The Dramway

Bus ServicesBus Services serving the DramwayBus Stops nearthe DramwayServiceLondonderry Farm 318, 532, 533, 535, 684Willsbridge, Keynsham Road 318, 532, 533, 535, 684Willsbridge, Queen’s Head 318, 332, 535, 632Cherry Garden Lane 533Oldland, Cherry Tree 41, 44A, 45*, X67, 319, 532,533, 545Oldland High Street 41, 42, X67, 532, 533, 544North Common, Victoria Road 41, 42, X67, 532, 533, 544Warmley, Station Road 43, 43A, 319, 634, 635Siston Common 7, 686Mangotsfield, Carsons Road 686Shortwood, Chapel 689Emersons Green, Sainsbury’s 48, 49, 462, 517, 518, 686Henfield (no fixed stop) 686Ram Hill (no fixed stop) 686Coalpit Heath, Church X30, X40, X42, 342, 686* certain journeysThe Dramway Path can be accessed by a number ofbus services. Bus stops are shown on the maps in thisbooklet where possible.For timetable informationabout bus service contactTraveline on0870 6082606 or go towww.traveline.org.ukReproduced from the Ordnance Survey mapping with the permission of the Controller of Her Majesty’s Office Crown Copyright.Unauthorised reproduction infringes Crown copyright and may lead to prosecution or civil proceedings. © Crown Copyright. All rights reserved. South Gloucestershire Council LA100023410/2006‘The Ordnance Survey mapping within this publication is provided by South Gloucestershire Council under licence from the Ordnance Survey in order to fulfil its public function to publicise local public services.Persons viewing this mapping should contact Ordnance Survey Copyright for advice where they wish to licence Ordnance Survey mapping for their own use.’The Dramway25

IntroductionThe Dramway Path is a 15km/ 9 mile linearwalk that follows sections of the route of anineteenth century tramway which carriedcoal from Coalpit Heath in the Bristolcoalfield down to the RiverAvon.This booklet describessome of the fascinatingremains of the Dramwayand the features foundalongside the linear route ofthe Dramway Path. There arealso excellent opportunities tocreate your own attractive circular walks, usingexisting footpaths to connect sections of theDramway Path with villages, towns and otherplaces of interest that are within easy walkingdistance.The Avon Wildlife Trust has developed a series ofshort, circular walks around their visitor centre atWillsbridge Mill, and there are pleasantcountryside footpaths that link the Dramway Pathwith the village of Pucklechurch. The mainfootpaths that join or cross the Dramway Path arealso marked on the maps.Willsbridge MillThe Dramway 1

Artist: Pauline MonkcomThe DramwayWhat kind of walking to expectThis is comfortable walking, along the gentlyrolling hills that slope down to the River Avon.There are no steep inclines and much of the routeis along the original route of the Dramway, ahorse-drawn railway that carried coal from CoalpitHeath to the River Avon. Sections of the Dramwayshare the route of the Bristol and Bath RailwayPath, and, between Warmley and Willsbridge Mill,the two routes run close to each other, offeringopportunities to return along a different route.The Bristol and Bath Railway Path has an allweathersurface and is ideal for cycling withyoung children as it is all off-road, on flat or verygently sloping ground.Public transport, inns and cafésThe middle section of the Dramway Path is wellserved by public transport. A number of busservices operate in the Kingswood and Warmleyarea and there are regular services to CoalpitHeath and the Keynsham Road near WillsbridgeMill. Furtherdetails of publictransport servicesare given on theinside back cover.There are variousinns and cafésalong the routeand these, andthe bus stops, areall marked on theCeramic at Carson’s Road Tunnel route maps.Walking to HealthWalking to Health in South Gloucestershire is partof a national scheme supported by the BritishHeart Foundation and the Government’sCountryside Agency. The project aims to get morepeople walking in their own communities,encourages people to take exercise, andparticularly targets those who take little exerciseor live in areas of poor health.What’s happening locally?The Walking to Health project is open to people ofall ages across South Gloucestershire, with threeprogrammes produced quarterly covering:- Kings Chase(includes Kingswood, Staple Hill and Downend)- Filton, Patchway & the Stokes(includes Thornbury)- Yate, Chipping Sodbury & DodingtonThere is a regular programme of weekly walksacross South Gloucestershire, as well as walks onevenings (summer only), Saturdays and rural walks(held monthly). Walks in the Kings Chaseprogramme often include sections of the Dramwaypath. All walks are led by trained walk leaders,and we are always looking for new walkers andpeople to help lead walks.For more information contact theLeisure & Libraries Helpdesk on01454 868006 oremail foodandhealth@southglos.gov.uk.Further information can also befound on the Council’s websitewww.southglos.gov.ukunder W in the A-Z.2 The Dramway 3

The DramwayThe Dramway is the local name for the Avon andGloucestershire Railway that carried coal from theCoalpit Heath collieries near Yate, down to theRiver Avon in the south. It was a horse-drawnrailway and got its name from the ‘drams’ or cartsthat carried the coal. Construction work started in1829, with sections opening between 1830 and1834, and the line was in use until around 1866.The route of the Dramway was carefullyconstructed to make maximum use of the slope ofthe land down to the River Avon, and there areseveral cuttings and embankments along theroute, to give an even, gentle gradient. Coal wasloaded into carts and these rolled slowly down theslope, led by horses and controlled by a brakemanor ‘guide’. Horses pulled the empty carts back upthe track to the coal mines.Fish-belly rails andlimestone blocksThe Dramway used specialtracks with ‘fish-belly’ railsthat were curved underneathto give them extra strength.Limestone blocks near WarmleyThey were made of cast ironand were fixed onto limestone blocks with iron‘chairs’. The limestone blocks came from a quarrynear the River Avon and were drilled with twoholes that held the iron ‘chairs’. Several sectionsof the route still have lines of limestone blocks setinto the ground in pairs. Most of the track wastaken up during the First World War for scrap iron,but there are still occasional pieces of track beingused as handrails or to fill holes in fences andhedges along the route.An intriguing legacyAlthough the Dramway has been abandoned formany years, it has left an intriguing legacy oflandmarks and features in the landscape.This walk follows the original route of theDramway for much of its length, and passes somefascinating features and buildings along the way,giving glimpses of the past whenthis area was part of abooming coalfield and aburgeoning, busyindustrial area.Last of the lineThe Dramway is a particularly interesting railwayas it was one of the very last horse-drawnrailways to be built in the country. It was builtjust a few years before the steam locomotiveboom, and, although its makers did not know it,the Dramway was out of date almost as soon as itwas built. ‘Railway mania’ swept across Britain inthe 1830’s and 1840’s following the success ofStephenson’s Rocket at the Rainhill Trials in 1829,and by the 1840’s, transport in Britain had beencompletely transformed as dozens of companiesbuilt new railways for steam locomotives.The advent of steam trains revolutionisedtransport in Britain in the nineteenth century,bringing about the decline of the canals and thegrowth of new towns and cities.4The Dramway5

The Dramway PathAnother world under our feetNowadays the northern half of the Dramway pathpasses through a rural landscape with quietcountry lanes and farmland. But, in thenineteenth century, it was a noisy, busy industrialarea, with dozens of coal mines surrounded byengine houses, smoking chimneys and railways, allworking to deliver coal to the rapidly growingindustries of Kingswood and Bristol. Meanwhile,below ground there was another, equally busy,hidden world, with a complicated network ofshafts and tunnels reaching down into thenumerous layers of coal-bearing rocks thatunderlie the parishes of Kingswood andWesterleigh.A replica section of Dramway trackMining ‘Black Diamonds’Coal has been mined from the SouthGloucestershire and East Bristol coalfield forcenturies, since at least the 1200’s whencoalmining is mentioned in various historicrecords. The earliest workings were small quarriesand shallow pits where people dug the coal thatwas found at the surface. During the 1600’s and1700’s there was an increasing demand for coal asit started to be used as fuel for baking andbrewing, and by 1750 there were over 140collieries in and around Bristol. The industrialrevolution created an ever-increasing demand forcoal to fuel the rapidly developing manufacturingindustries and metal works in Bristol andKingswood. New coalpits opened, existing shaftswere deepened to meet this seemingly neverendingdemand for coal, and fortunes were madein this dirty but profitable business.6 The Dramway 7

Transport routes over the yearsLines of transportWalk along the Dramway path and you travelthrough transport history. The route passes alongor beside many different types of transport, andeach one was chosen as the most innovative andappropriate solution at the time that it was built.The Dramway path travels along disused railwaylines, along quiet country lanes and countrysidefootpaths, crosses busy main roads, goes underthe M4 motorway and alongside the recentlycompleted Avon Ring Road on its way to the RiverAvon, historically the most important transportroute in the area.Inventive solutionsAs times change, new opportunities arise and,over the centuries, people have been coming upwith exciting ideas for transport routes.The Dramway was a solution to the problem oftransporting coal from the mines in SouthGloucestershire to Bristol via the River Avon.Two companies were involved in its construction,the Avon and Gloucestershire Railway Companyand the Bristol and Gloucestershire RailwayCompany. Numerous branch lines were built toconnect different pits with the main trackway andanother line was built down to Londonderry Wharfon the River Avon. This gave the Dramway twosouthern termini, its original one at Avon Wharfupstream of Keynsham Lock, and anotherdownstream of the lock at Londonderry Wharf.This second wharf saved time and money forcargoes bound for Bristol, as they did not have topay tolls at the locks at Keynsham.The Dramway path next to the Avon Ring RoadRing roads and motorwaysThere have been two new important transportroutes added to the South Gloucestershirelandscape in the last 50 years. Firstly the M4 andM5 motorways were built during the 1960’s and1970’s, linking Bristol with London andBirmingham; and, more recently, the Avon RingRoad has been completed, providing a fast andconvenient route around Bristol. The Dramwaywalk experiences these new transport routes as itgoes under the M4 at Lyde Green and runsalongside the new Avon Ring Road betweenShortwood and Warmley. These new routes are astriking reminder of the difference in the speed oftravel between the mid-1900s and the twenty firstcentury.8 The Dramway 9

Transport routes over the yearsAvon Valley RailwayBristol and Bath Railway Path and otherfootpathsWhen the former Midland Railway line betweenBristol and Bath was closed to passengers in the1960’s, a local campaign group created theRailway Path, a cycling and walking route, alongpart of the line. Now the Bristol and BathRailway Path (www.bristolbathrailwaypath.org.uk)is a 21km/13 mileoff-road routebetween the twocities. TheDramway pathfollows a similarroute to theRailway Pathbetween CoxgroveHill and Bitton.The southern endof the Dramwaypath joins theBristol and Bath Railway PathRiver Avon Trailon the banks of the river near Keynsham, offeringlinks with this 45km/28 mile path that follows theRiver Avon from Bath to Pill on the SevernEstuary.River Avon and the Kennet and Avon CanalThe River Avon has been a major transport routefor centuries, carrying passengers and cargo alongthe valley to Bristol and Bath ever since 1727when it was officially opened to water trafficbetween Hanham and Bath. Travel on the riverwas not particularly fast; it could take a week totravel from Avonmouth in the Bristol Channel toHanham, but it was much easier than carryingheavy cargo by horse-drawn cart. The river wasideal for moving large, heavy loads like coal, stoneand foodstuffs, and these were the barges’ maincargoes. Locks and weirs were constructed atvarious points along the river to make it navigableas far as Bath, where it joined the Kennet andAvon Canal and the rest of the canal network ofEngland.Bitton station and Avon Valley RailwayBitton railway station is the home of the AvonValley Railway (www.avonvalleyrailway.co.uk).It is not onthe Dramway,but is close tothe route.Steam trainsrun betweenOldland andAvon Riversidestations on arestored 3Bitton Railway Stationmile sectionof the former Midland Railway from OldlandCommon to Avon Riverside. Bitton Station is opendaily, facilities include buffet for drinks and lightrefreshments, toilets, car and cycle parking.Timetable available at Bitton station.10 The Dramway 11

Village activities take placein the Community Hall, from displays tomeetings. You are in the ConservationArea which was designated in 1975 andas you walk towards the centre ofPucklechurch you will see on your lefthouses of the seventeenth to eighteenthcenturies providing a fine entrance to thevillage.This is the bustling centre ofthe village with fine housesand has long been onimportant coaching routes. Theold Fleur de Llys Inn formerly catered fortravellers. The large stone house in thecentre No. 1 used to be the White HartInn, where, if a visitor wanted a bed forthe night, tradition said that they had tobe accommodated no matter how full thehostelry was at the time.is a village with an incrediblyrich past, from the Bronze Age with itsof St. Thomas a Becket.This beautiful church with itsfine tower has a blocked Normandoorway but generally dates from thethirteenth century. There are two stoneeffigies in the North Aisle, probably ofman and wife, dated around themid-fourteenth century. Today the churchis the centre of a very busy parish.There has been much newdevelopment in the village overthe years, either as estates bordering theConservation Area, as here at HomefieldRoad, or as in-filling within the villagecore itself. Today Pucklechurch has adynamic community, but care will have tobe taken not to spoil its historic heritage.You are now in Kings Laneand in one of the most historicparts of the village.Nearby is GreyHouse, one of themany great houses ofthe sixteenth toeighteenth centuriesof which thevillage is so proud.Along this lane it isreputed that the slainKing Edmund wascarried to his final resting-place atGlastonbury.Moat House, formerly calledthe Great House, was thegreat manor-house of Pucklechurchand excavations on the site haveunearthed evidence of Saxon and Romanactivity.It is thought that it formerly had a moaton three sides and seven gables to itsfrontage. It might even have had royalconnections.It is thought that there werethree village greens inPucklechurch in medieval times atthe top of three roads Westerleigh,Parkfield and Shortwood Roads whichstopped at the great Burrell enclosuresee Stop 11.This suggests that the medieval villageplan was of three small street hamlets.Where you are standing is the vestige ofone of these greens.SECTION 1 (See Map 1)Coalpit Heath toLyde GreenCoalpit Heath and the Ram Hill CollieryAs its name suggests, coal mining has beenassociated with this area for centuries and manypits have been sunk here over the years. TheDramway path goes through the site of Ram HillColliery, which dates from the early 1800’s. Themine’s main period of activity was between 1830and 1860. It was the northern terminus of theDramway and the line split into two branch lines,each with a loading bay. Today the Ram Hill site isbeing researched and managed by the Friends ofRam Hill Group.Lyde Green FarmhouseThis sixteenthcentury farmhousehas a beautifulgabled roof andinterestingdiagonal chimneys.It was known as the‘red house’ in 1799,reflecting the colour of the local sandstone fromwhich it is built.PucklechurchThe village of Pucklechurch lies slightly to the eastof the Dramway path. This attractive village wasoriginally within the medieval Royal Forest ofKingswood. It’s an historic village built on the siteof a Saxon Palace which was the scene of adramatic murder in 946 AD, when King Edmundwas killed by an outlaw called Leofra.12Community Halland parking2Find out moreabout manyinterestingseventeenth centurybuildings in thevillage by followingthe PucklechurchVillage Trail.tumulus on Shortwood Hill, up to the siting of abarrageBitterwell LakeThis man-made lake is now used as a fishing lakeand is owned by the villagers of Henfield. GeorgeNewman, a local benefactor, gave the lake to thevillage in 1930. In the past the lake was used tosoak the pit props for the mine, and more recentlyas a local swimming pool and a site for modelboats.balloon depot in World War II. This walk aimsto guide people both local and visitor, aroundsome of the fascinating historic sites in the villagecentre.A.D. 946 .34Parish ChurchHomefield Road5Kings Lane6Moat House7Village GreenTake a walk aroundthe centre ofPucklechurch,a village steeped inhistory and heritageand site of a SaxonRoyal palace.12 The Dramway 13

MAP 2Lyde Green to Warmley© Crown Copyright. All rights reserved.South Gloucestershire Council LA100023410/200618 The Dramway 19

SECTION 3 (See Maps 2 & 3)Warmley to the River AvonWarmleyThe Dramway and the line of theOld Midland Railway (now theBristol and Bath Railway Path)run parallel to each other forpart of the route south fromWarmley to Willsbridge, with theDramway to the east of theRailway Path. There are wellpreservedsections of theDramway under the bridge nearThe path near Warmley Warmley station and in thecutting behind the renovatedsignal box. Kingswood Heritage Museum(www.kingswoodmuseum.org.uk) in nearby TowerLane has an excellent selection of material aboutthe Dramway, including some of the originalfishbed rails, chairs and drilled limestone blocks aswell as many drawings and maps.California CollieryThe California Colliery in Oldland was famous forits high-quality coal that was extracted from theParrott Seam. This coal was particularly popularwithblacksmiths because it had a low sulphurcontent. The mine was re-opened in 1876 on thesite of an earlier pit, and a tramway linked thecolliery with the route of the Dramway, which hadbeen closed for a number of years.The tramway on the incline was operated bygravity and it was so steep that the weight of thefull trucks going down was enough to pull theempty carts back up the slope.Willsbridge MillThere have been mills in this part of the valley forcenturies, using waterpower to drive theirmachinery. Willsbridge Mill was built from locallyquarried sandstone and was used to mill flourfrom the early 1800’s. It was in use until 1968when huge floods caused the dam on the millpond to burst, seriously damaging the mill. Thebuildings have been carefully restored by the AvonWildlife Trust (www.avonwildlifetrust.org.uk) andWillsbridge Mill re-opened in 1986 as an educationcentre. There are a series of attractive walksexploring the wildlife and history of the areaaround the mill.Willsbridge MillLondonderry Wharf and the River AvonLondonderry Wharf was built around 1833 as abranch line off the original Dramway, which endedat Avon Wharf, upstream of the lock at Keynsham.It was built to save time and money on loads thatwere destined for Bristol, as it avoided payingtolls at Keynsham lock. The small weighbridgehouse is still visible, as is the Wharf itself and anumber of limestone blocks buried in the ground.20 The Dramway 21

MAP 3Warmley to the River Avon22© Crown Copyright. All rights reserved.South Gloucestershire Council LA100023410/2006The Dramway23

Additional informationEnjoy walkingParts of the northern section of the Dramway can bemuddy at times, especially after rain and during thewinter months. Wear sensible shoes or boots and carry awaterproof so that poor weather won’t spoil your walk.Ordnance Survey MapsOS Explorer map 155 covers the entire route of theDramway pathLinks with other promoted walksThe fold-out map on the front inside cover shows all thepromoted recreational path networks in SouthGloucestershire. The Dramway links with theCommunity Forest Path and the River Avon Trail, and theBristol and Bath Railway PathUseful ContactsThe Public Rights of Way Team in SouthGloucestershire Council look after the Dramway pathas well as all local footpaths in the area.They undertake essential maintenance on public rights ofway. Based at Broad Lane, Yate, South Gloucestershire;Tel: 01454 868686 or go to www.southglos.gov.ukThe Community Forest Path is looked after by theForest of Avon Team, who are based at Ashton CourtVisitor Centre, Long Ashton, Bristol, BS41 9JN;Tel: 0117 9532141 www.forestofavon.org.ukThe Avon Frome Partnership Officer is based atColston House, Colston Street Bristol, BS1 5AQ. Thisofficer works on a number of projects within the AvonValley, including the River Avon Trail.Tel: 0117 922 4325South Gloucestershire Heritage ForumThe South Gloucestershire Heritage Forum representsthose involved in heritage activities, arranges visits toheritage sites, lectures, exhibitions, open days andspecial events. It is a voice in the protection, publicaccess and recording of the heritage of SouthGloucestershire. Tel: 01454 86578324