In the
Via Gellia, about 1929 |
Matlock Bath : Twentieth Century Photographs, Postcards, Engravings & Etchings |
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A pretty view of part of the Via Gellia, taken about 1929.
The writer J.B. Firth, however, was not easy to please and
he expressed some disappointment at "this
much praised highway. Lovely it undoubtedly is, for it
lies in a deep ravine, whose limestone sides rise precipitously
to a great height and are clad with trees to the very top.
Such a road cannot fail to please and the dense mass of
varying greens gives perpetual delight to the eye. But
when that is said one has said all. The ravine keeps an
almost constant width and never discloses its full delights.
... The pedestrian is always being tantalised with the
hope that at the next turn of the road there will be a
superb prospect, but the prospect never comes"[1].
In 1929 all was not well in the Via Gellia and a complaint
was made at a meeting of Bonsall Urban District Council regarding
the state of some of the walls and fences. They were in such
a bad state that pedestrians were liable to fall into the
brook at the roadside. The Council decided to draw the
attention of the owners of the nearby mill, E. H. Bailey
Ltd., to the matter[2]. |
"Matlock. In the Via Gellia" Published by Judges' Ltd.
Postcard Picture by Judges' Ltd., Hastings, England No.11963.
Unposted
In the collection of provided by and © Pauline Jordan.
Information researched, written by and © Ann Andrews.
Intended for personal use only.
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References:
[1] Firth, J.B. (1908) "Highways
and Byways in Derbyshire" MacMillan & Co., London
[2] "Derby Daily Telegraph",
14 August 1929.
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