Travel and Tourism in Britain, 1700–1914

Allan Brodie

Volume 1: Travel and Destinations Texts in this volume draw on accounts by early travellers, from short factual lists to longer subjective descriptions. Documents show how eagerly new forms of transport were adopted and how they gave rise to different leisure activities and new destinations. Methods of travel covered include: early road travel by horse or wagon, river travel via sail and steamships, railways, the safety bicycle, motorized transport (charabancs, coaches, buses, cars and bicycles) and finally, air travel. General Introduction Editorial Principles Select Bibliography Part I: Travel Road Travel: G Keate, Sketches from Nature, 2 vols (1779), vol. 1, extract; S Shaw, A Tour to the West of England in 1788 (1789), extract; H B MacLellan, Journal of a Residence in Scotland (1834), extract Travel Writing: [Anon.], A Guide to Stage Coaches Mails Diligences Waggons ... [1795], extract Water Transport: J Greswell, Account of Runcorn and its Environs (1807), extract; J Chandler, The Seaman's Guide and New Coaster's Companion (1792), extract; J Cleland, Annals of Glasgow (1816), extract; C Guthrie, The Tourist's Companion (1822), extracts; E Parsons, The Tourist's Companion (1835), extracts; T H C, A Descriptive Tour in Scotland (1840), extract Travelling by Train: J Wyld, The London and Southampton Railway Guide (1839), extract; H B MacLellan, Journal of a Residence in Scotland (1834), extract; E Parsons, The Tourist's Companion (1835), extract; G Mansell, The London and Birmingham Railway Guide (1838), extracts New Transport: Royal Automobile Club, The Automobile Handbook (1904), extracts; [Ward, Lock & Co.], A Pictorial and Descriptive Guide to Cromer ... [1908], extracts; A J Wilson, Motor Trips at a Glance (1911), extracts; G C Home, The Motor Routes of England (1911), extract; [The Motor Union], The Motor Union of Great Britain and Ireland, British and Irish Handbook (c.1908), extract; C N Williamson and A M Williamson, The Lightning Conductor (1902), extract; R Greene, Cyclist, Northampton as a Cycling Centre, etc. (1889), extract; R Ferris, How to Fly (1910), extract Part II: Destinations London and Large Cities: J Macky, A Journey through England (1714), vol. 1, extracts; Rev W MacRitchie, Diary of a Tour through Great Britain in 1795 (1897), extracts; [Anon.], Sunday Walks, round London and Westminster (1795), extract; [Anon.], The Saturday Half-Holiday Guide to London and the Environs (1868), extract; A Gentleman of Oxford, The New Oxford Guide (1786), extract Exploring the Countryside: A Dennis, Journal of a Tour, through Great Part of England and Scotland (1816), extract; J J Hissey, A Holiday on the Road (1887), extract; J A Gotch, Holiday Journeys in Northamptonshire (1889), extract Country House Visiting: J Macky, A Journey through England (1722), vol. 2, extract; A F Hargrove, A Brief Description of Places of Public Interest in the County of York (1843), extract Wales: Reminiscences of a Gentlewoman of the Last Century: Letters of Catherine Hutton, ed. C Hutton Beale (1891), extract; G Lipscomb, Journey into South Wales (1802), extract Ireland: J Loveday, Diary of a Tour in 1732 through Parts of England, Wales Ireland and Scotland (1890), extract; E D Clarke, A Tour through the South of England, Wales and Part of Ireland (1793), extract; Adam and Charles Black, Black's Guide to Belfast, the Giant's Causeway and the North of Ireland (1888), extract Scotland: J Leyden, Journal of a Tour in the Highlands and Western Islands of Scotland (1903), extract; H B MacLellan, Journal of a Residence in Scotland (1834), extract In Search of the Present and Future: G F A Wendeborn, A View of England towards the Close of the Eighteenth Century, 2 vols (1791), vol. 1, extract; T Quincey, A Short Tour in the Midland Counties of England (1775), extract; S Glover, The Peak Guide (1830), extract Editorial Notes List of Sources Volume 2: Spa Tourism This volume traces the development of the spa from modest arrangements that emerged in the early modern period, to the large, thriving spa towns that existed in the nineteenth century. Documents show how spas evolved as well as the treatments they offered. Specific case studies of key spas - Bath, Tunbridge Wells and Cheltenham - are used to illustrate this process. Bath's popularity as a tourist destination grew throughout the eighteenth century. In the eighteenth century it was one of the most popular destinations in Britain. Royal Tunbridge Wells was its greatest rival, and both towns benefited from the patronage of celebrated dandy, Beau Nash. Cheltenham's fashionable status was ensured by a visit from George III and his court in 1788. Part I: Spas Introduction The Travels through England of Dr Richard Pococke, ed. J J Cartwright, 2 vols (1888), vol. 1, extract; O Goldsmith, The Life of Richard Nash, of Bath, Esq; Extracted Principally from his Original Papers (1762), extract; [Anon], Sunday Walks, round London and Westminster; to which are Added the Adventures of Two Young Gentlemen in and Near Town (1795), extracts; W F Mavor, The British Tourists; or, Traveller's Pocket Companion through England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, 6 vols (1798-1800), vol. 6, extract; A F Hargrove, A Brief Description of Places of Public Interest in the County of York, within Twenty-Six Miles of the City (1843), extracts The Science behind the Use of Mineral Waters: J Floyer, An Enquiry into the Right Use and Abuses of the Hot, Cold, and Temperate Baths in England, etc (1696), extract; J Atkins, A Compendious Treatise on the Contents, Virtues, and Uses of Cold and Hot Mineral Springs in General (c.1730), extract; Peter Shaw, An Enquiry into the Contents, Virtues and Uses of the Scarborough Spaw-Waters (1734), extract; J King, An Essay on Hot and Cold Bathing (1737), extract; R O Allsop, The Hydropathic Establishment and its Baths (1891), extracts Climate, Air and Sunshine in the Treatment of Patients: T B Burr, The History of Tunbridge-Wells (1766), extract; [J Sprange], The Directory: or, The Ancient and Present State of Tunbridge Wells (1816), extract; J Clark, The Influence of Climate in the Prevention and Cure of Chronic Diseases, More Particularly of the Chest and Digestive Organs (1829), extracts; J McPherson, The Baths and Wells of Europe (1873), extract; J Braun, On the Curative Effects of Baths and Waters: Being a Handbook to the Spas of Europe (1875), extracts; R F Fox, Strathpeffer Spa, its Climate and Waters (1889), extracts; H D Rawnsley, 'Sunlight or Smoke?', Contemporary Review (1890) Part II: Case Studies of Spas Bath: J Atkins, A Compendious Treatise on the Contents, Virtues, and Uses of Cold and Hot Mineral Springs in General (c.1730), extract; E D Clarke, A Tour through the South of England, Wales and Part of Ireland, Made during the Summer of 1791 (1793), extract; G S Carey, The Balnea, or, an Impartial Description of all the Popular Watering Places in England (1799), extract; E Lee, The Baths and Watering-Places of England, Considered with Reference to their Curative Efficacy (1848), extract Tunbridge Wells: J Macky, A Journey through England, 2 vols (1722), vol. 1, extract; T B Burr, The History of Tunbridge-Wells (1766), extract; [J Feltham], A Guide to all the Watering and Sea Bathing Places, with a Description of the Lakes; a Sketch of a Tour in Wales, and Itineraries (1803), extract; [J Sprange], The Directory (1816), extracts; J Evans, Recreation for the Young and the Old (1821), extract; J R Thomson, Pelton's Illustrated Guide to Tunbridge Wells (1893), extract Cheltenham: A Fothergill, A New Experimental Inquiry into the Nature and Qualities of the Cheltenham Water, etc (1785), extract; [D Williams], Royal Recollections on a Tour to Cheltenham, Gloucester, Worcester and Places Adjacent, in the Year 1788 (1788), extracts; E Lee, The Baths and Watering-Places of England, Considered with Reference to their Curative Efficacy (1848), extract; [Anon.], The New Cheltenham Guide (1861), extracts Editorial Notes List of Sources Volume 3: Seaside Holidays Over the course of the seventeenth century, medical writers and practitioners came to realise the health-giving properties of the seaside environment. By the early eighteenth century, this scientific interest was spreading to wealthy people in search of a rest cure. Bathing in the sea, drinking the waters and spending time in the bracing air became a widespread activity, and by the nineteenth century this had expanded thanks to extensive advertising and publicity about its beneficial effects. Specific forms of entertainment also developed, such as piers, aquaria, winter gardens and cinemas. Introduction The Development of the Seaside Holiday Part I: Health and the Seaside Science and Practice of Sea Bathing The Medical Value of Seawater at Scarborough: J Atkins, A Compendious Treatise on the Contents, Virtues, and Uses of Cold and Hot Mineral Springs in General (c.1730), extract; T Short, The Natural, Experimental, and Medicinal History of the Mineral Waters of Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, and Yorkshire (1734), extract; A Relhan, A Short History of Brighthelmston (1761), extract; [T G], A Description of the Isle of Thanet (1765), extract; G Keate, Sketches from Nature, 2 vols (1779), vol. 1, extract; J Harvey, Harvey's Improved Weymouth Guide, etc (c.1800), extract; T Hinderwell, History and Antiquities of Scarborough (1811) The Role of Medical Practitioners: J Awsiter, Thoughts on Brightelmston (1768), extracts; T Reid, Directions for Warm and Cold Seabathing (1795), extract; J Crane, Cursory Observations on Sea-Bathing (1795), extract; J H Packard, Sea-Air and Sea-Bathing (1881), extract Medical Institutions: T Hinderwell, History and Antiquities of Scarborough (1811), extract; H Mahomed, The Bath; a Concise History of Bathing, as Practised by Nations of the Ancient and Modern World (1843), extract; [Anon.], The Visitor's New Guide ... to the Isle of Thanet, etc (1850), extract; [Keble], Keble's Illustrated Penny Guide to the Isle of Thanet, Margate, etc (c.1886), extract; London Samaritan Society and Homerton Mission, Particulars of Beach Rocks Sea-Side Convalescent Home, Sandgate, Kent (c.1895), extract; J Hatton, Deaf-and-Dumb Land (1896), extracts Air, Sun and Climate: The History of Great Yarmouth by Henry Manship, ed. C J Palmer (1854), extract; A Relhan, A Short History of Brighthelmston (1761), extracts; R Sickelmore, History of Brighton and its Environs, from the Earliest Period to the Present Time (1827), extras; T Shapter, The Climate of the South of Devon (1842), extracts; P Brannon, The Illustrated Historical and Picturesque Guide to Poole and Bournemouth (1856), extract; J H Packard, Sea-Air and Sea-Bathing (1881), extract Part II: Entertainment J Harvey, Harvey's Improved Weymouth Guide, etc (c.1800), extract; [Anon.], An Historical Guide to Great Yarmouth, in Norfolk (1806), extract; W Batcheller, A New History of Dover (1828), extracts; [Anon.], The Guide to Hayling Island Havant, in the County of Hants (1843), extract; P Brannon, The Illustrated Historical and Picturesque Guide to Poole and Bournemouth, and the Surrounding Country (1856), extract The Master of Ceremonies and Subscribing for Entertainment: O Goldsmith, The Life of Richard Nash, of Bath, Esq (1762), extracts; J Sprange, The Tunbridge Wells Guide (1786), extract; [T G], A Description of the Isle of Thanet (1765), extract; [Anon.], A Journey from London to Scarborough, in Several Letters (1734), extract Assembly Rooms: 'On the Polite Assembly, the Ball and Other Recreations at the Long Room. By Mr D' (1733), extract; [Anon.], Letters of Momus, from Margate (1778), extract; G Keate, Sketches from Nature (1779), vol. 2, extract Circulating Libraries: T Wilson, The Use of Circulating Libraries Considered (1797), extracts; J P [J B Papworth, F Wrangham and W Combe], Poetical Sketches of Scarborough (1813), extract; E Hargrove, A Catalogue of Hargrove's Circulating Library at Harrogate (1801), extracts; [Anon.], A Catalogue of a Collection of Books, containing the Epsom Circulating Library (1823), extracts Theatres: J P [J B Papworth, F Wrangham and W Combe], Poetical Sketches of Scarborough (1813), extract Piers, Towers and New Attractions: [Anon.], Holidays at Brighton; or, Sea-side Amusements (1834), extract; J G Bishop, The Brighton Chain Pier: in Memoriam (1896), extracts; [Anon.], Life beneath the Waves, and a Description of the Brighton Aquarium (1871), extract An Interest in Nature: Frederick FAG [J Johnson], The Recess or Autumnal Relaxation in the Highlands and Lowlands (1834), extracts; P H Gosse, Tenby: A Sea-Side Holiday (1856), extract; R W Fraser, The Seaside Naturalist (1868), extracts Tourism at the Giant's Causeway: P D Hardy, The Northern Tourist (1830), extracts; Adam and Charles Black, Black's Guide to Belfast, the Giant's Causeway and the North of Ireland (1888) Royalty and Tourism: [D Williams], Royal Recollections on a Tour to Cheltenham, Gloucester, Worcester and Places Adjacent, in the Year 1788 (1788), extract; W Lee, Ancient and Modern History of Lewes and Brighthelmston (1795), extract; J Harvey, Harvey's Improved Weymouth Guide, etc (c.1800), extract; J Evans, Recreation for the Young and the Old (1821), extract; R Sickelmore, History of Brighton and its Environs, from the Earliest Period to the Present Time (1827), extract; T Cook, Cook's Scottish Tourist Official Directory (1861); Routledge's Jubilee Guide to London and its Suburbs (1887) Part III: Accommodation 'On the Elegant Entertainment and Mix'd Company at the Ordinaries' (1733), extract; [T G], A Description of the Isle of Thanet (1765), extract; [J Hatfield], A New Scarborough Guide (1797), extract; J Harvey, Harvey's Improved Weymouth Guide, etc (c.1800), extract; J D Parry, An Historical and Descriptive Account of the Coasts of Sussex, Brighton, Eastbourn, Hastings, St Leonard's, Rye, Chichester and Tonbridge Wells (1833), extract; J H Packard, Sea-Air and Sea-Bathing (1881), extract; [Anon.], Scarborough: The Queen of Watering Places (1900), extracts Editorial Notes List of Sources Volume 4: Seaside Resorts The final volume presents case studies of four major seaside resorts: Scarborough, Margate, Brighton and Blackpool. Scarborough evolved from a spa town to a seaside resort. Margate became a coastal resort from scratch and became one of the earliest sites of mass tourism. Brighton had sea bathers by the 1730s and its early development followed a similar path to that of Margate, but its royal connections allowed its rapid growth into a large town with high quality accommodation. When the railway arrived at Blackpool in 1846 it was a large village. Thirty years later it had two piers and a large hotel. Its steady growth was due to the stream of working class visitors from the local hinterland of major industrial towns and cities. Introduction Scarborough J Taylor, Journey to Edenborough in Scotland (1903), extract; [Anon.], A Journey from London to Scarborough, in Several Letters (1734), extract; Selection of Poems, The Scarborough Miscellany (1732), extracts; Mr D-k, 'On the Virtues of Scarborough-Spaw Water, and the Humours of Dickey' (1703), extract. Famous Visitors: Mr P-s, 'On the Poet Laureat's (C-r) Arrival at Scarborough to Drink the Waters' (1734), extract; Mr D-s, 'An Invitation to Her Royal Highness Princess Amelia' (1734), extract. Love and Romance: [Anon.], 'On a Sight of the Ladies Bathing at Sea' (1733), extract; Mr Ph-ps, 'On the Ladies Bathing in the Sea, at Scarborough' (1734), extract. J Schofield, An Historical and Descriptive Guide to Scarborough and its Environs (1787), extract; [J Hatfield], A New Scarborough Guide (1797), extracts; G S Carey, The Balnea, or, an Impartial Description of all the Popular Watering Places in England (1799), extracts; [J Feltham], A Guide to all the Watering and Sea Bathing Places (1803), extract; J P [J B Papworth, F Wrangham and W Combe], Poetical Sketches of Scarborough (1813), extract; A B Granville, The Spas of England and Principal Sea-Bathing Places (1841), extract; E Lee, The Baths and Watering-Places of England (1848), extract; W Wheater, Handbook for Tourists in Yorkshire (1891), extract Margate J Macky, A Journey Through England (1714), extract; The Travels through England of Dr Richard Pococke, ed. J J Cartwright (1889), vol. 2, extract; [T G], A Description of the Isle of Thanet, and Particularly of the Town of Margate (1765), extract; [Anon.], The Margate Guide (1780), extract; W Kidd, The Picturesque Pocket Companion (1831), extracts; [Anon.], The Visitor's New Guide ... to the Isle of Thanet, etc (1850), extracts; [Keble], Keble's Illustrated Penny Guide to the Isle of Thanet, Margate, etc (c.1886), extracts Travelling to Margate: [Anon.], A Trip to Margate, a Poetical Epistle ... (1802), extract; W Camden, The Steam-Boat Pocket Book (1835), extract; [Anon.], The Visitor's New Guide ... to the Isle of Thanet, etc (1850), extract; J A Manson, Daily Sea Trips (1913), extract Margate and the Class of Visitors: [Anon.], Letters of Momus, from Margate (1778), extract; G Keate, Sketches from Nature (1779), extract; G S Carey, The Balnea: or, an Impartial Description of all the Popular Watering Places in England (1799), extract; A Cockney, 'A Week's Journal at Margate' (1823), extract Brighton A Relhan, A Short History of Brighthelmston (1761), extracts; W Lee, Ancient and Modern History of Lewes and Brighthelmston (1795), extracts; G S Carey, The Balnea, or, an Impartial Description of all the Popular Watering Places in England (1799), extract; R Sickelmore, History of Brighton and its Environs, from the Earliest Period to the Present Time (1827), extracts; J D Parry, An Historical and Descriptive Account of the Coasts of Sussex ... (1833), extracts Blackpool W Hutton, A Description of Blackpool, in Lancashire (1789); P Whittle, Marina or an Historical and Descriptive Account of Southport ... (1831), extract; W Thornber, Historical and Descriptive Account of Blackpool and its Neighbourhood (1837), extracts; [Anon.], Illustrated Guide to Blackpool and District, etc (1891), extract; Blackpool Aviation Week. October 18th to 23rd, 1909, etc (Official Programme-Souvenir) (1909) Editorial Notes List of Sources Index