Nailsworth, only a 45-minute drive from Bath, is one of Gloucestershire’s best-kept secrets. Andrew Swift uncovers a succession of fascinating landmarks, including buildings that were 17th-century mills or the homes of mill owners and workers, and (appropriately) remembers the poet who wrote the couplet, ‘what is this world if, full of care, we have no time to stand and stare’.
Many guides to the Cotswolds fail to even mention Nailsworth, and yet in 2014 The Sunday Times named it as one of the best places in Britain to live. More recently, lifestyle website Muddy Stilettos awarded it a similar accolade, describing it as a ‘buzzy, artistic haven full of cool boutiques, restaurants and galleries’.
As you follow the A46 through its busy, narrow streets and turn off into the bleak 1960s town centre, it’s easy to see why it is not on most people’s must-visit list. You don’t have to walk far, though, to discover what makes Nailsworth special, and, having parked in one of its free car parks, a good place to start is opposite the clock tower by the roundabout in the town centre.
From here, head up Fountain Street, cross at the zebra and turn left up Tabram’s Pitch. Through the gateway on the left at the top, you’ll see a building with a couple of ancient windows. This started life in the 14th century as a chapel serving what was then an isolated hamlet on the borders of three parishes – Horsley, Minchinhampton and Avening. Nailsworth had to wait until 1892 to become a parish in its own right. The ancient windows were not part of the chapel, but bits of architectural salvage added by a Mr Tabram who set up a museum here in the 19th century. Today, however, it is a private house.
Opposite the gateway, turn right along Church Street. St George’s, on the right, is the second church on this site. The first, built in 1794, was a delightful building with a pepperpot tower. It was replaced by the present church around 1900.
At the bottom, cross at the lights and turn left along Market Street. At the end, carry straight on up Brewery Lane, passing Lion Cottage (formerly the Red Lion) on the left. Beyond it lay the massive Nailsworth Brewery, only parts of which survive. Follow the lane downhill towards Locks Mill, where an information board outlining its history can be found beside an archway on the right. This is an ideal place to get an idea of the eclectic variety of buildings, ranging from the 17th to the 19th centuries, in Nailsworth’s out-of-the-way corners.
There were once at least 14 mills in Nailsworth, which by the mid-17th century was growing fast as clothiers were attracted by the fast-flowing streams that met in this steep sided valley. Weavers’ cottages and mill owners’ houses still characterise much of the town today.
Go through the archway, and at the top turn left and then right into Barn Close, a harmonious group of four very different buildings. At the end turn left along a path for 50m before turning right down to Price’s Mill, where there’s another information board. Turn right past Shortwood Chapel to the Britannia Inn, an impressive rubble-stone building of around 1700. Opposite, on the corner of Chestnut Hill, is Stokescroft, built around the same time, with its three gables pierced by oval windows. Behind it is the Wool Loft, incorporating a warehouse of 1726. A little further up Chestnut Hill is a meeting house where we know that Quakers first met around 1680. Nonconformity and independence were strong here from the start – hardly surprising given the way the town came into being – and these qualities still characterise Nailsworth today, with its thriving independent businesses and friendly, down-to-earth vibe – not to mention the world’s first vegan football club, Forest Green Rovers.
Retrace your steps down the hill and turn left along Old Market, which was driven through the site of the former cattle market in the 1960s. New buildings were erected and the millponds which fed Day’s Mill – part of which survives further along on the right – were filled in.
At the end, turn left up Spring Hill, which leads past several former mill owners’ houses. Springhill House, early 18th century, and Spring Hill Court, with a date of 1680, are especially impressive. At the top, just past Spring Hill Cottage, cross and turn right down a footpath.
Cross the road at the bottom and turn right past Egypt Mill, now a hotel and restaurant. Turn left past the Railway Hotel and follow the cycle path as it curves left. Ahead lies Nailsworth Station, opened in 1867, but long closed and now a private house. The cycle path curves to the left of it before picking up the trackbed a little further on. Tall trees line the path, while down to your left former millponds have been restored as a wetland habitat, making this an inspiring woodland walk in early spring.
Soon, though, you come to Dunkirk Mills, their scale exceeding anything you’ve seen so far. To fully appreciate it, follow a tunnel under the old line which leads into the heart of the complex, which was built between 1798 and 1855 and now houses flats along with a small museum. Then, having retraced your steps through the tunnel, take a footpath leading steeply uphill to Dunkirk Manor, where the owner of Dunkirk Mills once lived.
Then turn right along Watledge Road. Although there is nothing else on the scale of Dunkirk Manor to look forward to, this leads past a succession of splendid buildings perched on the edge of the wooded valley. Among them is the honey-stone cottage where the poet WH Davies – famous for the couplet ‘what is this world if, full of care, we have no time to stand and stare’ – died in 1940.
At the end – with one last mill owner’s house, High Beeches, on the left, turn right downhill, and, once past the cattle grid, you’re back in the heart of town. The copper kettle on the right dates from 1887 when there was a tea merchants here. Below it, a board outlines the history of the mill that stood opposite, while a little further on is the clock tower where the walk started.
For details of Dunkirk Mills Museum visit: stroudtextiletrust.org.uk
Andrew Swift has written many books including On Foot in Bath: Fifteen Walks around a World Heritage City – available from bookshops or akemanpress.com.