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The Lost Avenue

By 5 April 2024May 3rd, 2024No Comments

The Bridge at Soulton goes all the way back…

Although the current bridge was overseen by Thomas Telford, it replaced an earlier (narrower) bridge. We do not currently know how old the structure Telford replaced was, but there was certainly a bridge during the Middle Ages when Soulton Castle was built to protect it. The Welsh Marches were a volatile place, and the history of Wem is full of repeated attacks, skirmishes and even burnings of the town.

A black and white victorian image of the lost Easter Avenue at Soulton Hall. It is a replanting so many of the ress are young, a couple of old ones remain

The Lost Avenue for Soulton Hall: part of the Sir Rowland Hill concept it adressed the rising Easter sun, began at a Well of Catharsis and came to and end at a gate into the Soulton presinct closed up in the 1780s.

In the Tudor period the construction of a new corps de logis (living block) at the top of the hill brought the sprawling ancient manor complex into view from this water crossing, and that building (the present-day Hall) faces the bridge. The Hall dates from the acquisition of the manor by the Hill family, and the two projecting towers, along with the lantern on top of the original pyramid roof, formed the castle on the Hill coat of arms.

Framing this view was an avenue of trees, which survived into living memory. It finally succumbed to Dutch Elm Disease, but appears in documents as well as archaeology.
Dig Ventures has explored and recorded the site of the avenue, establishing its Tudor dating, and the way the ground was prepared. With this knowledge saved, we can now plan a restoration of the avenue as a future project!
a labeled image of the Soulton landscape during exchvation by Dig Ventures

a labeled image of the Soulton landscape during exchvation by Dig Ventures