Until the 17th century, travellers used the old roman road and avoided travelling though the wild Forest of Bere. Once the naval port was established in Portsmouth by Henry VIII, a quicker, more direct route was needed. Documents testify to the poor state of this new route, reporting that for most of the year it was virtually impassable. The route through the forest lie beyond parish responsibility, so there was no funding for maintenance.

Local landowners, businessmen and government officials met on the 7th of June 1711 to discuss a solution. Following the example of the first The Turnpike Act of parliament in 1663 (Tankard, 2009), they founded the Turnpike Trust and appointed themselves Commissioners (Reger). They declared that the road conditions were “dangerous to her Majesties subjects passing and repassing with horses, carts and carriages”. Besides travellers to the port, this route was essential for the Royal Mail. The Turnpike Trust decided to take control of the road between Portsmouth and Sheet Bridge (north of Petersfield). The commissioners raised loans to improve the road (at a cost of £9,000) (Reger), and levied a toll on travellers to raise the money to repay these debts and for road maintenance. The Portsmouth to Petersfield London road became one of forty toll roads in Hampshire (SABRE, 2023), and continued to collect a toll for the next 160 years (Jones, 2015 Vol 1).

The term Turnpike is ambiguous. Some sources say that it refers to the construction of the gate from a framework of pikes (weapons) that could be turned to allow access (Rosevear, 2008), others say it refers to pikes set vertically on top of the gate to prevent horses jumping over (Farnborough Village History , 2024). Many historical images, such as this one at Farnborough, show simple wooden gates stretching across the road, next to the tollhouse, where the collector lived (Farnborough Village History , 2024).

The Turnpike Trust employed two toll collectors to be stationed at the gates. The first employee at Portsbridge was John Keate. He was provided with a house and a salary of 10s 6d a week. Thomas Willard, the collector at Sheet Bridge, was only supplied a shelter and paid even less at 7s a week. Within the first year, Keate had been found guilty of fraud and was dismissed. The gate was moved to Cosham High Street and the wages of the new collector were increased to 14s a week (Reger) Although paid less than an agricultural worker, the work was not strenuous, and the collectors were exempt from Parish taxes. But, the work was unsocial, as they were expected to collect tolls and operate the gate day and night and keep records of each toll levied (Tankard, 2009).

A table of tolls was attached to the toll house, detailing the different fees payable, depending on who and what was passing. A charge was levied for each horse pulling a coach or cart, and wagons were charged by wheel size, weight and type of load. Fees were payable for other animals too, such as oxen, cattle, sheep, and pigs. There were some exemptions, such as Royal Mail coaches which could pass without charge, local farmers going to market, and soldiers in uniform on active service. There were many complicated rules and exemptions, and it was up to the toll collector to determine and enforce the fees, by weighing, measuring and fining where necessary.

Two additional gates were added to the road in the late 18th or early 19th century at Horndean and Purbrook. This was to try to stop travellers cheating the toll by diverting off the road. Several landowners along the route had been found guilty of permitting access across their land to avoid the toll (Reger). Account books show that half of the money collected went on administration and salaries, one tenth on interest and only forty percent on maintenance of the road. The road rarely made a profit and the agreed time periods for collection of the tolls were extended many times (Reger).

With a better road surface, travel times between Portsmouth and Petersfield, and ultimately London sped up. In the 1770s, Royal Mail coaches left the Blue Posts Tavern in Old Portsmouth at 2pm each day, arriving in London at 6am the following morning, a journey time of 16 hours. In the early 1800’s, ‘Rocket’, a horse-drawn coach run by Vicat and Co, reached London in just nine hours (Reger).

By 1835, 16 horse-drawn coaches operated the Portsmouth to London route, picking up passengers from coaching inns on the way (Jones, 2015 Vol 1). Travelling times varied from 10-24 hours and prices varied according to the speed of the service. In 1805, an inside ticket on a fast coach cost 1 guinea (equates to £1.05 in 2024) or an outside ticket was 6s 6d (33p), whereas an inside ticket on a slower service cost 6s 6d (33p). Travelling by coach was not entirely luxurious. When ascending a steep hill, inside passengers were expected to get out and walk, while outside passengers were expected to help push! (Reger).

The coaching inn The Heroes of Waterloo was the first or last stop on the journey to London or halfway for those travelling to Petersfield. The Heroes was a place where both horses and travellers could rest and eat and was equipped with a paddock and stabling for 24 horses (Jones, 2015 Vol 1). To increase speed, several coach companies changed horses at The Heroes (Reger).

Better roads brought more visitors to the villages it passed through. Homes advertised rooms to let, new houses were built, and new shops and business opened. William’s guidebook published in 1910 described Waterlooville as “A very modern and up to date village, the residence of many influential Portsmouth people ... The shops also will bear comparison with those in much larger towns” (Jones, 2015 Vol 1).

The coming of the railways in the Victorian era signalled the end for the turnpike road. The Royal Mail swapped to rail service in 1849, as did many passengers. By 1860, the road traffic had steeply declined, and the road itself was said to be decaying. Toll collection finally ceased in 1871 when the Turnpike was closed by parliamentary order (Jones, 2015 Vol 1). The legacy of the turnpike age remains in our modern road systems. The A3 and the B2070 essentially follows the old turnpike road, which is still lined by some of the original coaching inns and milestones.

 

 

Bibliography

Facebook. (2023, 04 17). Retrieved from Weald and Downland Museum: https://www.facebook.com/photo/fbid=608982707936129&set=pcb.608985211269212

Farnborough Village History. (2024, 12 30). Retrieved from https://www.farnborough-kentvillage.org.uk/turnpike_system.html

Jones. (2015 Vol 1). The Early Years of Waterlooville 180-1910 and A History of the Forest of Bere. Retrieved from https://archive.org/details/TheEarlyYearsOfWaterlooville1810-1910AndAHistoryOfTheForestOfBere/page/n7/mode/2up

Reger, A. J. (n.d.). A History of Waterlooville and District. In Havant Borough History Booklet No. 58.

Rosevear, A. (2008, 01 11). Retrieved from http://www.turnpikes.org.uk/

SABRE. (2023, 06 27). The Society for all British and Irish Road Enthusiasts . Retrieved from https://www.sabreroads.org.uk/wiki/index.php?title=Hampshire_Turnpikes&form=MG0AV3

Tankard, D. (2009). Weald and Downland Museum. Retrieved from https://www.wealddown.co.uk/wpcontent/uploads/2014/10/BEEDING_2009_11_WDOAM_Magazine.pdf?building=263