David C. Bown

Think of Burnham-on-Sea, and of course you immediately picture sun, sand and sea, and perhaps a donkey ride. This has been the case ever since Victorian times when day trippers and holidaymakers made their way to this pretty Somerset seaside resort. We all love a day at the beach, but we don't often think about how the seaside might have changed over the years. Burnham-on-Sea has gone through many changes over the last hundred years or so. Highbridge has also seen many changes during that time. In the early days it was what we would now call a transport hub. It had a main line railway, a branch line railway, a busy wharf, a bustling weekly market, and of course the main A38 Bristol road running through the town. Today just the main road and main line railway remain, the branch line into Burnham has gone, the market is no more, and the wharf was infilled many years ago.

Ask local people about Bridgwater's history, and it is the bridge and the river that many will say is central to the town. Of course there are many more aspects of the town's history that can be uncovered, and Bridgwater & Around Through Time is mainly concerned with what has changed during the last century. Our grandparents would likely have recognised the early pictures instantly, whereas we are most familiar with their modern counterparts. Of course some views are almost impossible to recreate today, like a view of the docks from the Mump, or the southernmost part of Blake Gardens, now crossed by the Broadway road. In other areas the view has hardly changed at all. Included in this book are views from some of the many nearby villages. From Aller to Westonzoyland, Bawdrip to Langport, Bridgwater and its villages have interesting histories and long-forgotten views to be remembered.