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The Great Ouse river is 150 miles (240 km) long
which makes it the major navigation in East
Anglia, and the fourth-longest river in the
United Kingdom. The lower reaches of the Great
Ouse are also known as "Old West River" and "the
Ely Ouse". The name Ouse is Celtic or pre-Celtic,
and probably means simply "water".
The river has several sources close to the
villages of Syresham and Sulgrave in
Northamptonshire. It flows through Brackley,
Buckingham, Milton Keynes at Stony Stratford,
Newport Pagnell, Olney, Bedford, St Neots,
Godmanchester, Huntingdon, Hemingford Grey, St
Ives, the cathedral city of Ely, Littleport,
Downham Market and enters The Wash at King's
Lynn.
Locks make the river navigable upstream to
Bedford. The locks from Brownshill to Eaton Socon
were rebuilt in the 1930s when this part of the
river was restored by the newly formed Great Ouse
Catchment Board. Prior to the 1950s the river
below Denver was kept clear by the flow from the
Great Ouse but since then the relief channel has
been built to divert these waters and the bed of
the river has risen by about a metre.
The Great Ouse Restoration Society was formed and
in 1963 legislation enabled the River Authority
to licence boats and charge fees, at last
providing money for navigation to a body mainly
concerned with drainage. In 1978 the final lock
at Castle Mills was completed and navigation to
Bedford was restored.
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Just one or two miles to the west of Bedford the
river runs through the village of Biddenham prior
to its entry into the town.
Bromham Bridge is, for a large part of its
length, actually in the parish of Biddenham, the
parish boundary running along the eastern bank of
the Great Ouse. It has 26 arches. Although at
first glance appearing to be of medieval origin
it is, however, largely a product of the
rebuilding of 1813 though a bridge had existed
since the early Middle Ages.
Bedfordshire and Luton Archives and Records
Service gives a brief history of the bridge
:
"The first known reference to it is in the Pipe
Rolls for 1224 and again in 1227/8 where a piece
of land is noted as bounding "Wuluescroft towards
the bridge of Biddenham" - an adjoining cottage
was occupied by Hugh de Ponte - Hugh Bridge. The
Dunstable Chronicles state that after a long
spell of freezing weather in 1281 the bridge
collapsed, a woman falling into the river and
being carried as far as Bedford Bridge "where she
was seen no more".
"A chantry chapel existed at the bridge where a
priest prayed for the soul of the founder and
collected alms to go towards keeping it in
repair. This chantry was suppressed by Henry VIII
in 1545 though it was not until the reign of his
son Edward VI that it was assessed for value: its
last incumbent had been a Frenchman named Peter
Weyver. By this time the chantry owned a number
of nearby cottages and strips of land as well as
a more substantial farm in Kempston, Biddenham
and Bromham. Quarry pits in Bromham were also
owned from which, of course, the stone was taken
to keep the bridge in repair.
The chantry was finally closed in 1553 and Weyver
was given a pension of £5 per year. The
Willey Hundred states that at the time of
publication, 1870, the remains of the chantry
were still visible in the miller's house on the
Bromham side of the river but the 'Victoria County
History' notes that this house was pulled down and
replaced before publication of that volume in
1912."
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"The bridge was repaired in 1681 and again in
1685, the latter being borne out by an
inscription on the bridge itself recording the
fact, the cost was over £230, a very large
sum indeed for that time. The bridge seems to
have been repaired again in 1724 since the parish
records speak of "gathering up the Coping Stones
out of the river" and using nearly a hundred
loads of stones. Minor repairs are recorded in
1738, 1742 and 1752. A thorough repair of the
wider part of the bridge in 1791 included
"Takeing Down all the Bad Places and Repairing
Throuout". The next year it was presented at
Quarter Sessions that "the Horseway and Footway
Bridge" was in "great decay".
"The bridge was widened in 1813, taking its
present 26 arch form, the width being increased
from 6ft over the flood plain and 11ft 6in over
the river itself. The 6ft stretch was for horses
and people on foot, the wider stretch, approached
by a separate road from Biddenham, for carts. The
main arches over the river were again widened and
rebuilt in 1902."
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Set on the River Great Ouse, Bromham Mill is a
17th century restored watermill (right). Flour milling
and baking take place regularly, along with lots
of other craft and countryside activities. Two
galleries show contemporary art and craftwork
including textiles, ceramics and glass.
Refreshments are served overlooking the river and
the surrounding water meadow is ideal for a
picnic.
There has been a mill on the site of Bromham
Mill since before the domesday survey in 1086.
For centuries, the enormous wheel was turned only
by the water of Great Ouse. In the 1920’s a
steam engine was installed to provide extra power
but by then water mill processing had almost
become obsolete.
In the early years, the mill provided for a
self-sufficient community. The river not only
powered the machinery but was also full of eels
and other wildlife. There was a
blacksmith’s shop next door and pigs were
reared on apples from the orchard and sweepings
of grain, and flour. Traditionally, millers made
gear teeth out of apple wood which was always
available from the orchard.
Today, the mill once again grinds flour in much
the same way as it used to but this time to
provide for the visiting tourists.
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The Embankment Gardens were linked to Mill
Meadows on the other side of the river by the
Suspension Bridge in 1888 (left and
below).
Bedford Park to the north of the town was
inaugurated on the same day as the opening of the
bridge.
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The 'butterfly' bridge (left) is
situated near the suspension bridge approximately
200 metres downstream. In June 1998 Prince
Charles was given a warm welcome to Bedford when
he came to name and open bridge.
"More than 500 people turned out to see the
Prince, who was greeted by the Mayor, Councillor
Tony Ruffin, (with whom he is pictured below) and
Council Leader Councillor Shan Hunt.
"The bridge was built following a national
design competition organised by the Borough
Council and the Royal Institute of British
Architects (RIBA) in 1995. The brief was to
create a memorable landmark to symbolise the end
of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st
century. Seventy nine design entries were
received. The winning design was by C. Wilkinson
and Partners (Architects) and Jan Bobrowski and
Partners (Engineers) and has won national and
international acclaim in a number of
architectural journals.
"Borough Engineer, David Logan, said, 'The
design and construction of the bridge is of
outstanding quality. A company of international
standing undertook the job. The architects have
demonstrated real vision and technical expertise
and I feel this is endorsed by the fact that the
Prince of Wales has shown such a positive
interest.'"
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One of the weirs joining the upper river to the
lower river (right)
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A quiet stretch of the lower river
(left). The recently built leisure centre is
in the background.
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The east end of the upper river (right)
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