White Swan Fields

These stood behind the current New Theatre Royal and the White Swan Tavern where there were extensive ponds frequented by swans. They were perhaps cared for by the nearby monks of Magdalen Chapel. The ponds provided fresh water for the town of Portsmouth but have now vanished beneath modern buildings although flooding of basements is a frequent occurance in this area.

A dismal spot

"A dismal spot where foot-pads and cut-throats roamed at night, and a murderer hung in chains on the edge of the shingle. Near Lumps Fort was a great morass. Windmills stood in the flat landscape, and the jaw bones of a stranded whale served as a gate to one of the fields."

W L Wyllie R.A. describing Southsea Common

Salubrity of Southsea

‘Sunny Southsea – so called because of the illustrious office of the day is very much in evidence here. Southsea has made rapid advances in public favour as a watering place. In 1899 when the British Medical Association held its annual meeting in Portsmouth, emphatic testimony was borne by distinguished members of the profession to the salubrity of Southsea. Under the genial stimulus of its breezes from the sea, visitors speedily recover their pristine health and are then able to appreciate its diversified features of interest.’

Extract from the British Medical Conference handbook, 1904

Beating the Boys

It was formerly the custom, at certain intervals of time, to perambulate the bounds of each parish, a ceremony familiarity styled, 'beating the bounds'. Litanies and prayers were said for the increase of corn and fruit; tokens of boundaries were set up or restored, and the old curse was promounced against him who should remove his neighbour's landmark. The old custom of beating the boys at each boundary mark was with the object of impressng the parochial limits on their youthful minds. Gifts were sometimes subtituted for the whippings. The bounds of Portsmouth were beaten as late as 1813, and Portsea, 1824.

Taken from Portsmouth in the Past, Gates, 1926

HMS Warrior

The ship that really did rule the waves is 150 years old today.

Find more on the link: http://www.hmswarrior.org/history

Pevsner's view

Portsmouth in 1965 is, as a whole, muddled and visually squalid; it still has the chance to make itself something very different, and much better, before the end of the C20.

Taken from 'The Buildings of England' by Pevsner and Lloyd, 1967

Portsmouth Airport

‘I am glad that Portsmouth has shown her wisdom in providing a municipal airport now and I am confident that her foresight will be fully justified by the event’

The Marques of Londonderry, Secretary of State for Air, writing on the opening of Portsmouth Airport, July 2 1932. Portsmouth was the eighth municipal airport in the British Isles.

Fratton Road

Fratton Road follows one of the ancient trackways off Portsea Island. By the late 1920s it was too narrow, greatly congested and dangerous. Action was needed so in 1929 it was upgraded to a 50ft widethorough fare by setting back all the houses and shops on the east side - a major civic initiative. The new wide road was opened with great pomp and ceremony on July 22.

The Camperdown

On 22 June 1893 HMS Victoria and HMS Camperdown catastrophically collided in good weather and sank off the coast of Africa resulting in the loss of 360 officers and men. Sir George Tyron, the Admiral of the Fleet, who had given the bizarre order that caused the accident, uttered the last words, ‘It is entirely my fault, entirely my fault’. It was.

The whole country subscribed to a fund for the relief of the resultant widows and orphans, most of whom belonged to Portsmouth.

The first retractable undercarriage

A disaster at Portsmouth Airport was averted in April 1933 when the first commercial aircraft with a retractable undercarriage to be produced in England, a six seater monoplane called the Courier, was on a test flight. Flt Lt GH Stainforth showed exceptional skill when he suffered a complete engine failure at 300ft whilst taking off into an easterly wind towards the mud flats of Langstone Harbour. Stainforth managed to turn the aircraft, lower the undercarriage and land back safely down wind. The failure was due to a defect in the fuel system.

Portsmouth Records Office I169

Cascades

This shopping arcade in Portsmouth was opened in September 1989 and cemented Commercial Road as the main shopping area in the City. Its design followed a national trend and is unremarkable although interesting facts from the City’s past are used in the interior decoration.
http://www.cascades-shopping.co.uk/about

Arundel Street

This area of Portsmouth was once owned by the Earls of Arundel giving name ro Arundel Street. The basin of the Portsmouth - Arundel canal also stood on this site.

Milton and Bransbury parks

The land for Milton Park was purchased in 1911 when the death of the local farmer and recluse James Goldsmith brought a large wooded area on to the market. Anxious to provide open spaces within the increasingly developed a Portsea Island, the Town Council acquired the property for £28,840 as well as some additional land in Bransbury Road. Both areas were converted into parks, which is how they remain today.

A cutting in Portsdown Hill

The first cutting through Portsdown Hill was made in about 1800 to ease the route out of Portsmouth to the north and on to London. It is still in evidence today by the George Inn. The debris was taken down the hill and placed in Cosham High Street to lessen the gradient of the road through this section. In the short term this resulted in the road being much higher than the front doors of the adjacent small farm cottages.

As Cosham developed with an increase in through traffic, these dwellings gradually vanished and no trace remains today.

The Mary Rose

Said to have been named after Mary Tudor, Henry VIII’s youngest sister, the first Mary Rose is one of the nine warships to bear the name. One of the earliest ships to carry heavy guns, she sunk in 1545 during an engagement with a French invasion fleet, in full view of the King as he looked on from Southsea Castle.

Rediscovered in 1971, her remains were eventually recovered in 1982 after one of the most complex and expensive maritime archaeology salvage projects ever undertaken. The remarkable find is considered something of a Tudor time capsule, with 19,000 artefacts providing a unique insight into naval life and technology in the 16th century.

Taken from Ships Monthly April 2011 which has a 15 page special on Portsmouth: http://www.shipsmonthly.com/

A Violent Storm

In 1820 a violent storm lifted the East Indiaman, Borneo, from her moorings at Spithead and left her stranded on Southsea Common.

The Spinnaker Tower

The Spinnaker Tower is the tallest publicly accessible building in the UK.
To find out more about the history of the Tower: http://www.spinnakertower.co.uk/About_The_Tower/History_Of_The_Tower/index.php

George Meredith

The famed novelist, George Meredith, was born in High Street, Portsmouth on 12 February 1858. The house was one of many destroyed in the Blitz.

Hilsea Lido

In the 1930s there was increased interest in leisure pursuits. In Portsmouth the Hilsea Lido was opened by the Mayor in July 1935 and flourished. It was a sizable undertaking having a café, paddling pool, sunbathing deck, a diving board, chutes and facilities for 1,000. Built by the council and used as an unemployment reduction scheme, it cost £36,000 and took seven months to build. Its striking architecture is typical of the era.

After World War II, the Lido reopened in 1947 but never regained its original popularity. After many problems, it is now supported by a lively community group. To find out more: http://www.hilsea-lido.org.uk/

Dickens’ week

In 1929 Portsmouth school teachers organised an ambitious event to celebrate the author Charles Dickens and his links with the city. A parade dressed as Dicken’s characters went from the Guildhall to his birthplace in Commercial Road, pageants and concerts were held and the culmination was a ball in the Guildhall. The event was a resounding success.

2012 will be the 200th anniversary of Dickens birth. To celebrate, Portsmouth City Council has a large community archive project which aims to reach out to everyone in the city celebrating both archives and Dickens. The culmination will be a exhibition at the City Museum.

http://www.charlesdickensbirthplace.co.uk/charles-dickens-birthplace/ATaleofOneCity.htm