| MILES | |
|---|---|
| London (General Post Office) to— | |
| Islington (the “Angel”) | 1¼ |
| Highgate Archway | 4¼ |
| East End, Finchley | 5¾ |
| Brown’s Wells, Finchley Common (“Green Man”) | 7 |
| North Finchley: “Tally-ho Corner” | 7½ |
| Whetstone | 9¼ |
| Greenhill Cross | 10¼ |
| Barnet | 11¼ |
| South Mimms | 14½ |
| Ridge Hill | 16 |
| London Colney (Cross River Colne.) | 17½ |
| St. Albans (“Peahen”) | 20¾ |
| Redbourne | 25 |
| Friar’s Wash | 27½ |
| Markyate | 29 |
| Dunstable | 33½ |
| Hockliffe | 37½ |
| Sheep Lane | 41 |
| Little Brickhill | 45 |
| Fenny Stratford (Cross River Ousel.) | 48 |
| Stony Stratford | 52¼ |
| Old Stratford (Cross River Ouse.) | 52¾ |
| Potterspury | 55 |
| Havencote Houses | 59 |
| Towcester (“Pomfret Arms”) (Cross River Towe.) | 60¼ |
| Foster’s Booth (Cross River Nen.) | 64 |
| Weedon Beck (Watling Street branches off from Holyhead Road.) | 68 |
| Dodford | 68¾ |
| Daventry | 72½ |
| Braunston | 75¾ |
| Willoughby | 77 |
| Dunchurch | 80¼ |
| Ryton-on-Dunsmore (Cross River Avon.) | 84½ |
| Willenhall (Cross River Sow.) | 88¾ |
| Coventry (“King’s Head”) | 91¼ |
| Allesley | 93¾ |
| Meriden | 97 |
| Stonebridge (Cross River Tame.) | 100 |
| Bickenhill | 101½ |
| Elmdon | 102¼ |
| Wells Green | 104 |
| Yardley | 105¼ |
| Hay Mills | 106¼ |
| Small Heath | 106¾ |
| Bordesley | 108 |
| Deritend | 108½ |
| Birmingham (General Post Office) | 109¼ |
The Watling Street, from Weedon Beck to Oakengates and Ketley
| MILES | |
|---|---|
| Weedon Beck to— | |
| Watford Gap | 5½ |
| Crick Railway Station | 9 |
| Lilbourne | 12½ |
| Catthorpe Five Houses | 12¾ |
| Cave’s Inn | 14¼ |
| Gibbet (Cross River Swift.) | 15 |
| Cross-in-Hand | 17¼ |
| Willey Railway-crossing | 18 |
| Wibtoft | 20 |
| High Cross | 21 |
| Smockington | 22 |
| Caldecote | 30 |
| Witherley (Cross River Anker.) | 31½ |
| Mancetter | 32 |
| Atherstone | 32½ |
| Baddesley Ensor | 36 |
| Dordon | 36½ |
| Stony Delph | 39 |
| Wilnecote (Cross River Tame.) | 39½ |
| Fazeley | 40¼ |
| Hints | 42¾ |
| Weeford | 44½ |
| (Cross-road, Lichfield to Coleshill) | 44¾ |
| (Cross-road, Lichfield to Birmingham) | 46¼ |
| Wall | 47¼ |
| Muckley Corner | 48¼ |
| Hammerwich | 49½ |
| Brownhills | 51 |
| Wyrley Bank | 54¾ |
| “Four Crosses,” Hatherton | 57 |
| Gailey Railway Station (L. & N. W. R.) (Cross River Penk.) | 59¾ |
| Horsebrook and Stretton | 61½ |
| Ivetsey Bank (“Bradford Arms”) | 65 |
| Weston-under-Lizard | 67 |
| Crackley Bank | 69½ |
| St. George’s (Pain’s Lane Chapel) | 72½ |
| Oakengates | 73¾ |
| Ketley Railway Station | 75¼ |
[Click anywhere on map for high resolution image.]
SKETCH MAP OF THE HOLYHEAD ROAD, SHOWING ALSO THE ROMAN WATLING STREET FROM DOVER AND THE ROMAN STATIONS ON THE WAY.
HOLYHEAD ROAD ━━━━━━━━ WATLING STREET ────────
TELFORD’S NEW ROAD THROUGH ANGLESEY ╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸
I
“Peace hath its victories, no less renowned than war;” and there is nothing more remarkable than the engineering triumphs that land the Irish Member of Parliament, fresh from the Division Lobby at Westminster, at North Wall, Dublin, spouting treason, in nine hours and a quarter, or bring the Irish peasant, with the reek of the peat-smoke still in his clothes, and the mud of his native bogs not yet dried on his boots, to Euston in the same space of time.
But a hundred years ago, when the peaceful labours of the engineer had not begun to annihilate space and time, and the Union of Great Britain and Ireland had only just been effected, no such ready transit was possible, and our great-grandfathers reckoned their journeys between the two capitals in days instead of hours. The Holyhead Road, known to our fathers and ourselves, was not in existence; and Liverpool (and even Parkgate, near Chester) was as often the point of embarkation for Ireland as Holyhead. The journey from London to Dublin was then of uncertain length, determined by such fluctuating conditions as the season of the year, the condition of the roads, and the winds of St. George’s Channel—sometimes smooth, but more often stormy.