The River Avon is a river in the south west of England. To distinguish it from a number of other
rivers of the same name, it is often called the Bristol Avon. The name 'Avon' is a
cognate
In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words in different languages that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymology, etymological ancestor in a proto-language, common parent language. Because language c ...
of the
Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...
word , meaning 'river'.
The Avon
rises just north of the village of
Acton Turville
Acton Turville is a parish in the Cotswold Edge ward within South Gloucestershire, England. It lies 17 miles (27 km) east-northeast of Bristol and 93 miles (150 km) due west of London, with the M4 south of the parish. Acton Turville co ...
in
South Gloucestershire
South Gloucestershire is a unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of Gloucestershire, South West England. Towns in the area include Yate, Chipping Sodbury, Thornbury, Filton, Patchway and Bradley Stoke, the latter three forming part ...
, before flowing through
Wiltshire
Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...
. In its lower reaches from
Bath to the
Severn Estuary
The Severn Estuary ( cy, Aber Hafren) is the estuary of the River Severn, flowing into the Bristol Channel between South West England and South Wales. Its high tidal range, approximately , means that it has been at the centre of discussions in t ...
at
Avonmouth
Avonmouth is a port and outer suburb of Bristol, England, facing two rivers: the reinforced north bank of the final stage of the Avon which rises at sources in Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and Somerset; and the eastern shore of the Severn Estuar ...
near
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
, the river is navigable and known as the Avon Navigation.
The Avon is the
19th longest river in the United Kingdom, at , although there are just
as the crow flies
__NOTOC__
The expression ''as the crow flies'' is an idiom for the most direct path between two points, rather similar to "in a beeline". This meaning is attested from the early 19th century, and appeared in Charles Dickens's 1838 novel '' Oliv ...
between the source and its mouth in the
Severn Estuary
The Severn Estuary ( cy, Aber Hafren) is the estuary of the River Severn, flowing into the Bristol Channel between South West England and South Wales. Its high tidal range, approximately , means that it has been at the centre of discussions in t ...
. The
catchment area
In human geography, a catchment area is the area from which a location, such as a city, service or institution, attracts a population that uses its services and economic opportunities. Catchment areas may be defined based on from where people are ...
is .
Etymology
The name "Avon" is a
cognate
In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words in different languages that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymology, etymological ancestor in a proto-language, common parent language. Because language c ...
of the
Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...
word ''afon'' "river", both being derived from the
Common Brittonic
Common Brittonic ( cy, Brythoneg; kw, Brythonek; br, Predeneg), also known as British, Common Brythonic, or Proto-Brittonic, was a Celtic language spoken in Britain and Brittany.
It is a form of Insular Celtic, descended from Proto-Celtic, a ...
, "river". "
River Avon", therefore, literally means "river river"; several other English and Scottish rivers share the name. The
County of Avon
Avon () was a non-metropolitan and ceremonial county in the west of England that existed between 1974 and 1996. The county was named after the River Avon, which flows through the area. It was formed from the county boroughs of Bristol and Ba ...
that existed from 1974 to 1996 was named after the river, and covered
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
,
Bath, and the lower Avon valley.
Course
The Avon
rises in the
Cotswold Hills east of the town of
Chipping Sodbury in
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean.
The county town is the city of Gl ...
. Several ponds and streams form on the high ground west of
Sherston, where they converge to form the river. Several claims are therefore made as to the precise source of the Avon. Ordnance Survey maps place the source at Joyce's Pool in
Didmarton
Didmarton is a village and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England. It lies in the Cotswold District, about southwest of Tetbury. The parish is on the county borders with South Gloucestershire (to the southwest) and Wiltshire (to the south and ...
, where there is a plaque to mark the source of the river.
[Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 scale Explorer map series sheet no 168 ''Stroud, Tetbury & Malmesbury''] Another claim is made for a stream that forms just north of the village of
Acton Turville
Acton Turville is a parish in the Cotswold Edge ward within South Gloucestershire, England. It lies 17 miles (27 km) east-northeast of Bristol and 93 miles (150 km) due west of London, with the M4 south of the parish. Acton Turville co ...
and flows through
Luckington
Luckington is a village and civil parish in the southern Cotswolds, in north-west Wiltshire, England, about west of Malmesbury. The village is on the B4040 road linking Malmesbury and Old Sodbury. The parish is on the county border with Glouces ...
.
Running a somewhat circular path, the river drains east and then south through
Wiltshire
Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...
. At
Malmesbury
Malmesbury () is a town and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England, which lies approximately west of Swindon, northeast of Bristol, and north of Chippenham. The older part of the town is on a hilltop which is almost surrounded by the up ...
it joins up with its first major tributary, the
Tetbury Avon, which rises just north of
Tetbury
Tetbury is a town and civil parish inside the Cotswold district in England. It lies on the site of an ancient hill fort, on which an Anglo-Saxon monastery was founded, probably by Ine of Wessex, in 681. The population of the parish was 5,250 in ...
in Gloucestershire.
This tributary is known locally as the Ingleburn, which in
Old English
Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...
means 'English river'. Here, the two rivers almost meet but their path is blocked by a rocky outcrop of the
Cotswolds
The Cotswolds (, ) is a region in central-southwest England, along a range of rolling hills that rise from the meadows of the upper Thames to an escarpment above the Severn Valley and Evesham Vale.
The area is defined by the bedrock of Jur ...
, almost creating an island for the ancient hilltop town of Malmesbury to sit on. Upstream of this confluence the river is sometimes referred to as the 'River Avon (Sherston Branch)' to distinguish it from the Tetbury Branch.
[Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 scale Explorer map series sheet no 168 ''Stroud, Tetbury & Malmesbury'']
![Bradford on Avon town bridge (2)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/Bradford_on_Avon_town_bridge_%282%29.JPG)
After the two rivers merge, the Avon then turns south east away from the Cotswolds and then quickly south into the clay
Dauntsey Vale
The Dauntsey Vale is a geographical feature in the north of the English county of Wiltshire.
It is characterised by a wide, flat, clay floodplain of the upper reaches of the Bristol Avon river, which divides the Cotswolds to the west from the cha ...
, where it is joined by the
River Marden, until it reaches the biggest town so far,
Chippenham
Chippenham is a market town
A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village ...
. The wide vale is now known as the Avon Vale, and the river flows on via
Lacock
Lacock is a village and civil parish in the county of Wiltshire, England, about 3 miles (5 km) south of the town of Chippenham, and about outside the Cotswolds area. The village is owned almost in its entirety by the National Trust a ...
to
Melksham
Melksham () is a town on the River Avon in Wiltshire, England, about northeast of Trowbridge and south of Chippenham. At the 2011 census, the Melksham built-up area had a population of 19,357, making it Wiltshire's fifth-largest settlement af ...
, then turns north-west through
Bradford on Avon
Bradford-on-Avon (sometimes Bradford on Avon or Bradford upon Avon) is a town and civil parish in west Wiltshire, England, near the border with Somerset, which had a population of 9,402 at the 2011 census. The town's canal, historic buildings, s ...
, where the centre of the town grew up around the
ford
Ford commonly refers to:
* Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford
* Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river
Ford may also refer to:
Ford Motor Company
* Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company
* Ford F ...
across the river Avon, hence the origin of the town's name ("Broad-Ford"). This was supplemented in
Norman
Norman or Normans may refer to:
Ethnic and cultural identity
* The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries
** People or things connected with the Norm ...
times by the stone bridge that still stands today. The Norman side is upstream, and has pointed arches; the newer side has curved arches. The Town Bridge and Chapel is a grade I
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
. It was originally a
packhorse bridge
A packhorse bridge is a bridge intended to carry packhorses (horses loaded with sidebags or panniers) across a river or stream. Typically a packhorse bridge consists of one or more narrow (one horse wide) masonry arches, and has low Parapet#Bridge ...
, but widened in the 17th century by rebuilding the western side. On the bridge stands a small building which was originally a chapel but later used as a town lock-up.
The Avon Valley between Bradford on Avon and Bath is a classic geographical example of a valley where four forms of ground transport are found: road, rail, river, canal. The river passes under the
Avoncliff
Avoncliff is a small village in west Wiltshire, England, in the north of Westwood parish about southwest of Bradford-on-Avon.
It is the point at which the Kennet and Avon canal crosses the river and railway line via the Avoncliff Aqueduct, w ...
and
Dundas Aqueduct
Dundas Aqueduct () carries the Kennet and Avon Canal over the River Avon (the Somerset / Wiltshire border) and the Wessex Main Line railway from Bath to Westbury. The aqueduct is near Monkton Combe, Somerset, and is about southeast of the ci ...
s and at
Freshford is joined by the Somerset
River Frome. Avoncliff Aqueduct was built by
John Rennie and chief engineer John Thomas, between 1797 and 1801. The
aqueduct consists of three arches and is long with a central elliptical arch of span with two side arches each semicircular and across, all with V-jointed arch stones. The spandrel and wing walls are built in alternate courses of ashlar masonry, and rock-faced blocks. The central span sagged soon after it was built and has been repaired many times.
The Dundas Aqueduct was built by the same team between 1797 and 1801 and completed in 1805.
James McIlquham was appointed contractor. The aqueduct is long with three arches built of
Bath Stone
Bath Stone is an oolitic limestone comprising granular fragments of calcium carbonate. Originally obtained from the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England. Its honey colouring gives the World Heritage City of ...
, with
Doric Doric may refer to:
* Doric, of or relating to the Dorians of ancient Greece
** Doric Greek, the dialects of the Dorians
* Doric order, a style of ancient Greek architecture
* Doric mode, a synonym of Dorian mode
* Doric dialect (Scotland)
* Doric ...
pilasters, and balustrades at each end.
The central semicircular arch spans ; the two oval side arches span . It is a
Grade I listed
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
structure, and was the first canal structure to be designated as a
Scheduled Ancient Monument
In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change.
The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...
in 1951. The stretch of river below and above the aqueduct, where it is joined by
Midford Brook
Midford Brook is a small river in Somerset, England.
It is formed by the convergence of the Wellow Brook and Cam Brook at Midford. It passes Tucking Mill and joins the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon close to the Dundas Aqueduct and the remains ...
, has been used by rowing crews from
Monkton Combe School
(Thy Word is Truth)
, established =
, type = Public schoolIndependent schoolBoarding school
, founder = The Revd Francis Pocock
, head_label = Head Master
, head ...
since at least the beginning of the 1900s.
![Claverton Pumping Station with millpond](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/Claverton_Pumping_Station_with_millpond.jpg)
It then flows past
Claverton Pumping Station
Claverton Pumping Station in the village of Claverton, Somerset, Claverton, in the English county of Somerset, pumps water from the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon to the Kennet and Avon Canal using power from the flow of the river. It is a Grad ...
, which pumped water from the River Avon by
Warleigh Weir
Warleigh Weir is a river structure at Warleigh on the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon in Somerset, England, upstream from the city of Bath, Somerset, Bath. The weir was originally built to supply a head of water to a gristmill, grist mill at Cla ...
into the canal, using power from the flow of the river. The pumping station is located in a pump house built of Bath Stone, located at river level. Water is diverted from the river by Warleigh Weir, about upstream. The water flows down a
leat
A leat (; also lete or leet, or millstream) is the name, common in the south and west of England and in Wales, for an artificial watercourse or aqueduct dug into the ground, especially one supplying water to a watermill or its mill pond. Other ...
to the pumping station, where it powers a
water wheel
A water wheel is a machine for converting the energy of flowing or falling water into useful forms of power, often in a watermill. A water wheel consists of a wheel (usually constructed from wood or metal), with a number of blades or buckets ...
, wide and in diameter, with 48 wooden slats. At full power the wheel uses 2
ton
Ton is the name of any one of several units of measure. It has a long history and has acquired several meanings and uses.
Mainly it describes units of weight. Confusion can arise because ''ton'' can mean
* the long ton, which is 2,240 pounds
...
s (2
tonne
The tonne ( or ; symbol: t) is a unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. It is a non-SI unit accepted for use with SI. It is also referred to as a metric ton to distinguish it from the non-metric units of the short ton ( United State ...
s) of water per second and rotates five times a minute.
The water wheel drives gearing which increases the speed to 16
rpm
Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines.
Standards
ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...
. From here, cranks drive vertical connecting rods which transfer the energy to two long
cast iron
Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuriti ...
rocking beams. Each rocking beam in turn drives an 18 in (0.5 m) diameter
lift pump
A piston pump is a type of positive displacement pump where the high-pressure seal reciprocates with the piston. Piston pumps can be used to move liquids or compress gases. They can operate over a wide range of pressures. High pressure operatio ...
, which also take their supply from the mill leat. Each pump stroke raises of water to the canal.
In 1981,
British Waterways
British Waterways, often shortened to BW, was a statutory corporation wholly owned by the government of the United Kingdom. It served as the navigation authority for the majority of canals and a number of rivers and docks in England, Scotland ...
installed two electric pumps just upstream from the station.
![Pulteney bridge in Bath view from south before noon](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5c/Pulteney_bridge_in_Bath_view_from_south_before_noon.jpg)
The Avon then flows through
Bathford
Bathford (pronounced with the emphasis on the second syllable) is a village and civil parish east of Bath, England. The parish, which includes Warleigh, has a population of 1,759 and extends over .
History
The ancient charter ''Codex Diploma ...
, where it is joined by the
Bybrook River, and
Bathampton
Bathampton () is a village and civil parish east of Bath, England on the south bank of the River Avon. The parish has a population of 1,603.
The Kennet and Avon Canal passes through the village and a toll bridge links Bathampton to Bathea ...
where it passes under the
Bathampton Toll Bridge
Bathampton Toll Bridge is an arch bridge in England, carrying a minor road across the River Avon (Bristol), River Avon near Bathampton, to the east of Bath, Somerset, Bath. It is a Grade II listed building, listed structure.
The bridge was buil ...
. It is joined by the
Lam Brook
The Lam Brook is a stream in the West Country of England, which rises in a number of springs on the southern end of the Cotswold Hills and runs in a generally southerly direction for approximately before joining the river Avon at Lambridge in ...
at Lambridge in
Bath and then passes under
Cleveland
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
and
Pulteney Bridge
Pulteney Bridge is a bridge over the River Avon in Bath, England. It was completed by 1774, and connected the city with the land of the Pulteney family which it wished to develop. Designed by Robert Adam in a Palladian style, it is highly unu ...
s and over the weir.
Cleveland Bridge was built in 1826 by
William Hazledine
William Hazledine (1763 – 26 October 1840) was an English ironmaster. Establishing large foundries, he was a pioneer in casting structural ironwork, most notably for canal aqueducts and early suspension bridges. Many of these projects were c ...
,
[Inscription on bridge] owner of the
Coalbrookdale
Coalbrookdale is a village in the Ironbridge Gorge in Shropshire, England, containing a settlement of great significance in the history of iron ore smelting. It lies within the civil parish called the Gorge.
This is where iron ore was first s ...
Ironworks, with
Henry Goodridge
Henry Edmund Goodridge (1797, Bath – 26 October 1864) was an English architect based in Bath. He worked from the early 1820s until the 1850s, using Classical, Italianate and Gothic styles.
Life
He was born in Bath in 1797 the son of James Goo ...
as the architect, on the site of a
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
ferry crossing. Named after the 3rd
Duke of Cleveland
Duke of Cleveland was a title that was created twice, once in the Peerage of England and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The dukedoms were named after Cleveland in northern England.
The first creation in 1670 (along with the barony ...
, it spans the River Avon at
Bathwick
Bathwick is an electoral ward in the City of Bath, England, on the opposite bank of the River Avon to the historic city centre.
Bathwick was part of the hundred of Bath Forum.
The district became part of the Bath urban area with the 18th cent ...
, and enabled further development of
Georgian
Georgian may refer to:
Common meanings
* Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country)
** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group
** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians
**Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
Bath to take place on the south side of the river. It was designed by architect
Henry Goodridge
Henry Edmund Goodridge (1797, Bath – 26 October 1864) was an English architect based in Bath. He worked from the early 1820s until the 1850s, using Classical, Italianate and Gothic styles.
Life
He was born in Bath in 1797 the son of James Goo ...
to take the traffic of his day, horse-drawn vehicles and pedestrians, and was constructed using
Bath Stone
Bath Stone is an oolitic limestone comprising granular fragments of calcium carbonate. Originally obtained from the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England. Its honey colouring gives the World Heritage City of ...
and a
cast iron
Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuriti ...
arch
An arch is a vertical curved structure that spans an elevated space and may or may not support the weight above it, or in case of a horizontal arch like an arch dam, the hydrostatic pressure against it.
Arches may be synonymous with vaul ...
ed span.
Pulteney Bridge was completed in 1773 and is designated by
English Heritage
English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses.
The charity states that i ...
as a Grade I listed structure.
The bridge was designed by
Robert Adam
Robert Adam (3 July 17283 March 1792) was a British neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam (1689–1748), Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and trained under him. With his o ...
,
and is one of only four bridges in the world with shops across the full span on both sides.
It is named after
Frances Pulteney
Sir William Pulteney, 5th Baronet (October 1729 – 30 May 1805), known as William Johnstone until 1767, was a Scottish advocate, landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1768 and 1805. He was reputedly the wealthiest ...
, heiress in 1767 of the Bathwick estate across the river from Bath. Floods in 1799 and 1800 wrecked the north side of the bridge, which had been constructed with inadequate support. It was rebuilt by
John Pinch the Elder, surveyor to the Pulteney estate, in a less ambitious version of Adam's design.
Bath and North East Somerset
Bath and North East Somerset (B&NES) is a unitary authority district in England. Bath and North East Somerset Council was created on 1 April 1996 following the abolition of the county of Avon. It is part of the ceremonial county of Somerset.
Th ...
council have discussed plans to ban vehicles from the bridge and turn it into a pedestrianised zone, but it remains open to buses and taxis.
Some 700 metres below Pulteney weir, the river is joined by the
Kennet and Avon Canal
The Kennet and Avon Canal is a waterway in southern England with an overall length of , made up of two lengths of navigable river linked by a canal. The name is used to refer to the entire length of the navigation rather than solely to the cent ...
which connects through
Bath Locks
Bath Locks () are a series of locks, now six locks, situated at the start of the Kennet and Avon Canal, at Bath, England.
Bath Bottom Lock, which is numbered as No 7 on the canal, is the meeting with the River Avon just south of Pulteney Bridge ...
. Together with the
Kennet Navigation
The Kennet is a tributary of the River Thames in Southern England. Most of the river is straddled by the North Wessex Downs AONB (Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty). The lower reaches have been made navigable as the Kennet Navigation, which â ...
which joins the
River Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...
at Reading, this provides a through route for canal boats from Bristol to London. From this point downstream the river is known as the Avon Navigation.
Navigation
![Swinefordweir](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0b/Swinefordweir.JPG)
The Avon above Bath remains navigable as far as Bathampton where there is the remains of a
flash lock
A flash lock is a type of lock for river or canal transport.
Early locks were designed with a single gate, known as a flash lock or staunch lock. The earliest European references to what were clearly flash locks were in Roman times.
Developme ...
. However, the lock past the weir below Pulteney Bridge was demolished when the weir was reconstructed, so passage between the sections is only possible for dinghies and canoes using the roller slipway on the side of the weir.
Beyond its junction with the Kennet and Avon Canal, the Avon flows through
Keynsham
Keynsham ( ) is a town and civil parish located between Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. It has a population of 16,000.
It was listed in the Domesday Book as ''Cainesham'' (as it is pronounced), which is believed to mean the home of Sai ...
towards
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
. For much of its course after leaving Wiltshire, it marks the traditional boundary between Somerset and Gloucestershire. For most of this distance the navigation makes use of the natural river bed, with six locks overcoming a rise of . From Bath to
Netham Lock
Netham Lock () is the point at Netham in Bristol at which boats from the River Avon, acting as part of the Kennet and Avon Canal, gain access to Bristol's Floating Harbour.
Construction started in 1804 to build the tidal New Cut and divert ...
where it divides into the New Cut and the Floating Harbour is . The stretch is made navigable by the use of locks and weirs.
In the centre of Bath it passes under various bridges including the
Midland Bridge which was originally built by the
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had its headquarters. It am ...
Company to allow the
Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway
The Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway, also known as the S&D, SDJR or S&DJR, was an English railway line connecting Bath (in north-east Somerset) and Bournemouth (now in south-east Dorset but then in Hampshire), with a branch from Evercreec ...
access to and from its
Green Park Terminus Station. In November 2011 the navigation between Bath and Bristol was closed because of safety concerns about
Victoria Bridge.
Weston Lock
Weston Lock is a canal lock situated on the River Avon, on the western outskirts of Bath, England, in what now forms the Newbridge suburb of Bath.
The Bristol Avon Navigation, which runs the from the Kennet and Avon Canal at Hanham Lock to ...
on the outskirts of Bath is in what now forms the
Newbridge area. Weston Cut is a man made channel, opened in 1727, for boats to approach and pass through Weston Lock; the island created between the cut and the river weir became known as Dutch Island after the owner of the
brass mill
A brass mill is a mill which processes brass. Brass mills are common in England; many date from long before the Industrial Revolution.
;Examples of brass mills include:
*Brassmill (Ross on Wye)
*Saltford Brass Mill
See also
* Calamine brass
* ...
established on the riverside in the early 18th century.
Kelston Lock and weir have permanent moorings above and below them. The Riverside Inn and Saltford Marina are also close by.
Saltford Lock and weir are overlooked by the remains of the
Kelston
Kelston is a small village and civil parish in Somerset, north west of Bath, and east of Bristol, on the A431 road. It is situated just north of the River Avon, close to the Kelston and Saltford locks. The parish has a population of 248.
...
Brass Mill, which was working until 1925. It is a Grade II
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
. Alongside the lock is a
pub
A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...
, whose garden extends over the lock to the small island between the lock and weir. The lock was opened in 1727 and destroyed in 1738 by rival coal dealers to stop the use of the river for transportation.
In its heyday, between 1709 and 1859
Swineford
Swineford is a hamlet in the South Gloucestershire council area, very close to the boundary with Bath and North East Somerset. It is located around 1 km south-east of Bitton, and lies on the River Avon, on which the Swineford Lock is sited. ...
had an active
brass
Brass is an alloy of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn), in proportions which can be varied to achieve different mechanical, electrical, and chemical properties. It is a substitutional alloy: atoms of the two constituents may replace each other with ...
and copper industry around
Swineford Lock
Swineford Lock is a canal lock situated on the River Avon, at the village of Swineford, England.
The Bristol Avon Navigation, which runs the from the Kennet and Avon Canal at Hanham Lock to the Bristol Channel at Avonmouth, was constructed ...
, served by the river which also provided water power for the cloth industry,
as did the
River Boyd
The River Boyd is a river of some in length which rises near Dodington in South Gloucestershire, England. It is a tributary of the Bristol Avon, running in a southerly direction and joining near Bitton. The flow rate at Bitton is an average . ...
, a tributary which flows into the Avon near
Bitton
Bitton is a village and civil parish of South Gloucestershire in England, to the east of the Greater Bristol area on the River Boyd.
It is in South Gloucestershire. The parish of Bitton has a population of 9,307, and apart from the village ...
.
Keynsham Lock
Keynsham Lock is a canal lock situated on the River Avon at Keynsham, England.
The Bristol Avon Navigation, which runs the from the Kennet and Avon Canal at Hanham Lock to the Bristol Channel at Avonmouth, was constructed between 1724 and 1 ...
opened in 1727.
Just above the lock are visitor moorings and a pub, on an island between the lock and the weir. The weir side of the island is also the mouth of the
River Chew
The River Chew is a small river in England that flows for some through the North Somerset countryside to form the Chew Valley before merging with the River Avon.
The spring from which the Chew rises is just upstream from Chewton Mendip. The ...
.
Hanham
Hanham is a suburb of Bristol. It is located in the south east of the city. Hanham is in the unitary authority of South Gloucestershire. It became a civil parish on 1 April 2003.
The post code area of Hanham is BS15. The population of this c ...
is the last tidal lock,
after which the river is joined by
Brislington Brook
Brislington Brook is a short, long tributary of the Bristol Avon, rising on the northern slopes of Maes Knoll on the southern boundary of the city of Bristol, England. The stream has been badly affected by pollution but improvements have been ma ...
.
Netham Lock
Netham Lock () is the point at Netham in Bristol at which boats from the River Avon, acting as part of the Kennet and Avon Canal, gain access to Bristol's Floating Harbour.
Construction started in 1804 to build the tidal New Cut and divert ...
is the point at
Netham in Bristol at which boats from the Avon gain access to Bristol's
floating harbour
Bristol Harbour is the harbour in the city of Bristol, England. The harbour covers an area of . It is the former natural tidal river Avon through the city but was made into its current form in 1809 when the tide was prevented from going out per ...
. Construction started in 1804 to build the tidal
New Cut, where it is joined by the
River Malago, and divert the Avon along the
Feeder Canal
Feeder may refer to:
Technology
* Feeder (livestock equipment)
* Feeder (beekeeping), any of several devices used in apiculture to supplement or replace natural food sources
* Feeder (casting), another name for a riser, a reservoir built into ...
to the harbour; a system designed and built by
William Jessop
William Jessop (23 January 1745 – 18 November 1814) was an English civil engineer, best known for his work on canals, harbours and early railways in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
Early life
Jessop was born in Devonport, Devon, the ...
and later improved by
Isambard Kingdom Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel (; 9 April 1806 – 15 September 1859) was a British civil engineer who is considered "one of the most ingenious and prolific figures in engineering history," "one of the 19th-century engineering giants," and "one ...
.
A weir carries the river into the New Cut and boats use the adjacent lock. Access to the harbour is only possible during the day when the lock keeper will open the gates unless the water level in the river between Netham and Hanham is above or below the level of the harbour.
Netham Lock and the weir form part of Bristol's flood defence mechanisms and it was announced in December 2008 that they would be upgraded as part of the £11 million City Docks Capital Project.
![River Avon at Welsh Back Bristol (June 2010)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/62/River_Avon_at_Welsh_Back_Bristol_%28June_2010%29.jpg)
In central Bristol, where the river is
tidal
Tidal is the adjectival form of tide.
Tidal may also refer to:
* ''Tidal'' (album), a 1996 album by Fiona Apple
* Tidal (king), a king involved in the Battle of the Vale of Siddim
* TidalCycles, a live coding environment for music
* Tidal (servic ...
, it is diverted from its original course into the New Cut, a channel dug between 1804 and 1809 at a cost of £600,000.
The original course is held at a constant level by lock gates (designed by Jessop) and is known as the
floating harbour
Bristol Harbour is the harbour in the city of Bristol, England. The harbour covers an area of . It is the former natural tidal river Avon through the city but was made into its current form in 1809 when the tide was prevented from going out per ...
. The harbour is protected by an 1870s replacement for Jessop's locks. This unusual dock has a tentacled plan resulting from its origins as the natural river course of the Avon and its
tributaries
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage b ...
, the
River Frome and
Siston Brook
Siston Brook rises in two separate streams which issue from a ridge just north of the village of Siston, South Gloucestershire, England. The brook is approximately long and is a tributary of the Bristol Avon. Much of its course is through the ...
, and is intimately entwined with Bristol's city centre as few docks are. As a result of this, the floating harbour is one of the more successful pieces of dockland regeneration, with much of the dockside now occupied by residential, office and cultural premises, and the water area heavily used by leisure craft. The harbour gave the port an advantage by enabling shipping to stay afloat rather than grounding when the tide went down. Downstream of central Bristol, the river passes through the deep
Avon Gorge
The Avon Gorge () is a 1.5-mile (2.5-kilometre) long gorge on the River Avon in Bristol, England. The gorge runs south to north through a limestone ridge west of Bristol city centre, and about 3 miles (5 km) from the mouth of the r ...
, spanned by Brunel's
Clifton Suspension Bridge
The Clifton Suspension Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Avon Gorge and the River Avon, linking Clifton in Bristol to Leigh Woods in North Somerset. Since opening in 1864, it has been a toll bridge, the income from which provides fun ...
: the river is tidal and is navigable by seagoing vessels at high tide but dries to a steep-sided muddy channel at low tide. It was largely the challenge of navigating this section that sealed the fate of the floating harbour as commercial docks and saw them replaced by docks at
Avonmouth
Avonmouth is a port and outer suburb of Bristol, England, facing two rivers: the reinforced north bank of the final stage of the Avon which rises at sources in Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and Somerset; and the eastern shore of the Severn Estuar ...
where the Avon joins the
Severn Estuary
The Severn Estuary ( cy, Aber Hafren) is the estuary of the River Severn, flowing into the Bristol Channel between South West England and South Wales. Its high tidal range, approximately , means that it has been at the centre of discussions in t ...
.
Before reaching its mouth, the Avon is joined by the
River Trym
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...
at
Sea Mills which was the site of ''Portus Abonae'', a
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
port. Shortly after, it passes the village of
Pill
Pill or The Pill may refer to:
Drugs
* Pill (pharmacy), referring to anything small for a specific dose of medicine
* "The Pill", a general nickname for the combined oral contraceptive pill
Film and television
* ''The Pill'' (film), a 2011 fil ...
on the south bank where the Pill Hobblers were based in order to tow ships up the river to Bristol and where yachts and other boats still have moorings in Chapel Pill and Crockerne Pill. It then passes under the
Avonmouth Bridge
The Avonmouth Bridge is a road bridge that carries the M5 motorway over the River Avon into Somerset near Bristol, England. The main span is long, and the bridge is long, with an air draught above mean high water level of . It also has a s ...
which carries the
M5 motorway
The M5 is a motorway in England linking the Midlands with the South West England, South West. It runs from junction 8 of the M6 motorway, M6 at West Bromwich near Birmingham to Exeter in Devon. Heading south-west, the M5 runs east of West Brom ...
. The main span is long, and the bridge is long, with an air draught above mean high water level of . The river then serves two major dock areas. The
Royal Portbury Dock
The Royal Portbury Dock is part of the Port of Bristol, in England. It is situated near the village of Portbury on the southern side of the mouth of the River Avon, Bristol, Avon, where the river joins the Severn estuary — the Avonmouth ...
is on the southern side of the mouth of the river. The deepwater dock was constructed between 1972 and 1977, and is now a major port for the import of
motor vehicle
A motor vehicle, also known as motorized vehicle or automotive vehicle, is a self-propelled land vehicle, commonly wheeled, that does not operate on Track (rail transport), rails (such as trains or trams) and is used for the transportation of pe ...
s. The Royal Portbury Dock has the largest entrance lock into any UK port, accommodating vessels up to beam, length and draft. The
Avonmouth Docks
The Avonmouth Docks are part of the Port of Bristol, in England. They are situated on the northern side of the mouth of the River Avon, opposite the Royal Portbury Dock on the southern side, where the river joins the Severn estuary, within Avo ...
are on the north side of the river and are one of the UK's major ports for chilled foods, especially fruit and vegetables. The first dock at Avonmouth, Avonmouth Old Dock, was opened in 1877 and acquired by Bristol Corporation in 1884. In 1907, a much larger dock, the Royal Edward Dock, was opened. The docks form part of the
Port of Bristol
The Port of Bristol comprises the commercial docks situated in and near the city of Bristol in England. They are now operated by the Bristol Port Company, which owns both Avonmouth and Royal Portbury Docks. Until 1991 the Port of Bristol Authori ...
and were operated by the Port of Bristol Authority, part of
Bristol City Council
Bristol City Council is the local authority of Bristol, England. The council is a unitary authority, and is unusual in the United Kingdom in that its executive function is controlled by a directly elected mayor of Bristol. Bristol has 34 wards ...
, until 1991 when the council granted a 150-year lease to the Bristol Port Company. Pilotage is provided by Bristol Pilots LLP who supply authorised pilots for the River Avon and Bristol City docks, as well as the Severn estuary and the Bristol channel; they are based at Avonmouth Docks.
Hydrology and water quality
At Great Somerford the Avon has a mean flow rate of , and a typical river level range between and with a highest level of . At Melksham the Avon has a mean flow rate of . December 2013 was the highest level recorded at Bradford on Avon when the level reached with a normal range at the monitoring station being to . At Bathford the highest river level was also in December 2013 when it reached while the normal range is and , with a flow rate of .
In Bath at St James, which is upstream of Pultney Weir the mean flow is , with a similar flow () downstream of the weir. At the Destructor Bridge in Bath the typical height range is to with a high of also in December 2013.
At Saltford the range is to with a highest recording of on 24 December 2013. At Keynsham the typical range is between and . The highest was on 25 December 2013 when it reached . At Netham Weir where the new cut carries the flow away from Bristol Harbour the typical range for the depth of the river is to with the highest ever recorded being .
For the purpose of water quality monitoring and improvement the river is divided into several catchment management areas; South of Malmesbury, Bristol Avon Rural and Bristol Avon Urban. In the rural area 22 water bodies are classified as good, 46 as moderate and 8 as poor. The main reasons for not achieving good scores are pollution from waste water, agriculture and rural land management. In the urban area one water body is rated good, while 12 are rated moderate and one is poor. The pollution from upstream is added to by the effects of industry, manufacturing and other businesses and is significantly affected by physical modifications to the water course. Within the catchment area there are 137 river water bodies and 6 lakes; of these 22 percent of rivers are rated as good ecological status, 40 percent good for chemical status and 31 percent good for biological status.
Conservation areas
The river is important for its dragonfly communities, with a strong population of
Scarce Chaser (found in only six other areas in England), together with a strong population of
White-legged Damselfly.
Red-eyed Damselfly
''Erythromma najas'', the red-eyed damselfly, is a member of the Coenagrionidae family of damselfly, damselflies.
Appearance
The species is a small damselfly, long, predominantly black with iridescent blue markings. The male resembles blue-tai ...
is also found. The river is also important for aquatic plants, including
Loddon Pondweed.
The
Kellaways – West Tytherton Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...
, north east of
Chippenham
Chippenham is a market town
A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village ...
, is of geological interest as the river bank exposes
Callovian
In the geologic timescale, the Callovian is an age and stage in the Middle Jurassic, lasting between 166.1 ± 4.0 Ma (million years ago) and 163.5 ± 4.0 Ma. It is the last stage of the Middle Jurassic, following the Bathonian and preceding the ...
highly-fossiliferous sandstone which contains well-preserved
bivalves
Bivalvia (), in previous centuries referred to as the Lamellibranchiata and Pelecypoda, is a class of marine and freshwater molluscs that have laterally compressed bodies enclosed by a shell consisting of two hinged parts. As a group, bival ...
,
gastropods
The gastropods (), commonly known as snails and slugs, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda ().
This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, from freshwater, and from land. Ther ...
,
brachiopod
Brachiopods (), phylum Brachiopoda, are a phylum of trochozoan animals that have hard "valves" (shells) on the upper and lower surfaces, unlike the left and right arrangement in bivalve molluscs. Brachiopod valves are hinged at the rear end, w ...
s,
belemnites and
ammonites
Ammonoids are a group of extinct marine mollusc animals in the subclass Ammonoidea of the class Cephalopoda. These molluscs, commonly referred to as ammonites, are more closely related to living coleoids (i.e., octopuses, squid and cuttlefish) ...
. Further downstream at
Newton St Loe
Newton St Loe is a small Somerset village and civil parish located close to the villages of Corston and Stanton Prior, between Bath and Bristol in England. The majority of the village is owned by the Duchy of Cornwall. The parish has a populat ...
the
Newton St Loe SSSI
Newton St Loe SSSI () is a geological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) close to the River Avon, near the village of Newton St Loe in Bath and North East Somerset. It was notified on September 1992.It is 2.26 hectares in size.
The sit ...
is another
Geological Conservation Review
The Geological Conservation Review (GCR) is produced by the UK's Joint Nature Conservation Committee and is designed to identify those sites of national and international importance needed to show all the key scientific elements of the geological a ...
SSSI. It represents the only remaining known exposure of fossiliferous
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...
gravels along the River Avon. In conjunction with other sites within the wider area, it has aided the development of a scientific understanding of the history of early
glaciation
A glacial period (alternatively glacial or glaciation) is an interval of time (thousands of years) within an ice age that is marked by colder temperatures and glacier advances. Interglacials, on the other hand, are periods of warmer climate betw ...
within
South West England
South West England, or the South West of England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of the counties of Bristol, Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly), Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cities and ...
. The bodies of
mammoth
A mammoth is any species of the extinct elephantid genus ''Mammuthus'', one of the many genera that make up the order of trunked mammals called proboscideans. The various species of mammoth were commonly equipped with long, curved tusks and, ...
s (''Mammuthus'') and horses (''Equus'') have been found at the site.
![Newton Bridge, Bath c1806](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Newton_Bridge%2C_Bath_c1806.jpg)
The
Avon Gorge
The Avon Gorge () is a 1.5-mile (2.5-kilometre) long gorge on the River Avon in Bristol, England. The gorge runs south to north through a limestone ridge west of Bristol city centre, and about 3 miles (5 km) from the mouth of the r ...
has been designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest because it supports some rare fauna and flora, including species unique to the gorge. There are a total of 24 rare plant species and two unique trees: the
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
and
Wilmotts's whitebeams.
[BBC Bristol,]
The Avon Gorge – Bristol's Great Glacier?
." Retrieved 5 May 2006. Other notable plants include
Bristol Rock-cress,
Bristol onion,
Spiked Speedwell
''Veronica spicata'' (spiked speedwell; syn. ''Pseudolysimachion spicatum'') is a species of flowering plant in the family Plantaginaceae. It is tall and bears 1 foot long spikes with blue, pink, purple and white flowers.
It is the county flo ...
,
Autumn Squill
''Prospero autumnale'', the autumn squill, an autumnal flowering plant of the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, is found in the Mediterranean region from Portugal and Morocco east to Turkey and the Caucasus, plus Great Britain. Despite ...
and
Honewort. Other areas along the river which have this designation include
Bickley Wood,
Cleeve Wood, Hanham for its large population of Bath Asparagus (''
Ornithogalum pyrenaicum
''Ornithogalum pyrenaicum'', also called Prussian asparagus, wild asparagus, Bath asparagus, Pyrenees star of Bethlehem, or spiked star of Bethlehem, is a plant whose young flower shoots may be eaten as a vegetable, similar to asparagus
Asp ...
'').
Stidham Farm near
Keynsham
Keynsham ( ) is a town and civil parish located between Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. It has a population of 16,000.
It was listed in the Domesday Book as ''Cainesham'' (as it is pronounced), which is believed to mean the home of Sai ...
contains at least At least of
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...
terrace-gravels, consisting of
limestone
Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...
clasts
Clastic rocks are composed of fragments, or clasts, of pre-existing minerals and rock. A clast is a fragment of geological detritus,Essentials of Geology, 3rd Ed, Stephen Marshak, p. G-3 chunks, and smaller grains of rock broken off other rocks ...
mainly, but also with
Millstone Grit, Pennant
Sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...
, flint and chert clasts. The site is of considerable importance for studies relating to the possible glaciation of the area, and of the terrace
stratigraphy
Stratigraphy is a branch of geology concerned with the study of rock (geology), rock layers (Stratum, strata) and layering (stratification). It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary rock, sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks.
Stratigrap ...
, particularly as it is one of only two accessible terrace deposits in this part of the Avon valley.
Newton St Loe SSSI
Newton St Loe SSSI () is a geological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) close to the River Avon, near the village of Newton St Loe in Bath and North East Somerset. It was notified on September 1992.It is 2.26 hectares in size.
The sit ...
is also listed for geological reasons as it represents the only remaining known exposure of fossiliferous Pleistocene gravels along the River Avon. In conjunction with other sites within the wider area, they have aided the development of a scientific understanding of the history of early glaciation within
South West England
South West England, or the South West of England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of the counties of Bristol, Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly), Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cities and ...
.
[
At ]Horseshoe Bend, Shirehampton
Horseshoe Bend, Shirehampton () is an 11 acre (4.45 hectare) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Bristol, England, on the north bank of a lower, tidal stretch of the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, 1.9 miles (3 kilometres) do ...
the wooded cliff and a narrow salt marsh
A salt marsh or saltmarsh, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. It is dominated ...
are supported by rocks of Devonian sandstone and Carboniferous limestone
Carboniferous Limestone is a collective term for the succession of limestones occurring widely throughout Great Britain and Ireland that were deposited during the Dinantian Epoch of the Carboniferous Period. These rocks formed between 363 and ...
, overlain by with Triassic
The Triassic ( ) is a geologic period and system which spans 50.6 million years from the end of the Permian Period 251.902 million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Jurassic Period 201.36 Mya. The Triassic is the first and shortest period ...
Dolomitic
Dolomite () is an anhydrous carbonate mineral composed of calcium magnesium carbonate, ideally The term is also used for a sedimentary carbonate rock composed mostly of the mineral dolomite. An alternative name sometimes used for the dolomiti ...
conglomerate. The site's principal interest and the reason for its designation as an SSSI is the presence of a population of the true service-tree (''Sorbus domestica'') growing on the cliffs. This tree is nationally rare in Britain, and this site hosts the largest known population in England. Other notable species of ''Sorbus
''Sorbus'' is a genus of over 100 species of trees and shrubs in the rose family, Rosaceae. Species of ''Sorbus'' (''s.l.'') are commonly known as whitebeam, rowan ( mountain-ash) and service tree. The exact number of species is disputed depend ...
'' here are the whitebeams '' Sorbus eminens'' and ''Sorbus anglica
''Sorbus anglica'', the English whitebeam, is a species of whitebeam tree in the family Rosaceae. It is uncommonly found in Ireland and the United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the Un ...
'', both of which are also nationally rare in Britain. The nationally scarce large-leaved lime
''Tilia platyphyllos'', the large-leaved lime or large-leaved linden, is a species of flowering plant in the family Malvaceae (Tiliaceae). It is a deciduous tree, native to much of Europe, including locally in southwestern Great Britain, growing ...
(''Tilia platyphyllos'') also occurs, and herbs include field garlic Field garlic is a common name for several plants in the garlic genus, ''Allium'':
*'' Allium oleraceum''
*''Allium vineale
''Allium vineale'' (wild garlic, onion grass, crow garlic or stag's garlic) is a perennial, bulb-forming species of wild o ...
(''Allium oleraceum'') and pale St. John's-wort (''Hypericum montanum''). The saltmarsh vegetation, which lies at the base of the cliff, is predominantly made up of sea aster
''Tripolium pannonicum'', called sea aster or seashore aster and often known by the synonyms ''Aster tripolium'' or ''Aster pannonicus'', is a flowering plant, native to Eurasia and northern Africa, that is confined in its distribution to salt ma ...
(''Aster tripolium'') and English scurvygrass (''Cochlearia anglica''). There are however two nationally scarce vascular plant species here as well – slender hare's-ear (''Bupleurum tenuissimum'') and long-stalked orache (''Atriplex longipes'').
The tidal reaches of the River Avon provide habitat for waterbirds, with 64 species having been recorded up to 2004, including 21 species of shorebird
245px, A flock of Dunlins and Red knots">Red_knot.html" ;"title="Dunlins and Red knot">Dunlins and Red knots
Waders or shorebirds are birds of the order Charadriiformes commonly found wikt:wade#Etymology 1, wading along shorelines and mudflat ...
, and 13 species of gull
Gulls, or colloquially seagulls, are seabirds of the family Laridae in the suborder Lari. They are most closely related to the terns and skimmers and only distantly related to auks, and even more distantly to waders. Until the 21st century, m ...
.
Authorities
A catchment board for the Avon was created by the Land Drainage Act 1930
The Land Drainage Act 1930 was an Act of Parliament passed by the United Kingdom Government which provided a new set of administrative structures to ensure that drainage of low-lying land could be managed effectively. It followed the proposals of ...
and became the Bristol Avon River Board
River boards were authorities who controlled land drainage, fisheries and river pollution and had other functions relating to rivers, streams and inland waters in England and Wales between 1950 and 1965.
Background
Prior to the 1930s, land drain ...
under the River Boards Act 1948; the board was in turn replaced by the Bristol Avon River Authority River authorities controlled land drainage, fisheries and river pollution in rivers, streams and inland waters in England and Wales between 1965 and 1973.
Background
A royal commission, with Lord Bledisloe acting as its chairman, reported on the ...
under the Water Resources Act 1963
The Water Resources Act 1963 (1963 c.38) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that continued the process of creating an integrated management structure for water, which had begun with the passing of the Land Drainage Act 1930. It c ...
. Twenty-five minor watercourses were added to the Authority's jurisdiction in 1973. Reorganisation in 1974, under the Water Act 1973
The Water Act 1973 (1973 c.37) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reorganised the water, sewage and river management industry in England and Wales. Water supply and sewage disposal were removed from local authority control, ...
brought the Avon catchment into a new regional body, the Wessex Water Authority. Privatisation
Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...
saw responsibility for the catchment pass to the National Rivers Authority
The National Rivers Authority (NRA) was one of the forerunners of the Environment Agency of England and Wales, existing between 1989 and 1996.
Before 1989 the regulation of the aquatic environment had largely been carried out by the ten region ...
on its formation on 1 September 1989. In 1996 the authority became part of the Environment Agency
The Environment Agency (EA) is a non-departmental public body, established in 1996 and sponsored by the United Kingdom government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with responsibilities relating to the protection and enha ...
.
Navigation conservancy in the lower river from Avonmouth to the lock at Hotwells is the responsibility of The Bristol Port Company as both statutory and competent harbour authority. Navigation within Bristol's floating harbour is retained by Bristol City Council
Bristol City Council is the local authority of Bristol, England. The council is a unitary authority, and is unusual in the United Kingdom in that its executive function is controlled by a directly elected mayor of Bristol. Bristol has 34 wards ...
as statutory and competent harbour authority.
History
The distribution of archaeological finds suggests that the western end of the river between Bath and Avonmouth formed a border between the Dobunni
The Dobunni were one of the Iron Age tribes living in the British Isles prior to the Roman conquest of Britain. There are seven known references to the tribe in Roman histories and inscriptions.
Various historians and archaeologists have examined ...
and Durotriges
The Durotriges were one of the Celtic tribes living in Britain prior to the Roman invasion. The tribe lived in modern Dorset, south Wiltshire, south Somerset and Devon east of the River Axe and the discovery of an Iron Age hoard in 2009 at Shalfle ...
during the late Iron Age
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...
, prior to the Roman conquest of Britain
The Roman conquest of Britain refers to the conquest of the island of Britain by occupying Roman forces. It began in earnest in AD 43 under Emperor Claudius, and was largely completed in the southern half of Britain by 87 when the Staneg ...
. Further east, between Bath and what is now Wiltshire, it may also have formed a border of the territory ruled by the Belgae
The Belgae () were a large confederation of tribes living in northern Gaul, between the English Channel, the west bank of the Rhine, and the northern bank of the river Seine, from at least the third century BC. They were discussed in depth by Ju ...
. After the Roman occupation the river formed a boundary between the lands of the Hwicce
Hwicce () was a tribal kingdom in Anglo-Saxon England. According to the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'', the kingdom was established in 577, after the Battle of Deorham. After 628, the kingdom became a client or sub-kingdom of Mercia as a result of the ...
(which became Mercia
la, Merciorum regnum
, conventional_long_name=Kingdom of Mercia
, common_name=Mercia
, status=Kingdom
, status_text=Independent kingdom (527–879)Client state of Wessex ()
, life_span=527–918
, era=Heptarchy
, event_start=
, date_start=
, ye ...
) and the kingdom of Wessex
la, Regnum Occidentalium Saxonum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the West Saxons
, common_name = Wessex
, image_map = Southern British Isles 9th century.svg
, map_caption = S ...
.
The river Avon had been navigable from Bristol to Bath during the early years of the 13th century but construction of mills on the river forced its closure. The floodplain
A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...
of the Avon, on which the city centre of Bath is built, has an altitude of about above sea level
Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardised g ...
. The river, once an unnavigable series of braided streams broken up by swamp
A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...
s and ponds, has been managed by weir
A weir or low head dam is a barrier across the width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the river level. Weirs are also used to control the flow of water for outlets of l ...
s into a single channel. Periodic flooding, which shortened the life of many buildings in the lowest part of the city, was normal until major flood control works were completed in the 1970s.
The Bristol Avon Navigation, which runs the from the Kennet and Avon Canal at Hanham Lock to the Bristol Channel at Avonmouth, was constructed between 1724 and 1727, following legislation passed by Queen Anne, by a company of proprietors and the engineer John Hore
John HoreAlternative spellings of Hore's surname include "Hoar" and "Hoare" (baptised 13 March 1680 – 12 April 1763Other sources give Hore's year of birth as 1690, and year of death as 1762) was an English engineer, best known for making the Ri ...
of Newbury. The first cargo of 'Deal boards, Pig-Lead and Meal' arrived in Bath in December 1727. It is now administered by the Canal & River Trust
The Canal & River Trust (CRT), branded as in Wales, holds the guardianship of 2,000 miles of canals and rivers, together with reservoirs and a wide range of heritage buildings and structures, in England and Wales. Launched on 12 July 2012, the ...
.
Throughout Bristol's history the Avon Gorge
The Avon Gorge () is a 1.5-mile (2.5-kilometre) long gorge on the River Avon in Bristol, England. The gorge runs south to north through a limestone ridge west of Bristol city centre, and about 3 miles (5 km) from the mouth of the r ...
has been an important transport route, carrying the River Avon, major roads and two railways. The Bristol Channel has a very high tidal range of , second only to Bay of Fundy
The Bay of Fundy (french: Baie de Fundy) is a bay between the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, with a small portion touching the U.S. state of Maine. It is an arm of the Gulf of Maine. Its extremely high tidal range is the hi ...
in Eastern Canada
Eastern Canada (also the Eastern provinces or the East) is generally considered to be the region of Canada south of the Hudson Bay/Strait and east of Manitoba, consisting of the following provinces (from east to west): Newfoundland and Labrador, ...
; and the gorge is relatively narrow and meandering, making it notoriously difficult to navigate. Several vessels have grounded in the gorge including the ''SS Demerara'' soon after her launch in 1851, the schooner ''Gipsy'' in 1878, the steam tug ''Black Eagle'' in 1861 and the ''Llandaff City''.
In 1877, Halfpenny Bridge, a pedestrian toll bridge crossing the river from Bath Spa railway station
Bath Spa railway station is the principal station serving the city of Bath in South West England. It is on the Great Western Main Line, down the line from the zero point at between to the east and to the west. Its three-letter station code ...
to Widcombe
Widcombe is a district of Bath, England, immediately south-east of the city centre, across the River Avon.
The electoral ward was merged with Lyncombe at the boundary changes effected at the elections held on 2 May 2019; the two places have h ...
, collapsed with the loss of about 10 lives amongst a large crowd going to the Bath and West Agricultural show.
The Avon has flooded several times in its recorded history. These floods include the one in 1799/1800 damaging Pulteney Bridge
Pulteney Bridge is a bridge over the River Avon in Bath, England. It was completed by 1774, and connected the city with the land of the Pulteney family which it wished to develop. Designed by Robert Adam in a Palladian style, it is highly unu ...
. Various points along the river including the valley around Freshford are at risk of fluvial
In geography and geology, fluvial processes are associated with rivers and streams and the deposits and landforms created by them. When the stream or rivers are associated with glaciers, ice sheets, or ice caps, the term glaciofluvial or fluviog ...
flooding, as a result of sediment entering the river and narrowing the channel. To help cope with this some areas on the banks of the river are designated as a functional floodplain to cope with increased flow volumes. The potential changes to weather patterns as a result of climate change suggest that further measures are likely to be needed to protect the population from flooding risk. A tidal surge, combined with high water levels from the flooding of the surrounding area caused flooding in the city of Bristol.
Route and points of interest
See also
* Other Rivers Avon
* Photograph of the Clifton Suspension Bridge from Brunel Way
* Photograph of the estuary at Avonmouth
* Rivers of the United Kingdom
For details of rivers of the United Kingdom, see
* List of rivers of England
* List of rivers of Scotland
* List of rivers of Wales
* Northern Ireland: see List of rivers of Ireland and Rivers of Ireland
* Longest rivers of the United Kingdom
Ov ...
* Wife of Bath
"The Wife of Bath's Tale" ( enm, The Tale of the Wyf of Bathe) is among the best-known of Geoffrey Chaucer's ''The Canterbury Tales, Canterbury Tales''. It provides insight into the role of women in the Late Middle Ages and was probably of inte ...
References
External links
Bristol Avon Rivers Trust
{{DEFAULTSORT:Avon, Bristol
Bath and North East Somerset
Kennet and Avon Canal
Tributaries of the River Severn
Rivers of Gloucestershire
Rivers of Somerset
Rivers of Wiltshire
River navigations in the United Kingdom
Rivers of Bristol
Bristol Avon catchment