This week's visit to the St Albans' Own East End book cover is represented by
a former turnpike milepost, this one at Fleetville Recreation ground.,
We cannot be unaware of a number of mile posts along Hatfield Road, as well as a surviving one on St Stephens Hill. They are certainly not current types, quite apart from the reason we no longer mark miles along ordinary roads. This second of a series, as shown above, appeared on the front cover of the first volume of the book St Albans' Own East End. It had appeared on the top row, and many residents of the Fleetville locality may recognise it standing outside the Fleetville Recreation Ground. Many people today refer to it as Fleetville Park.
One side of the Fleetville milepost which was altered at some point
when the work of two trusts were extended as far as Ware.
There was nothing particularly special about this, and other mile markers, for, all over the country, there were what were known as Turnpike Roads, generally operated by trusts, and in most cases built by them when not maintained by the parishes through which they passed. The theory was that turnpike roads would be maintained to a reasonably common standard using funds collected by those who travelled along them according to the distance with their animals and vehicles; not necessarily for every single journey, but sufficiently regularly to encourage income.
You would not recognise the place today but this was how the Peacock PH looked in the mid
19th century. It is possible the toll payment booth was on the left; travellers leaving
St Albans for Hatfield would pay here, but travel from here across the town was not
chargeable.
COURTESY ST ALBANS MUSEUMS
The road which interests us is the Reading and Hatfield Turnpike for the obvious reason a single Trust was responsible for collecting the fees, or tolls between these two towns. While it was eventually a legal responsibility for trusts to set up a labelled mile post for each mile of roadway, the number and location of toll charging points did not always compare with the location of mile markers. In a similar way we may be charged to travel today by bus or coach a given distance, and it might be for a single journey, a return journey, perhaps with an animal, luggage or child! There may be no charge at all through the centre of a town – but only by agreement between the borough authority and the road trust; as happened in St Albans.
The letter of the law might prevail to maintain good order, either to ensure travellers are charged correctly, or that travellers do not pass along nearby private land to avoid payment. Many newspapers carried reports of such contraventions. There was also reportage of trusts not maintaining their road sections correctly, and the roads might have been just as potholed as they can be today!
This was a tolled road between Colney Heath and the Great North Road; the clue lies
in the name of the farm!
COURTESY NATIONAL LIBRARY OF SCOTLAND
The Great North Road, along London Road, for example was an example of one of our Turnpike Roads, although there is now little or no evidence of its 19th century existence.
The building on the left at Horseshoes, now Smallford, protected a gated
road opposite the Three Horseshoes PH. The gates were removed
shortly before the final tolls were charged in 1890.
COURTESY HERTS ADVERTISER
The Reading and Hatfield , however, still shows evidence of a continuous line of mile markers from Ellenbrook, Popefield, Oaklands, Fleetville, The Peacock PH and St Stephen's Hill. All others are probably now buried on the spot at the beginning of World War 2 when signs were removed to confuse the enemy if they invaded. The above remaining examples either evaded removal or were promptly returned when Peace was restored.
The change from Turnpike Trusts (and privately owned sections of roads) to local highway boards and then highway authorities took place nationally over a lengthy period of time; Hatfield Road and St Albans Road East was one of the last in 1890. We also know that the Fleetville Milepost today is not in its original location, having been moved "along the road" from halfway along Bycullah Terrace when one of its properties was altered to create a new shop frontage.
Along this same stretch of toll road there were also toll collecting cottages at side road entrances to Camp Road, Sutton Road and Colney Heath Lane, and across the main road at Roe Hyde, Horseshoes (Smallford) and Peacock Public House. Payment tree-commenced at the foot of Holywell Hill for onward travel towards Rickmansworth.
On a new section of the North Orbital road just south of the Hummingbird Junction (the former
Noke Hotel) in the 1930s. Children are being escorted across the road on their way home
from their new school in Bricket Wood back to Chiswell Green. Along the verge on the right
is the Noke Lane/Lye Lane white mile marker indicating the presence of mileposts south of
the city before World War Two though none remains today.
COURTESY HERTS ADVERTISER
Many accounts and stories (which may or may not be true) here recorded of travel along the local turnpike; not all of which have satisfactory or true conclusions, including the most commonly repeated suggestions concerning members of the Salisbury family.
Portion of a painting by John Westall showing the Hut Toll gate and house in Colney Heath
Lane near its junction with Hatfield Road. There is no evidence of it today.
Whatever we do or don't know about the turnpike roads they were all part of our east end local story – including incidents of embezzlement, favouritism, laziness in office, and more.
What life might have been different if payment in the 18th and 19th century could have made using an early day version of a travel Oyster card!
