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Weston super Mare
 'Weston'
is Anglo-Saxon for the 'west tun' or 'settlement'. The 'super Mare'
meaning 'on sea' was first recorded in medieval times (in medieval latin)
by a church clerk. It is thought to have been added because of the other
'Westons' in the area.
Ruins can be seen today of a 2,000 year old ancient stronghold overlooking
Weston super Mare called Worlebury Hillfort. During excavations in the
mid 1800's there was a discovery of massive pits cut into the hill,
thought to have been used initially as grain storage, later used as
burial pits. For the inhabitants at that time it was an easy location
to defend due to it being edged by sea and marsh. Evidence of the ancient
settlers in Weston super Mare comes from flint weapons and tools discovered
dating back to the Neolithic period. Weston super Mare in early Mediaeval
times was a tiny village with driftwood huts and a small church. The
church remained for approximately 700 years until 1824 when a new church
was built. From 1600 Weston had its own manor until the title "Lord
of the Manor" was sold in the 70s. In the late 1700's a local Reverend
built a seaside cottage on the dunes and part of one of them still remains
today.
During the 1800's many fashionable crescents, villas and terraces were
built and Weston became a popular Victorian town. When King George the
third drank sea water for it's health benefits thus making seaside resorts
extremely popular and fashionable. Brunel's Bristol & Exeter Railway
reached Weston and Birnbeck Pier was completed (late 1800s) in and the
town grew, with villas, estates and boulevards. There were drives and
walks through Weston Woods and from the top visitors could enjoy panoramic
views as far as Exmoor and Wales. One of the most important developments
for Weston super Mare was the seafront improvement of the sea walls
and two mile promenade.
With other visitor facilities added such as the Grand Pier, Knightstone
Theatre and Knightstone Baths Weston became a Mecca for thousands of
visitors. As the number of visitors increased new shops and hotels opened.
Many private boarding schools were set up, it was very fashionable for
the wealthy to send their children because of the healthy climate.
In the First World War 80 per cent of the trees in Weston Woods were
felled for military use. The 1920s and 1930s saw a Marine Lake built
providing a safe shallow beach where the tide was always in. Other additions
to the town included a magnificent open air pool - the best in Britain
at the time - boasting a truly dramatic art deco diving stage, the Winter
Gardens Pavilion, a seafront coach station, a Odeon Cinema, Grammar
Schools, a municipal aerodrome and the Rozel bandstand. The bandstand
accommodated 600 people under shelter, with room for 1,200 more in the
open air. The Grand Pier was rebuilt due to a fire and its Pavilion
housed a fine Edwardian 200-seat theatre, where a wide range of stars
appeared such as Dame Clara Butt, George Robey, Vesta Tilley and Sir
Ralph Richardson. In the 1930's "Ever Forward" was adopted
as the town's motto.
During the Second World War evacuees arrived here from large cities
around England and the first bombs fell on Weston in June 1940. During
the worst blitzes in 1941 and 1942 large areas were destroyed particularly
in the Boulevard, High Street and Grove Park. Weston super Mare also
hosted a large numbers of American troops in preparations for the Normandy
Landings. In the 1950s package holidays abroad hit the tourist trade
in Weston-hard but you can see from photos from that era, the place
is still packed to the rafters. Along the entire beach lights were installed
in 1950 as part of a new seafront illumination scheme. Through the 60's
and 70's it was still a popular holiday seaside resort for British holiday
makers. The Rozel bandstand had to be demolished after severe storm
damage in 1981. The fine art-deco-style diving stage was demolished
in 1982 when the open air swimming pool was converted to the Tropicana
Pleasure Beach. In 1989 the Winter Gardens closed for multi-million
pound development, complete renovation retaining the classic 1920's
grandeur and extension into the new Town Square Gardens. The Grand Pier
is to be rebuilt again due to the more recent fire on 28th July 2008.
Interesting facts about Weston super Mare:
Population: Approx 71,000
Famous people: Lord Jeffrey Archer, Roald Dahl, John Cleese , Jill Dando,
Rupert Graves and Ritchie Blackmore
Second highest tidal range in the world
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