The Westgate suburb contains not just the main street but a collection of side streets that lead off the main road. This is part two of a series designed to present each of these in their own right. You can read about Mount Lane here. We do re-use material from elsewhere that risks being missed… Continue reading Henty Gardens & The Maltings
Category: Historic
A deeper dive into the historical perspectives on our streets
Mount Lane
The Westgate suburb contains not just the main street but a collection of side streets that lead off the main road. This is part one of a series designed to present each of these in their own right. You can read about Henty Gardens and The Maltings here. It does re-use some material from earlier… Continue reading Mount Lane
The road we call Westgate (updated)
This is a comprehensive rewrite and expansion of my original 2017 post, recently undertaken by Dr Richard Brownfield. It pulls together a lot of different sources and is as full a historic description of the street as can be achieved. A major piece of research and a fascinating read. Westgate is the road that left… Continue reading The road we call Westgate (updated)
The Chichester Walls and Gates
The Roman army, after landing at Fishbourne in AD 43, set up a camp on the site which is now modern Chichester and fortified it with a wooden wall. The town was laid out on a grid with the main streets North and South Street, East and West Street, which crossed in the centre of… Continue reading The Chichester Walls and Gates
The Lavant River
In Sussex dialect a ‘Lavant´ is a winterbourne, which means it only flows during the winter. In C15th documents in the West Sussex Records Office it is also spelt as ‘Louente’ and ‘Lavent’. Most rivers start from a ‘spring’ and gather water from tributaries as they flow downhill. The Lavant river is different. Its water… Continue reading The Lavant River
Westgate Archaeology
This section is edited from articles published by Colin Hicks on the original Westgate Residents Association Website, which were adapted with their permission from an archaeological desk-based assessment prepared by SLR Consulting Ltd on behalf of Chichester College in 2013. Richard Brownfield has very usefully brought these all together, updated and developed them to create a… Continue reading Westgate Archaeology
The Parklands Estate
The parklands estate lies to the north of Westgate, bordering the back gardens of the houses on that side. It was built on farmland that had belonged to the church; indeed, the land sold in 1878 for the St Bartholomew’s vicarage, which became number 74, was owned by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners. However, by the 20th… Continue reading The Parklands Estate
The other branch of the Shippam Family
In our article on nos. 27-39 Westgate, much space has been given to the Shippam grocery business which occupied this site in the 19th century. This was not however the famous Shippam family of the Shippam Pastes. That business was founded by a different member of the family but, confusingly with the same name. This… Continue reading The other branch of the Shippam Family
A Chichester History
Chichester is the only city in Sussex and owes its existence entirely to the Romans. There is no evidence of any form of a major settlement in the area before their arrival. The local iron age people lived in farmsteads rather than towns, although they were organised and there is evidence of considerable trade with… Continue reading A Chichester History
Westgate Timeline
43CE The Roman Second Legion land at Fishbourne and set up camp on the site which will become the palace of Togidubnus, vassal king of the Regni. Later they march inland under the command of Vespasian, probably along the track which was to become Westgate. They set up a winter camp on the flat plain… Continue reading Westgate Timeline