, Mr. W.R. Nurse, until his death in 1937, when the business closed down.

Many farmers wives made a wine called "bee wine11 which was very potent. It was made from a certain white fungus which grew on trees, and when placed in jars with water and sugar, would ferment, and in time mature and become a delicious home made wine.

BUILDINGS

There are many stone built houses in the village, which are quite interesting, although not of architectural interest. One or two are converted farm houses, which st one time were refronted, as for instance, Oldland Hall.

Harefield Hall, at the top of Willsbridge Hill, was built by Mrs. Jefferies in the early 1900's. It is a solidly built grey stone house, with very pleasant grounds which slope gently to the road.

A few yards further down the hill is Oldbury Chase, built in 1910 or so; it was first called 'Goldwell' after the spring nearby on the road side, and is considered by local builders to be the finest house in the village, because of the splendid quality of the timber and other materials used in its construction. Its first tenant was Mr. Swaish, Lord Mayor of Bristol during the first World War.

Willsbridge House on the other side of the hill, opposite the mill and mill pond, is usually called "The Castle" by reason of the mock battlements which were added by a Captain Stratton in 1848. The house had been built by an ancestor of R.L. Pearsall, the madrigal writer, who had come to Willsbridge in the early eighteenth century. He lived for many years in an old thatched house by the brook (there is no trace of it now) and towards the end of his life built Willsbridge House, which was at first only a small house added to a cottage already standing there. His son completed it, and his grandson added a coach house and stables in 1802.

It is thought that "The Limes" an old house near the Mill, and opposite the Castle, and most of the cottages in Willsbridge - except those adjoining the Queen's Head, were built by a son of the first John Pearsall.

There is no Manor House in Longwell Green, for the one at Willsbridge, which was thought to have been the ancient manor house of Oldland, preceded Willsbridge House. The other "reputed" manor house of Oldland, described in Ellacombe's "History of Bitton" was Hanham Hall, built in 1655. The manor house of West Hanham of Hanham Abbots was Hanham Court.

The following account of Barrs Court was written approximately 30 yrs ago for parish magazine.

Barrs Court is on the outskirts of Longwell Green, and is on the fringe of land which was at one time Kingswood Forest.

It is approached by three long drives from different directions, and is set well back from the road. No one lives there now - the land is farmed by Mr. Hooper of Longwell Green, and one frequently sees a tractor or cattle truck there, but they always look incongruous and out of place. The building is now going to rack and ruin with roofs and ceilings falling in, and creepers making a curtain over all, yet from a distance it is still beautiful The buildings that remain are only a fraction (possibly the servants quarters) of the whole manor itself.

Even the farm house as it was until about fifteen years ago was very large. There is a room with barred windows - was this to keep prisoners in?

The large dairy has a spring running through.

Some fifteen years ago there was a beautiful coat of arms, but this has now disappeared, and there are several rumours as to what has become of it.

It is easy for one to imagine when visiting Barrs Court that one has slipped back in time, perhaps to 1483, when Sir John Barr owned it and much of the area for miles around. It was from him that it derived its name. It passed to his wife, who died without leaving any family, and thence into the Newton family, to whom it belonged for many generations.

The Newtons owning Barrs Court, were close relations of Sir Isaac Newton. In 1540 Barrs Court is referred to as "fayre old manor place of stone. The forest of Kyngswodd cummys just on to Barrs Court." In 1652 it was probably in its heyday, Sir John Newton owned several of the nearby Manors, as well as Barrs Court, by intermarriage. This same Sir John, who is buried in nearby Bitton Church, is spoken of thus on his epitaph - "a most loving husband, careful father, faithful friend, pious, just, prudent, charitable, salient, and beloved of all" He was three times burgess of Parliament. He was born in 1626 and died in 1699, being married for fifty-five years. He had four sons and thirteen daughters, several of whose tombs are also in Bitton Church. His wife died aged 85. In Bitton Church there is a stone panel bearing the Fifth Commandmente There are tombs and monuments of.the Newton family at Yatton, East Harptree(from where they originated) and at Bristol Cathedral. In the 1700's it passed into the hands of Sir Michael Newton, who married a certain Margaret, Countess of Coningsby from Herefordshire, and they had one son John, who died when an infant. The story goes that he was killed by a fall downstairs, when he was dropped by his nurse, who saw an ape. There were no other heirs.

It was at the time of the death of this wife in 1746 that the manor house of Barrs Court was destroyed. There are several theories regarding this, but the most common one seems to be that it was decreed in the will that as there were no heirs the house was to be razed to the ground, and so it was. It is said that from the air the outlines of the foundations can be seen, and in a dry period it is possible to make out the outline of the moat.

This description was made in the late 1700's by people remembering Barrs Court "It was an old house, marked by a moat with a high wall all round the park. Niches were filled with collossus leaden statues. The hall was large and lofty, and richly carved. There was gilt all round the fireplace, and a shelf supported by two figures. It was paved with black and white marble squares - there was a musician1s gallery, and a Chapel. It had square stoned mullioned windows, and there was a drawbridge. There was a porter's lodge, and a large and a small gateway". In the British Museum is a parchment twenty-five feet long, listing the tenants of Barrs Court etc.

The reapers received twopence per day. There is a mention of Monday lands, when the tenant worked for the landlord on Monday.  Amongst the tenants was the Abbot of Keynsham.

There is another manuscript belonging to the Newtons of Barrs Court, containing a record of rents paid by the tenants from 1729 to 1740. There are several blank pages - it got into the hands of a Bristol haulier, Thomas Long, who used it as a log book. So Barrs Court has gone on, getting smaller and more dilapidated, but even so, it still has an atmosphere - that of a great house.

HANHAM ABBOTS

This village lies about a mile south of Kingswood with which it is now connected by an unbroken succession of houses. Hanham was first mentioned during Roman times, when the Via Julia which ran from Sea Mills to Bath passed through Hanham. Some Roman coffins have been found in Hanham, and a Roman well was recently discovered in the grounds of Hanham Court. The first direct evidence of the existence of Hanham as a parish comes from its name, a name given by the Saxons. The ending "ham" which occurs in so many names is a Saxon word meaning "home". The Oxford Dictionary of Place Names, in referring to Hanham states that this means either -

Hana - a cock, or

Hana - a personal name, or

Han - a stone.

The existence of such places as Cock Road, Cockstot Hill, makes it likely that Hanham means "the home of the woodcock" a wild fowl which once abounded in the forest.

From very early times Hanham was divided into two parts - East and West Hanham, the latter being called Hanham Abbots.  Domesday Book (1086) gives the description of Hanham as "Lands of Ernulf de Hisding" in the Swineshead Kundred. He was succeeded by his son Robert, and afterwards by Marisco of Saltmarsh, the Hanham family having moved to Cheddar. The Manor was sold in the 1320's to William de la Green, and John Bagworth, who in 1330 gave it to Keynsham Abbey. The property was owned by Keynsham Abbey until it was dissolved.

Hanham Abbots Church was built by the Monks of Keynsham Abbey about the middle of the fifteenth century. It is thought that when a new Font was made for Keynsham Abbey they gave their old Norman Font to the new church at Hanham together with the Norman Piscina. On the Hanham Court side of the church there can still b& seen a narrow doorway which has been walled up. By this door the priest would enter the Lady Chapel Traces of a window in the south aisle show that the church did not originally adjoin the Court as it does now. The present south wall and the tower are part of the original church. The south wall does not appear to have been built by expert builders, nor were squared stones used. The surface is rough, and the wall is much wider at the bottom than at the top.

In the nineteenth century, perhaps during the restoration of the church, the Piscina was nearly lost. It was taken from the church and was discovered some time later in the garden of Bitton Vicarage by the late Mr. Edwin Short. The bell is another interesting feature; it is pre-Reformation, and is a rarity. It bears the inscription in Latin "Saint George pray for us".

In 1539 after Keynsham Abbey was dissolved, Hanham Abbots church entered its second phase of existence. It became a Chapel of Ease in the parish of Bitton. Occasionally it seems there was a curate to help the vicar of Bitton, for in the Bitton Register there appears this entry, "1589 The XII th daie of Januani was buried Rogier Rulen Clr, curate of Oldland and Hannam" However, the vicar of Bitton was soon left single handed, and there was one service each Sunday at Bitton and one 
at either Oldiand or Hanham.

The Bitton Burial Register contains a record that in the year 1600 "Oldiand and Hannams men paid fortie shillings vidz Twentie Shillings for Oldland and Twentie Shillings for Hannam towards the maintenance and reparacon of Bittons

This state of affairs was very short lived. In 1601 the Poor Law was passed, and overseers were appointed for parishes to tax every inhabitant so as to raise money to keep the poor of the parish. Usually the overseers were the church wardens.

There is still in existence a vestry Minute Book that dates back to 1756. There is in it an account of a meeting on December 24. 1782, where the owners and occupiers of estates within the hamlet of Hanham resolved not to pay any rates levied by the church wardens of Bitton for the repair of Bitton Parish Church, and determined to fight it out in the Law Courts if 
necessary.

Hanham Abbots church was in constant need of repair, and the accounts do not show that any money was ever granted for that purpose by the Mother Church. In 1812 the repairs cost £150. and these were only temporary in effect for the old church was rapidly falling into decay. An appeal was therefore first made over a hundred years ago "This ancient Church has been lately surveyed and found to be in a very dilapidated state, and the timbers of the roof so decayed, and the walls so forced out of perpendicular and cracked, that the whole fabric is in considerable danger of falling, and no longer safe for Divine Service" "A rate amounting to about £150 towards the estimated expenses attendant upon the necessary repairs to rebuild part of the walls, add buttresses, and almost wholly new roof, the Church has been promptly voted by Vestry, but on condition only that voluntary contributions be collected to remove the present inconvenient pews, to re-arrange the sittings in order to afford better accommodation and to render the church both lighter and drier by improvements in the windows and drainage" The cost was estimated at £634. 4. 0.

In 1854 the work was completed, and the Church re-opened on the 18th October. Two restorations have taken place since then, the last being in 1946.

In 1844 the third phase in its history began. Hanham was separated from Bitton, and became independent. The old church became the parish church and Christ Church, Hanham, built in 1842 became the Chapel of Ease. However, in 1905 the position was reversed, and Hanham Abbots Church became the Chapel of Ease to Christ Church.

During the early part of the eighteenth century the "Church Goer" as he called himself, visited a number of churches in Bristol and neighbourhood. He wrote this of Hanham Abbots Church "No wall, boundary or mark separates the little ancient, very ancient, church, with its long, low outstretching nave and chancel from the park in which it stands; the old porch projects on a sloping lawn, and the devious paths which lead the parishioners from different directions to its sacred portals pass winding through the wooded acres of a private possessor; while, I may say, the little church itself casts its solemn shadow on the green sward that surrounds it by the sufferance of individual ownership".

Baptisms and Marriages took place at Hanham Abbots but there was never a burial ground there.

Hanham Court; The exact date when the first Manor House at Hanham Abbots was built cannot be determined. It is certain, however, that a house did exist before the Conquest. In 1329 it was conveyed to the Abbey of Keynsham. The Monks no doubt beautified the house and grounds and lived a peaceful life there until the dissolution of the monasteries, when it had to be given up to King Henry VIII. Abbot John, then in residence, was so angry at this that he laid a solemn curse on the house.

In 1638 the Creswick family came to Hanham Court. Sir Henry, merchant of Bristol, was the first. He was Mayor of Bristol 1660, knighted by Charles II in 1623. He had frequent law suits with his neighbour, Sir John Newton of Barrs Court.

It was at Hanham that Cromwell had his headquarters during the Civil Wars, and he is thought to have hidden in an old oak tree in the grounds of Hanham Court.

There was continued emnity between Creswick and Sir John Newton until the Creswick family was utterly ruined. Local gossip has ascribed the misf6rtunes to the "curse of Abbot John".

In 1739 Sir Henry died, and was succeeded by another Henry who died in 1741. He married Mary Dickenson, of Queen Charlton, and there were two sons, Henry and Humphrey. Humphrey got the Manor from Henry, but did not pay the price and went to jail for fourteen years. The last of the family married Sarah Ann, daughter of George Burgess, who kept the White Hart at Keynsham. He went to Canada, and his relatives are still living there.

There are very pleasing surroundings to Hanham Court - the lime trees make a fine avenue on the west side. There were originally four fish ponds -only the largest to the north is now apparent. In a survey of 1431 in Henry II reign, it is stated "there is a manor house built with proper offices and with ponds, moats and an orchard called 'great orchard' with a barton and a dove cote, which is worth by the year to let to farm twenty shillings" One tenant named Richard held eight acres of land for which he rendered annually at Easter, one pair of gloves, or one penny, and at the Feast of St. Michaelmas half a pound cummin, or three halfpence.

There are various styles of architecture in Hanham Court. Building forms two sides of a square with a central tower. The oldest portion is the westwing with tower, and dates back to Elizabethan times. This part here both inside and out, is very handsome. The stately tower, hexagonal square windows, and has hexagonal roof with several weird gargoyles, with grinning faces.

The entrance to the Court is through a gateway on the north side, leading into a courtyard. The great Hall lies on the right, a fine Tudor fireplace can be seen here, and a Tudor doorway lies on the north side of the Hall. The screen is a modern one, erected 1850. The grand staircase on the left of the main entrance was set up in 1630, but is not the original one. The porch door is a very old one, but sound. A small sitting room is on the right and was once a library, and before that the Justice room. There was once an entrance from this room into the Church. Other features of this house, the peephole on the left of the archway gave a view of all who entered, a graceful oriel window on the north side, a small square window facing west which gives light to what is thought to have been the powder room, the wonderful old kitchens with their massive arches and low roofs. The Normal barn on the north side is a fine building with buttressed walls and tower. Few Norman barns remain now.

HANHAM MILLS

Taking a walk across the fields from Longwell Green, down the hill, past Hanham Court, with its little fifteenth century church, one comes to a delightful stretch of river. This is known as Hanham Mills.

Here time has stood still, and the half dozen cottages and the mill house huddled together remain the same as when they were built in 1725.

The mill itself has long since gone, but one can see the arches and mill-race and foundation where the mill once stood. There is an ancient well, where plenty of water was used, and as recently as ten years ago was the only supply. This well is by popular legend of Roman period, and is claimed to have a unique feature, in that in times of drought or plenty its water 
levels never altered.

One hears of times, twenty or thirty years ago of folk filling buckets, pails, jugs and tin baths with water from the well in order to "do teas" for the thirsty visitors strolling along the river bank.

Fishing is a delight here; in addition to plenty of coarse fishing, many tales have been told of trout being caught years ago.

Behind the cottages are the remains of a stone quarry. Barges would be laden from horse drawn carts, the stone taken by river to Bristol, where the foundations of a number of famous roads are all made from stone quarried from Hanham Mills.

FARMING, MARKET GARDENING AND OTHER LOCAL INDUSTRIES

Longwell Green village, one hundred years ago, was very different from today.

The village consisted of a few miners cottages, straggling on either side of the main road between Bristol and Bath. In the late eighteenth century the district was mainly a mining one, but this was discontinued about the middle of the nineteenth century owing to flooding in the pits. From then on it became an agricultural area. Labour was cheap, and the soil productive, wheat and grass being the main crops.

Parkwall Farm, which belonged to the Barrs Court estate, employed a man who demonstrated the first horse drawn mowing machine in all England. The hay crop before that date was cut entirely by scythe and sickle.

Another old farm, Court Farm, is situated at the top of what was once Lime Kiln Lane, now Court Farm Road. This farm has a very ancient tithe barn, which has the figure of Ceres - the goddess of corn - on the centre pinnacle of the roof; the figure is about six feet tall, and is a landmark of the district. Another feature of this farm is that all the gateposts are of stone, and weigh roughly a ton each. Here again the crop was mainly wheat and grass for pasture.

The price of milk in 1905 to 1914 was 6 ½ d per gallon in summer, and 8d. a gallon in winter. Mr Pearsall for many years produced and sold milk through the village. In 1906 wheat sold at fourteen shillings a sack, and one sack held two and a quarter cwts. During the 1914 - 18 war, the pasture land was ploughed, and the wheat crop increased. The old name of this farm was "The Farm on Angels' Hill" but it is not known why it was so called.

Londonderry Farm was mainly concerned with dairy farming, and was known for miles around for its Friesian herd; other farms favoured the Hereford or the Devon strains.

In 1786 a man started a market garden on the Hanham Abbots side of Longwell Green. This was only two acres at the beginning, but by 1917 it had grown to ninety-seven acres. All kinds of vegetables were grown on this market garden, and the grower and his son drove it to Bristol market, a distance of about six miles.

About 1919 two new villas were built for another market gardener, who specialised in chrysanthemums, as the soil was known to be one of the finest in this part of the country for this type of bloom. As his business became more profitable he built more greenhouses, and grew very fine tomatoes, cucumbers, early lettuces and his strawberries were unsurpassable. All this produce was sent to Bristol by local carrier, and he was on his way every morning in his horse drawn cart by six o'clock.

Other notable farms were Stonehill Farm, Hinton Green, and Park Farm, the two former being on the Hanham Hall estate, and owned by the Whittucks family.

As the years went by, these farms were sold, and are still in existence, with the exception of Park Farm, which is now used as a depot for agricultural implements.

From the early days of the scythe and sickle, we progressed to the horse drawn mowing machine, and then to the tractor drawn machine. A story of protest against the progress is told of the first man to demonstrate the horse drawn mowing machine; after the first day he found two or three of his cows dead each morning. Being suspicious, he cut open one of the cows, and found it had eaten an apple which had been cut in half, and the inside filled with poison. Thus the mystery was solved, but the culprit never found. Now of course, the grass for hay is cut and baled in one operation.

With so many horses being used, the village forge was a busy place, and this was right on the side of the road for the convenience of travellers. This forge was working until 1923, when the horses were gradually taken off the road, and superseded by the motor car. Now the forge is no more - it has been taken down to make the pathway wider.

The active days 9f the lime kilns on the district finished in 1900 - perhaps a little quarrying went on later, but business was bad, and the price of lime poor, being eight shillings per ton.

The machinery for working the quarries was sold and the land became derelict by 1920. As the land was sold for building, so houses began to spring up, now in 1981 there is hardly a spare plot to be had.

There was a wheelwright's shop at one end of the village for many years, which developed after the 1914-18 war into a coach builder's shop, and finally made the first motor bus to serve between the village and Kingswood, which was a thriving suburb of Bristol. This bus service was taken over by the Bristol Tramways Company, and helped to link up the outlying villages.

Today the one time wheelwright's shop has grown to a fair sized coach works, and has increased its acreage many times.

The farms still produce much the same as in earlier days, namely milk and grass. No longer however, the clink of milk pails and the scraping of milking stools, as the cows are now milked by machinery, several cows at once.

The splendid grazing pasture land of Park Farm has been completely obliterated by the new housing estate built there.

Although the wages of the agricultural workers increased a hundred per cent in late years, industrial wages tempted the labourers to leave the land, and the employer could not get sufficient labour to work the largest market garden in the village, and the land has now been sold for private building. Many houses now stand on the site where once fields of root crops, cabbages etc. grew.

COMMUNICATIONS

Footpaths; Our village, for some time without a church of its own, naturally developed footpaths to the Parish Churches of Oldland and Hanham Green, and in the main, these are still in existence. The hills surrounded by Longwell Green and Hanham Green have a network of footpaths leading to Hanham Abbots Church, and also to Memorial Road and the Hanham Coalpit, which until 1926 was a source of employment for some of the inhabitants. Others were well worn by the villagers who went to the hills to collect firewood and kindling for their fires. Some twenty-five years back this was quite a common occurrence, and indeed, people can still be seen coming back from the hills with arms full of sticks. The hills and fields surrounding Mount Pleasant Farm held numerous springs. The deed name of one field is  "the well acre" and people also used the footpaths when they went to draw spring water.

Other pathways were worn by pleasure seekers and workers at the factory of Messrs. J.B. Fry & Sons at Somerdale, and these lead over Westfield and the hills at the top of Willsbridge Hill, to the river Avon, and thence along the tow path. This tow path is part of the Bristol to London long distance path scheme approved in 1956 by the Town Planning Committee of Wiltshire, Somerset, Gloucestershire and Bristol.

There is a well worn footpath from Stonehill through a field on Hinton Green Farm, skirting the Green and crossing two fields to Parkwall. Since the coming of the Park Estate this has been even more used.

A footpath opposite the Butcher's Arms runs behind the Longwell Green Coachworks to Kingsfield Lane, and is called "The Crack". Another opposite Watson Road leads to Fry's Hills, and is called the "Drum Way".

Many smaller footpaths are still in existence, though some have been "pushed" from one farmer's land to the adjoining one, and many lead to the vantage point 310 ft. above sea level above Stonehill, from which there are beautiful views of the Mendips, the South Cotswolds, and country between Bristol and Bath.

Roads; The village is largely clustered around the main road, which, until 1953 when it became Bath Road, had no name, and the two roads, Shellards Road and Watson Road, formed a triangle around the original "Green". Bath Road, a main road linking Bath and Bristol, follows the probable course of an old Roman road used by Romans travelling from Bath and Bitton to their port at Sea Mills. This road continues towards Bristol, becoming Stonehill at the right hand junction with Kingsfield Lane. Beyond the Blue Bowl Inn it is joined by Whittucks Road on the left hand side, and this road leads to Hanham Green, where it converges with Memorial Road, Common Road and Abbots Road. Turning left, Abbots Road leads to Hanham Green, where it runs into Court Farm Road, and meets the main road again at the top of Willsbridge Hill. Ferry Road leads from Hanham Green to the Chequers Inn, and Castle Farm Road runs parallel to Common Road, and these last two dwindle into lanes and footpathsto the woods and the tow path. Common Road, Ferry Road, Castle Farm Road, and Court Farm Road, were given their names officially in 1932.

Shellards Road begins at the Bakestone Cafe, which was formerly the Wheatsheaf Inn, and a few hundred yards along is connected with Bath Road by Watson Road, and people living hard by can remember when these two roads were not much more than muddy tracks, and Watson Road had fields on the Stonehill side. About a quarter of a mile further along still it meets California Road, and has become a busy thoroughfare since the building of the Park Estate, which stretches from the right of California Road to Warmley Tower. California Road leads to the Parish Church at Oldland, and to California Pit, and a cart track through the disused pit also leads to the Church. In the days of horse drawn funerals the corteges used this track when bad weather made the hill to the Church dangerous.

Kingsfield Lane is a short cut to Kingswood, used frequently some twenty years back by the Boot and Shoe Trade outworkers.  After some two hundred yards it turns sharply left, passing Hinton Green, our only surviving Common Ground. For many years this lane was called Hinton Lane, and during 1957 there was council controversy as to whether it should be called a road or a lane.

These roads have all, in some form or other, existed in living memory, but many of them were called by different names; in fact, these names are more frequently used by inhabitants over forty years of age even now. Before 1932 California Road was Pit Lane, Watson Road was Pound Lane, and Court Farm Road was Lime Kiln Lane, for their obvious industrial and agricultural connections.

During November 1939 the naming of the main road through Longwell Green was under discussion at the Hanham Abbots Parish Council Meeting. The suggestion was made that the stretch of road from the junction with Hinton Lane to the top of Willsbridge Hill at the junction with Court Farm Road, should be called All Saints Road. Warmley R.D.C. refused permission for duration of the war. When this road became Bath Road in 1953, it is interesting and amusing to note that the help of our then recently retired postman was enlisted, when the roads were named and the houses numbered. No one else knew the names of the people as well as he did, and he knew everyone, despite their designation being as elusive as, say, Mrs. W. Smith, Longwell Green.

The village has one unadopted road, known as Field Lane. This is opposite Oldland Hall, and leads to fields adjoining Mount Pleasant Farm. This was known for some time as Watery Lane, no doubt because of the amount of land drainage from the hills, particularly after a storm.

Over thirty years ago the roadways were much more rough, and often there was a path on one side only, which, prior to 1945, consisted of a layer of earth and stones edged with rough unequal stones. On the left hand side of the main road, going towards Bristol, an intermittent pathway ran along the top of a bank with a ditch between it and the boundary wall and fields. This has gradually been remedied and now there are proper paths both sides of the main. road, and the road has been widened opposite the coach works. Since 1954 Shellards Road has been widened and fitted with footpaths.

A Stonebreaker used to work at the junction of the main road and Stonehill outside of the ground now occupied by 80. Stonehill, the last residence on the hill, breaking stones for repairs of roadways and footpaths.

The Park Estate, built in the 1950's, built on Earlstone Park, has the deed names of fields on which it was built, remembered in many of its road names i.e. "Rushy","Little Dowles", "Longhandstones" The old Wimpey estate built on former market garden land in the early 1960's where the infant/junior school now stands, perpetuates names such as "Pearsall", "Ellacombe" and 11Stanhope" and others of renown connected with the area.

Railways; California Pit, however, did not rely only on the roadways for transporting its coal. Coal was taken by engine from the pit by a railway track which is still discernible at "Catscliffe" to the left of Willsbridge Hill near the Mill, although somewhat overgrown now. This joined the Avon and Gloucester-shire Railway or Tramway before it reached Willsbridge tunnel near the top of Brockham Hill. Before the G.W.R. came into being an Act dated 19th June 1828 was passed during the reign of George IV, authorising the making of a railway or tram road for waggons and other carriages from Rodway Hill in the neighbouring village of Mangotsfield to the river Avon to open up communications from collieriesand quarries to Bath, Bristol and other counties. Owners of adjoining land were given the power to construct "any collateral branches" such as this one from California Pit, and Lords of Manors were empowered to construct wharves. This 41 8" gauge track was not powered by any stationary or mobile steam engines, but operated by gravity, full trucks in running down the track pulled up empty ones in replacement. The rails were secured to huge slabs of stone, unlike the wooden sleepers of today. Horses were sometimes used to pull back empty trucks and td assist where the ground was level. The Fry family of Longwell Green sold some horses to this Railway Company and occasionally accidents happened when horses were struck by force of loaded trucks which sometimes killed them. For security, a man stood at back of trucks to work the brakes.

In 1919 a complaint was registered regarding insufficient notice of trains crossing the road at Willsbridge. They crossed the road by the old turnpike gatehouse occupied now as an off licence house, and named "The Railway Inn" after this enterprise. The railway crossed the road after leaving a huge coal wharf at the top of Brockham Hill, where some coal was stacked for road transport to another wharf near "Jackie White's cottage" on the banks of the Avon. From there the coal continued by barge along the stretch of the Avon - Kennet Waterway. An annual payment was made by the Canal Company to owners of meadow lands for the towing path along which horses towed the barges, by authority of an Act obtainable in 1711 during the reign of Queen Anne, making the river Avon navigable for barges from Bath to Hanham.

The river is still crossed by ferry at Hanham Mills reached by Ferry Road. In 1921 the right of a ferry belonged to premises formerly known as the "Old Chequers Inne" when they belonged to Mr. J. Whiting; they are now known as the "New Chequers Inn". The ownership has changed several times since.

The Change from Horse to Motor Transport. Horse buses ran from Longwell Green to Hanham and through to Bristol until the early 1920's, horses being rested at White Hart Hotel in Old Market Street. They were owned by G. Flook, who lived in the house now called "Windsor" opposite the Butcher's Arms, and Jesse Grey and Mr. William Kendall. These buses carried about twelve or fourteen passengers, and looked like a cross between a baker's van and a gypsy caravan. One of the last of these could be seen for many years in a garden in Kingsfield Lane, where it spent several years in retirement as a play house, then a tool shed before being broken up in the early 1950's.

The family firm of Kendall, of church Road, Hanham, operated a horse drawn carrier service from Bristol, via Longwell Green to Bitton, this service beginning in about 1870 by William Kendall. The main pick up stations on this horsebrake service, carrying both passengers and goods, being the Wheatsheaf, Longwell Green, the Blue Bowl at Stonehill, and the Maypole at Hanham. William Kendall was also a heavy goods haulier of stone, timber, coal and cattle feed. In about 1900 the carrier side of the business was handed over to his son, Ernest Kendall. The horse drawn service was carried on in and around Bristol until 1922, when it was gradually replaced by motor vehicles.

The passenger carrying vehicles or brakes operated until about 1912, when they were forced out of regular service by the Bristol Tramways Co Ltd. This happened when they extended the trams from the Fountain, St. George, to the depot at Hanham. By way of compensation, all who were affected by this were offered good employment by the Tramways, but this was not accepted. The brakes were in use quite a while after this for outings in the Summer and football matches in the Winter, and were very popular. The speed limit for a brake was 15 m.p.h.

The brakes and horses were periodically inspected for cleanliness and fitness at a moment's notice, and a licence was required to drive them.

One of the first firms to run motor trips to Weston-Super-Mare was the Glentworth Garage from premises now occupied by H.C. Hardwick Ltd. The vehicle was a Peerless motor lorry with wooden slatted seats. One of these seats is still in being, and can be seen in the Y.M.C.A. hut. It was a great relief to unload on the promenade at Weston, and the thought of the return journey spoilt the day. Anyway, it was much quicker than horse brakes. This was very soon replaced by a thirty-two seater open char-a-banc with red leather sprung cushions, and a canvas hood. The fare to Weston was two shillings.

Mr. W.J. Bence, a local wheelwright, and sometime undertaker, owned the premises now occupied by the Longwell Green Coachworks, and with the advancing times, gradually changed to a motor body builder. The change to making motor bodies did not stop a certain amount of wheelwrighting being carried on until the early 1930's.

Mr. Bence it was, whose elder son operated the first motor bus. Subsequently and due to the success of the venture, buses were built and operated by his younger son and his daughter, until the Bence Motor Services were established around 1923, with a fleet of buses which gradually grew to some twenty or thirty in number. The bus drivers still wore leggings and breeches, and the buses were very angular compared with their present day successors. The earlier ones had solid tyres, and two or three much sought after seats beside the driver. The signal bell was on the roof above the driver, hand operated by the conductor at the back of the bus, with a lead caught at intervals to the roof of the bus. They were, of course, single deckers, but by coincidence, were green in colour as now, but with outside roof and window frames of white.

There were no bus stops, in fact, these are a comparatively modern invention, appearing for the first time during the Autumn of 1943. Previously anyone wishing to stop a bus simply hailed it from the roadside, wherever they happened to be. The owner and his Company placed an empty petrol tin at the road-side when they wished the bus to stop, and then quite frequently, the conductor ran into the office to receive instructions, to pick up a parcel for delivery along the route, or a prospective passenger who emerged from the buildings and mounted the vehicle. This service linked the surrounding villages of Keynsham, Bitton, Warmley, Oldland, Hanham and Kingswood, and, quite a few people living in Longwell Green today, can remember getting off a bus when it came to such hills as Willsbridge Hill, and lending a helping hand at the back of the bus to help it overcome these obstacles.

Fares could be paid in cash to the conductor or by means of tickets bought previously from the office in book form, with pink penny ones, or white twopenny ones. Some people were known to purchase them on the "pay a bit and owe a bit" system.

Opposition came on the 5th November 1928 when the first via Bitton bus of the Bristol Tramways & Carriage Company ran from Bristol to Bath. People shopped mainly in Bristol, catching an electric tram car from Hanham. These ran fairly frequently, about every ten minutes, from 1912 until the World War blitz of 1942, when the power station was bombed, and buses took their place.

After some time in negotiation, the change-over of Bence Motor Services to Bristol Tramways & Carriage Company became effective on 1st July 1936.

A private hire car was operated during the 1914-18, Great War. The car was a Ford ‘Model T’, and was driven by Mr. W.J. Bence's daughter and Miss Mabel Gough of the Butcher's Arms.

According to a local market gardener, now retired, Albert Gully, son of Thomas Gully who built the Almshouses and the Methodist Schoolroom, was a pioneer of steam wagons in Bristol.

Albert Gully used his steam wagon to haul manure from Bristol railway stables daily to Mr. Fry's market garden. The wagon, it is said, was not altogether successful, and frequently broke down. The unfortunate Albert emigrated to Rhodesia with his family in 1913. Steam wagons were adopted by Messrs. Foden, and were in general use until about 1925 or 1926. They were replaced because of the number of accidents they caused to other transport, due to the excessive smoke they made, impairing the vision of other motorists.

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Local Government under Vestry; The village of Longwell Green was so small one hundred years ago -it was really only a tiny hamlet on the fringe of the ecclesiastical bounds, and there is very little recorded about it. When Parish Councils first came into being it was decided that the old ecclesiastical bounds were rather out of date so new ones were prepared for the purpose of Local Government. Then these new bounds were set for Longwell Green the main road through the village was used as the boundary, and so the village was cut in half. The people on one side of the road lived in Oldland Parish, while the people on the other side lived in the Parish of Hanham Abbots. This form of local government still exists today. For quite a lot of the work of the Councils, such as footpaths, bad roads, bad pavements, overgrown hedges etc. the awkward boundary makes little difference, but as soon as the need arises for new amenities in the village, or a national celebration, then comes the added work of calling a joint Parish Council Meeting, so that the village can be treated as a whole. Yet it is still not just a question of an extra meeting, for when a proposition is put to the Councillors at a joint meeting, they have to decide, not only what is best for Longwell Green, but for both Hanham Green and Oldland. The Parish Councils held their first meetings in January 1895. The first chairman of the Hanham Abbots Parish Council was Mr. R.F. Nurse of Hanham Green. Their main functions were care of footpaths and of stiles, acting as overseers for the Poor Law, and the collecting of rates.  It is interesting to note that by their second meeting Hanham Abbots Parish Council had received a list of applicants applying for allotments, which seems most unusual in such a rural area. The Council hoped to acquire land without resorting to "compulsory orders" - quite a common phrase but one which we associate with much later days. Local interest was roused by the decision of the Rural District Council in 1904 to purchase a second-hand steam roller, and the Parish Councils were wholeheartedly behind them in this matter.

In the early 1900's the roads and pavements were in a hopeless condition, and the Councils were continually writing for certain stretches of roads and pavements to be repaired. The pavements actually were very few - grass verges took their place, and beside the verges ran ditches which often overflowed, or became polluted with sewerage. This was a constant source of worry to the Councils, and their complaints to Gloucester always met with a long delay before anything was done. Even then the same excuses cropped up as do today - "that the pavements cannot be repaired as the Water Company want to lay more pipes". An interesting note of early parish council days:- a complaint was made about the state of the road between Hanham Green and Crewe Green This was to be repaired at a cost not more than £4. A contractor offered twenty loads of stones, including hauling, breaking and spreading, at three shillings and nine pence per load. The Council were not very satisfied with the job, for seven years later they had to spend another £1 to put it right.

Another function of the Council was to keep the village Post Office up to date, and as the population kept growing, so the Councils kept applying for newservices, such as the sale of licences and postal orders, a public telephone, extra postal deliveries, and extra post boxes. These, it is to be noted, did not come with the first or second application. The public telephone kiosk was eventually installed after numerous applications.

After the First World War a Housing Committee was formed. They found, however, that there were sufficient houses. What a different story to the aftermath of the Second World War.

In 1920 the question of a joint fire service with Kingswood arose, but the Parish Councils would not agree, as they thought the possibility of fire very remote. In 1926, however, the Hanham Abbots Parish Council purchased their own fire appliances -a motor bicycle and a pump, a hose, and a shed for storing same.

The year 1929 saw the opening of the County Library at the Y.M.C.A. hut, and 1933 brought the resignation of the first Clerk, Edwin Short, to Hanham Abbot Parish Council. He had only missed one meeting in the whole thirty-eight years of the Council. In recognition of his services, a presentation was made to him by members of the Parish Council.

At quite a number of the Annual General Meetings, only the stated number of Councillors put up for election, and right until the last few elections, councillors were elected by a show of hands, and not by secret ballot.  During the Second World War the Councils helped with the A.R.P. and the fire fighting services, and had quite a big job to organise the reception of ‘evacuees' from Bournville. Before the war began, Longwell Green was regarded as a safe area, and when war was declared, children from Birmingham were evacuated here. Some stayed for quite a while, but many returned home very quickly. Three months before war was declared, on representation from the Councils, a piece of land was purchased by the District Council for a playing field for the children, but the war came along, and it could not be developed.

In 1944 was brought a suggestion to the Councils that a village hall was needed at Longwell Green, but a separate association was formed for this. The latter now arranges the evening classes which were first undertaken by the Hanham Abbots Parish Council nearly fifty years ago. Today, the Council is concerned more with such matters as provision of bus shelters and wayside seats.

Sanitation; In 1925 the parishioners of the Hanham Abbots parish put a request to the Council for the refuse to be collected, but as the Parish Council at that time would have been obliged to stand the cost, it was turned down, and at a further request the Councillors did not think it worth the cost. However, in 1928 Oldland Parish Council, unable to get help from the Rural District Council, instituted their own collection, hoping that in view of the split bounds, they would force the hand of the R.D.C. Fortunately for the Parish Council, their hopes materialised, anda refuse collection, which has since improved in character, was established in 1930. Previously, people used to "lose"  unwanted articles, such as umbrellas, in nearby ditches, on dark nights.

In the matter of drainage, cess pits and buckets were the rule, and in the early 1930's when Mr. Ramsey MacDonald offered a 60o~ grant towards Public Works in contemplation, but not ready for immediate execution, a meeting of all the Parish Councils in the district was convened, to bring pressure to bear on the R.D.C. to promote main drainage in the main centres of population, including our village. This was resisted by the R.D.C. on the grounds of expense and inability to pay, coupled with a report of the M.0.H. that increase of rates due to this scheme would compel people to live in smaller houses, and lead to overcrowding, which, in his opinion would be worse than the absence of a sewer. Unfortunately, the Parish Councils were not unanimous, and the scheme fell through.

The outfall works of neighbouring Kingswood U.D.C. after a while, polluted a stream which ran through the parish of Oldland.  This gave rise to innumerable complaints and representations to the Kingswood U.D.C. and the Ministry of Health. An enquiry was ordered, and as a result,. the outfall works were condemned, and then Kingswood U.D.C. jointed with Warmley R.D.C. in a joint main trunk sewer scheme.

From 1930 onwards, requests were made continually to the R.D.C. for the main trunk sewer to be commenced. Then came the War, and once again the scheme had to be shelved. Soon after the War was over, the parishioners called a special meeting to press for immediate action, and after another year or so of waiting, came the report that an alternative sewage scheme was in hand from Gloucester, and once again we had to wait. By now, because of the great shortage of houses, housing estates were being planned, and at long last the scheme went forward, and in 1954 the village was connected to the main trunk sewer. It is interesting to note that the scheme suggested in the first place would have cost £66,000 with a percentage payable by Government Grant, while in the end the main trunk sewer cost £104,000.

Lighting When the Parish Councils first started, the village was a very rural one, with no street lighting whatsoever, but in 1897 to commemorate Queen Victoria's Jubilee, Mrs. Jefferies, who resided at Harefield Hall, erected three oil lamps in the village, two in the Oldland Parish, and one in the parish of Hanham Abbots. One lamp was placed outside Oldland Hall, another by the Methodist schoolroom, and one by Mr. Fry's yard. These lamps were maintained by Mrs. Jefferies throughout her lifetime, but unfortunately the Parish Councils of that time would not co-operate to maintain this lighting, and so one by one the lights were knocked over, and the village was left in darkness.

In 1928 the R.D.C. applied for powers to provide public lighting, and eventually set up the Warmley Electricity Company, who took their supplies from the power station at Lydney, and thus this area became the first rural district in England to have comprehensive street lighting. The installation of electricity in the Warmley Rural District was completed on March 15th, 1932. A suggestion at a Parish Meeting after the street lighting had been installed was that the lights were on too early, and turned off too late, and that on moonlight nights they need not be lit at all. Post war street lights in the village were turned off at 11 p.m. until 1956 when the time was extended to 12 o'clock midnight.

Water Supply The villagers were dependent upon the wells and the springs already mentioned, until about 1900, when the West Gloucestershire Water Company put in piped water, but many cottages had taps in the garden even in the 1950's.

RELIGIOUS ACTIVITIES

Church of England Prior to 1896 there was no place of worship of this denomination in Longwell Green. The inhabitants either attended Oldland, Hanham or Hanham Abbots Church, these being a couple of miles distant. Regarding Oldland, there is a mention of a Chapel at Oldland in a document in the Worcester Cathedral Archives, dated 1220. The present building was erected, however, in 1830, after the earlier one had been burnt down. An Ecclesiastical District of St. Anne's, Oldland, was formed out of the Parish of Bitton by an order of Council dated 26th June 1861 and from then on Oldland was a separate Parish.

Christchurch was consecrated on October 18th 1842 by Bishop Monk and became a separate Parish from Bitton on March 4th Prior to 1817, the whole of the area mentioned above, and also a great deal of the district surrounding these parishes, were attended to by the Vicar of Bitton, his parish being very large. In 1817 however, a joint curate was appointed to St. Anne's and St. George's. This arrangement lasted until the setting up of the separate parishes. There have been burials in Oldland Churchyard since 1719. The birth and marriage register dates from 1686, some signatures being only indicated by an X when the writer was unable to write his name.

However, back to Longwell Green. In 1896 (?) the number of houses was increasing a little and a church made of corrugated iron was erected, known as the Tin Church. This was used for all services until the erection of the stone building of All Saints, which is here in the village today.

The Tin Church was erected by John Lysaghts of Bristol. The money was raised by donations from local subscribers, but mainly from one, Mrs. E. Jefferies of Harefield Hall. The church was on the 'Green'. The management committee minutes date from 1905. In these we read that an extra £10 was needed to buy land from a certain Mr. Nurse for the New  Church.

The money for the 'New' Church was once again mainly supplied by Mrs. Jefferies. In the church, there is a tablet to this effect - "The Chancel, South Chapel and 3 Bays of this Nave and South Aisle of this church were erected A.D. 1908 at a cost of £4,342 of which sum £3,000 were contributed from the estate of the late James Tolman through the kind interest of Mrs. Jefferies and the late David Jefferies of Harefield Hall of this parish and the goodwill of Alfred Somerville Dodson, trustee 
of the estate".

A grant was also received from the Bishop of Bristol's Church Extension Committee. The plans of the 'New' Church were first seen by the Church Council in June 1907 at a meeting at Mrs. Jefferies house. The original estimate was for £3,400. The builders were Messrs. Long of Bath. The foundation stone was eventually laid on October 12th 1907. There is a photograph of this ceremony in the vestry.

The building was licensed and opened in 1908. It is a daughter church of St. Anne's, Oldland. The church itself is right on the boundary line of

Oldland and Hanham Abbots. Half of the village is actually in Hanham Abbots parish, some of these houses being within 100 yards of the church. A small part of the village is within the parish of Kingswood.

It was rather ironical that though Longwell Green had three places of worship of different denominations, until October 1955, no one could be married in the village, having either to go to St. Anne's Oldland, or one of the chapels there, or to Hanham or to Kingswood. All Saints became licensed for marriages in October 1955.

The stained glass window above the alter was given by Mrs. Jefferies, 'in memory of loved ones gone’ It depicts the Te Deum.  The craftsman came from London and lodged at Mr. Hook's in the village.

The builder of the church lunched at a local house at the time when he was working in the village. The host, a Mr. Gray, insisted that one of the walls of the church would collapse, "I shan't see it but my little maid will", because it was built over a well not properly filled in (one of the wells of the green). His 'little maid' still lives in the village and the wall has subsided, whether for the reason he gave is a debatable point.

In 1912 there was an attempt made to sell the Church Room, the church being, as it was frequently in years past, very low in pocket. However, this attempt was obviously fruitless as the Church Room still stands there today.

In 1913, only 5 years after the church was opened, came the need for the first repairs - to the West Wall at a cost of £38. 2. 5. Since then there has been a continual need for repairs. We only hope that the recent restoration of the church will end the need for fabric repairs for some time.

In 1919 it was felt that the oil lighting was inadequate and more lamps were installed - two of at least 150 candle power at the cost of £15. However, obviously these did not solve the problem, for a year or so later £100 was spent on installing gas lighting.

About the same time, the War Memorial for the First World War was set up - a brass plaque bearing 18 names. Meanwhile the kindly Mrs. Jefferies had died but had left All Saints a legacy, i.e., the interest (to be received annually) from £500 War Loans. There is one condition - that a small sum be paid annually from the Church funds (not from the income from the legacy)to Bristol General Cemetery Company for the upkeep of the Jefferies Vault at Arnos Vale Cemetery.

During the next few years, little in the way of alterations was done to the church. The curate in charge, however, appeared to be a 'dab hand' at woodwork as a new notice board and a memorial table, to place beneath the War Memorial plaque, was made by him.

A Porch, a flagpole, and 11 new pews were other additions, the latter being made and installed
by England & Son of Oldland at a cost of £70. 10. 0.

In 1928 an appeal fun was started to raise money for:

1) Restoration of the Chancel floor and wall.

2) A house for the Priest-in-charge.

3) A stone built hall for Parochial purposes.

The amount needed was suggested to be £2,400. It is interesting to note that only No. 1 has, as yet, been done. All Saints is still using the Tin Church of 1899 as a Church Hall and the present curate is living in a Council house on the nearby 
estate.

In 1929 Longwell Green experimented for a year as an independent conventional district, but obviously this was not considered wise as the final step was never taken.

The visit of the Diocesan Architect in 1931 and his subsequent statement that repairs were urgently needed, was the first of several in a similar vein. The relaying of the Chancel floor and the Sanctuary, also its reconditioning was the first step, the repair of the West Wall another necessary job.

The curate-in-charge was very eager to see the setting up of a children's corner around the font. The money was raised by the Sunday School, partly by a Children's Concert.

A wooden screen for the vestry was made by Kingawood Reformatory School. The money was found by donation, beginning with an anonymous one of £5.

Heating has never been apparently satisfactory. It was overhauled in 1933 but various mentions are made of its inadequacy or incompetency. The bad attendances are frequently blamed to this.

From the early 30's till after the war little seems to have been done in the way of major repairs. In 1931 there was a suggestion of installing electric light but as it had not yet been brought to the village, the matter was shelved.

In 1945, the Architect considered repairs to the Chancel Arch very necessary and this was done, at the same time the vestry wall was replastered at a cost of £210. 9. 8. This was raised by using the Legacy, the Appeal Fund and with some help from St. Anne's and the Diocesan Board of Finance.

By 1946 (15 years later) the question of electricity being installed was raised. In 1949 the electric light and also an electric blower for the organ was eventually installed at an approximate cost of £270.

Since 1946 there had been discussion concerning the War Memorial but this concerned the whole village, as the Chapel and the Memorial Hall and Playing Fields Association were contributing. After much discussion on brass, wood and stone and their various merits, it was decided to scrap the old 9ne and have a new stone one containing the 18 names for 1914-1918 and the six for 1939-1945. This was dedicated in 1952.

By 1951 the heating situation became desperate. There was a choice between a completely new system for £600 or a new boiler but utilising parts of the old system at £300. The latter was decided on.

In July 1952 a bombshell dropped on All Saints. After the visit of the Diocesan Architect, with a builder, they were horrified to hear their church was in such a perilous state and that the estimate to right the matter was £2,000 +. "All Saints definitely meets a need in the life of Longwell Green so it must be saved at all costs".

The first work undertaken was the exterior repairs at an estimated cost of £600. The final bill was, fortunately, considerably less and the necessary money was obtained by a gift day on All Saints Day, mostly.

In 1954 a further £370 was paid for fabric repairs i.e., the redecorating and repairing and colour washing of the chancel and vestry.

In 1956 the Nave was redecorated at approximately £570 by a local builder. The organ was also renovated. The Parish Church kindly paid for that.

Another gift day was organised, bringing in £135. all money for the Restoration Fund, the original Appeal Fund had been raised by individual collecting boxes, extra efforts in bazaars etc. and by generous gifts from the Parish Church. In 1956, a new cupboard was erected at the back of the Church. A new pair of gates had been given anonymously recently, also the boundary wall has been repaired and repointed. The Men3s Club very kindly gave a new hymn board. New Churchwarden staves were given and curtains were hung on the vestry screen. There are new hymn books in the Church, and also a new altar book. "In memory of departed loved ones". This means that in the past five years about £2,400 has been spent on All Saints, almost all this having been raised by the Church itself in the various ways, this in addition to the running costs of the Church.

On the All Saints Patronal Festival 1956, Dr. F.A. Cocin, the Bishop of Bristol, preached at the Church on the completion of the interior decorations.

All Saints has a curate in charge normally, who works with the vicar of St. Anne's, Oldland.

All Saints was without a curate from 1950 until 1956. This meant a very difficult task for the two vicars in office during that period. It also meant a revision of service times, and an influx of lay readers. With the new Council Estate built in the parish, the coming of Mr. Gill, as curate, was very necessary.

Regarding the attendances in Church it is difficult to get an estimate for earlier times, as people's ideas vary so much, but the numbers at the Annual General Meetings give some indication, showing a fall off during war time, and an increase again afterwards

In 1929 there were twelve men, eight boys, and six girls in the choir. There were ten Sunday School teachers, the Superintendent at this time was a school teacher, Miss R. Baber, who has since become a primary school teacher in Bristol. Under her, the Sunday School flourished, and in 1933 there were 130 in the school, a very good number for the size of the village at that time. In 1934 the Sunday School was 140, with sixty-five infants, but in 1937 Miss Baber retired. The Sunday School numbers began to drop, and it is only since the 1950's with the population increase in the area that the numbers have increased.

On Remembrance Sunday afternoon, a united service is held, usually at church, with the Methodists and the Brotherhood. The minister and vicar take it in turns to take the service and give the address. The guides, scouts and cubs attend. It is good to feel we can all unite in worship such as this. It all began from intercessional united prayers, held on Wednesday evenings in war time. The attendance at the Remembrance service is excellent.

In Jan 1982 Methodist and All Saints churches united for shared worship in the future

The Methodist Chapel; Apparently a chapel was the first place of worship to be built in Longwell Green. It seems that a Wesleyan chapel stood on the site of the present Methodist chapel in the early eighteenth century. It is quite possible that it was used by John Wesley in his preaching tours. The area around here is predominantly Nonconformist. There are many stories concerning John Wesley, and George Whitfield and various Baptist preachers, connecting with the surrounding area, though not actually our village. John Wesley, is, of course, the most famous. He is said to have converted a great many of the miners who at that time were very wild and unruly, also some of the more unruly inhabitants of Kingswood Forest which used to border on to Longwell Green. So great was his influence that in the Festival of Britain year an outdoor pulpit and beacon were erected to his memory at Mount Hill about a mile or so from Longwell Green. This was said to be the spot where he first preached out of doors. Every night, winter or summer, the green beacon light can be seen from the village, and its light can be seen as much as twenty miles away.

The chapel was approached, according to the old deed, by a pathway across the common or green. It was bounded, on one side by the Bristol - Bath road, and the other by what is now known as Shellards Road, but was at that time only a cart track. This is now quite a busy road, and is now being widened, meaning that the small yard in front of the chapel will be taken away, and the chapel porch will open directly on to the pavement.

About fifty yards from the site of the old Wesleyan chapel is another building, fronting on to the Bath - Bristol Road. This is now used as a schoolroom for the Chapel. It was built in 1856 by Mr. Thomas Gully for the Free Methodists, and a second chapel was opened only about fifty yards from the Wesleyan Chapel.

The owner of the adjoining property strongly objected to the chapel being built there, and during the whole of the opening ceremony stood in front of his house just at the side of the Free Methodist Chapel, beating a big drum.

After some time the Free Methodists bought up the Wesleyan Chapel property, and it was enlarged to its present size, the old Wesleyan chapel being used as the vestry. It is now known as a Methodist Church, and is used as a place of Worship, the building erected by the Free Methodists being used as a Sunday School. At the back of the Sunday School is a gallery which was used by the choir when the building was used for the Chapel services.

With the idea of building a new Church, the Trustees purchased a piece of land in front of the present Chapel in about 1900. They decided to build a boundary wall, and in the Minutes concerning this it is stated that the Methodist Church agreed to Mr. Fry having the contract for hauling the stones to pay him 3/6d. per horse for two horses and a man. At about the same time the Trustees purchased the present organ which was being removed from St. Phillips and St. Jacobs Church in Bristol. It cost £165 and this was a big drain on the members of the Chapel and meant that concerts, bazaars etc. were the order of the day. At this time the collections only averaged about 6/-d. per week, and this did not pay for the ordinary expenses of running the Church. In order to help, the Sunday School scholars forfeited their prizes for several years, also the cleaning was done by voluntary labour.

When the new organ was erected in the Chapel, it stood in the corner of the main building, and made it rather inconvenient for the choir and pulpit. It was decided to put the organ in an organ chamber and re-arrange the pulpit and choir stalls. During these alterations, the original doorway to the old Wesleyan chapel was found in the back wall.

Around the walls of the Sunday School are twelve pictures painted by Mr. Watkinson, a schoolmaster of Hanham Green. They depict various incidents in the Life of Christ. These he very kindly presented to the Sunday School in the latter part of the Second World War.

It seems that the membership has been gradually dropping over the past years, and the number of members is now about fifty. As yet the building of the private estate and the Council Estate does not seem to have greatly affected the adult membership. It has, however, increased the number of the Sunday School scholars.

SOCIAL ACTIVITIES

The social activities of the village can be divided into three periods, viz

1. Prior to First World War

2. End of First War to beginning of Second War

3. End of Second World War to present day

During the first period the social activities were centred round the Church, the Chapel, and the local Inn, in those days "The Wheatsheaf".

In 1896, a tin church was put up in the village, and at the rear of this, a hut, bought and given by Mr. Fry, was erected. It was in this hut that dances, dancing classes, socials, whist drives, concerts etc. were held.

The artists at the last named functions consisted on numerous occasions of local talent and one of the most popular features was "Mrs. Jarley's Waxworks" in which tableaux were staged, the models being the local residents.

The whist drives during the same period were well attended, and the prizes were always given by a very generous local resident - Mrs. Jefferies - who took a great interest in the life of the village.

Of the outdoor activities, there was a football team which was run under the auspices of the Chapel, and they played in a field at the top of Gully's Lime Quarry, in what was then called Lime Kiln Lane, now known as Court Farm Road. This went on for some years, until extensions to the quarry became necessary, and this stopped further play there, as the field was not then large enough.

After the First World War it was felt that the need had again arisen for a football team, and this was organised by the landlord of "The Wheatsheaf" and the playing field was at the rear of the Inn. Also the men who had returned from the Services wanted some kind of a club, so the Y.M.C.A. were approached with a view to starting a branch in the village. They had a number of surplus huts, and one standing at Patchway was offered to the village, provided it was taken down and re-erected in the village. This job was done by Messrs. James Gully. & Sons, and by permission of the Chapel Trustees , was erected on land belonging to them. This hut was used until 1979 when it was demolished to make way for a car park for the local store 'Pomeroys'.

After the Second World War it was felt that a Hall in memory of those who had fallen, should be erected, and in the Autumn of 1945 an exploratory committee was set up, resulting in the formation of the Longwell Green War Memorial & Playing Fields Association in March 1946. Land was purchased in Shellards Road, various committees were set up, such as Planning, Membership, Building etc. Various organisations are affiliated to the Association, such bodies as the British Legion, Parish Councils, Church and Chapel, etc. The membership now totals about four hundred, and various functions are held to raise funds towards the completion of the Hall. The Hall was started to be built in August 1955 with voluntary l8bour, and in August 1956 a work camp, organised by the Society of Friends was formed. The members of the camp helped with the building, and camped in the village, using tents in the field, and the various halls to sleep in. They represented about eleven nationalities, and made very good progress with the work. This also brought a little life to our village, providing fun for the younger members of our society, and giving the older ones opportunities f6r entertaining the visitors. A dance and a barbecue were held, and it was a very happy and successful month for all concerned.

In the same month of August 1956, the Foundation Stone was laid on the 18th, by Alderman Henry Crook; a short service was held, and various organisations laid bricks. At the present time this Memorial Hall forms the centre of village life and houses the Play Group, Clinic and various evening classes.

OFFICIAL CELEBRATIONS

Coronation of Edward VII - 1902 Trees were planted down the main road, and an oak tree was planted outside the Church, but while all the other trees grew and flourished, and still remain, the oak tree died.

Jubilee - 1935 Twelve hundred people of both parishes were entertained to tea, and a fete held in a field in the parish of Oldland. A tea and concert were arranged for the old folk, and for those who were incapicated, a small gift was provided.

Coronation of George VI - 1937 Tea for children and old folk; gifts of tea and tobacco for old folk; Coronation mugs and sweets for the children, and a playing field of six and a half acres was dedicated in Oldland Parish.

Festival of Britain - 1951 Wayside seats were dedicated in the Parish of Oldland by Anthony Crosland M.P. assisted by the Rev. E.H. Patey, the Vicar of St. Anne's, Oldland, with All Saints, Longwell Green.

Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II - 1953 Two oak trees were planted by school children on the new Bristol "overspill" estate at Parkwall, now springing up adjacent to the village in the Parish of Oldland. Wayside seats were dedicated in the Hanham Abbots Parish, one at the top of Willsbridge Hill.

THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND WAIFS AND STRAYS HOME

In Longwell Green stands a large stylish house in its own grounds. It is known as Oldland Hall, and attracts at times in the year owing to the beautiful colours of the creeper covering the house.

This house was at one time the Bristol Diocesan Home for Waifs & Strays, and was given for this purpose by Admiral Close of Clifton. It accommodated thirty girls up to the age of sixteen years. They were under the care of Miss Humphries who was matron there for over twenty years, and she was assisted by Sister Kate and Sister Em, and it is from the latter that we have been able to obtain much of our information concerning the daily life of the girls. She is now a widow, having been married to a local farmer, Mr. Nurse, and she still lives in the village. Sister Em. looked after the kitchen and catering, while Sister Kate was in charge of the laundry. Together with the matron, they ran the home with no outside help, except in the garden, for over twenty years. When a girl reached the age of eight, she had her allotted daily and weekly tasks, such as cleaning the dormitories before breakfast, cleaning the boots, scrubbing the fire buckets, and chopping wood etc. When the girls left school at the age of 14, they were trained in every sort of domestic work. They spent six or eight months in each department. Four girls would work in the laundry, one be kitchen maid, another dining room maid, another house parlour maid, two girls would be maids to the assistant matrons and the head girl would be matron's maid. Thus, when they left at the age of sixteen, they were ready to take up domestic work in positions found for them. Each girl had her own savings account at the Post Office at Oldland, and when she left the Home it was given to her in full. All clothing, except hats and boots, was made in the Home by members of staff. The underclothes were made of calico - there were navy winter coats, and white embroidered summer dresses, to mention only a little of the needlework done by the staff. All the materials were bought from Colmers of Bath. In summer the girls wore white straw hats with pale blue bands.

A typical day in the life of the Home was -

6 30 Rise and wash.

6.45 Prayers in the dormitories.

7.0 Making of bed and cleaning of dormitories

7.45 Breakfast, followed by prayers in the chapel

8.30 Set off for school at Oldland Church of England School, a mile and a half away. Walk home for the mid-day meal, and back to school again.

4.30 Home from school, and a thorough wash.

5.00 Tea. The younger children played until bath time at six o'clock, while the older ones had leisure time until 6.30, when prayers were held in the Chapel.

There was a play room where their leisure time was spent, and here the older girls would sit knitting their own stockings. The ones who had left school were responsible for a younger girl and had to knit her stockings, and see that her hair ribbons were in order. The girls were not allowed outside Oldland Hall alone, although sometimes they were taken to social events in the village. when they were twelve years old, they were allowed to join the Guild of St. Mary at All Saints church. They had their own Company of Girl Guides.

Each year there was an all day outing to Burnham on Sea, and this was arranged by the Committee, and the girls were given a shilling each to spend, a very generous amount for those days. In the month of August, the girls would exchange "Homes" with Waifs & Strays from Seaview, Isle of Wight, and occasionally other Homes.

Of course, a lot of their pleasures were home made, and one can imagine their excitement when Mr. Bert Bence ran his first motor bus through the village.

Perhaps the girls greatest excitement was their own money raising efforts - "Pound Day" was held in the grounds of Oldland Hall each summer, the proceeds being for the upkeep of the Home. Admission was given in return for one pound of any commodity; many people brought at least six pounds, but one pound of sugar or soda was sufficient to gain an entrance. All must have enjoyed themselves thoroughly, for in one account in a local newspaper, it speaks of a dancing display by pupils of Miss Maddocks of Bristol, an orchestra hired to play for dancing in the evening, many side shows, competitions and stalls, and bowling for children.

All the girls attended All Saints Church on a Sunday, some of the girls being in the choir. The matron and her charges laundered the clergy's vestments, and the Communion linen for a nominal sum, which helped to give the girls extra treats on their outings. The vicar of Oldland was chaplain of the Home. The girls had their own Chapel, and the curate of All Saints conducted a service in the Chapel every Friday evening.

Every month the doctor and dentist visited, and the Home had its own dentist's chair. It had also its own laundry converted from the stables with money from Mrs. Jefferies who gave so much to All Saints. The laundry had hot rollers, and a crook for heating the irons. There were coal houses and a wood house.

A member of the Committee came each month to inspect the Home and to look at the linens. One girl won a scholarship to Kingswood Grammar School. There was an Old Girls Association.

The director of the Home, Mr. W. Vaughan, has recently been honoured for his life long service with the Church of England Children's Society.

The Home was closed on August 26th, 1930.

EDUCATION

The earliest recollection of a school in the village of Longwell Green is that of a dame's school, kept by a Mrs. Tutton about 1886. Eight or nine pupils attended, at a fee of two pence a week. The children sat on forms, and were provided with a few books. The house is still in existence - one of the oldest in the village - situated at the top of Watsons Road, on the 
Green

Another school existed, dating as far back as 1865. This too was a private house, now called the "Quorns" at Willsbridge, run by the Misses Stibbs. This establishment was obviously for children whose parents could afford to send them to a more select school, sons and daughters of farmers, tradespeople etc., some coming as borders from as far afield as Badminton. The late Rt. Rev. Armitage Robinson, D.D. Dean of Westminster, later Dean of Wells Cathedral, received his early education here.   His father was at that time vicar of Keynsham. Children of the family Nurse also attended from Hanham Green in the 1880's By this time the Misses Fraser had succeeded the Misses Stibbs. Miss. F.E. Nurse, writing in her diary says "It was a long walk to the Misses Frasers School, and I went with my friend Annie". However, many Longwell Green children walked to Hanham each day, a distance of a mile, where they had the choice of attendance at the Church of England School on Jefferies Hill (opened in 1841) or at Samuel White's (Wesleyan) School, built about 1860. Many years later Gloucester Education Committee opened a new school at Cadbury Heath, also a mile from the village, the first headmaster being Mr. Henry Brain,