Acts Of Parliament..
Fine crisp condition.
£45.00
Details
SEVENOAKS TO TUNBRIDGE WELLS
Publisher
Printed by John Baskett, Printer to the King's most Excellent Majesty, London.,
Date
1740
Synopsis
An act for enlarging the terms and powers granted by two acts of parliament, for repairing the roads leading from seven-oaks to woodsgate and tunbridge-wells, and from woodsgate to kipping's-cross in the county of kent; and also for repairing the roads from kipping's-cross... to lamberhurst pound; and pullen's-hill... and to flimwell-vent in the county of sussex.
Item Description
Disbound, in plastic sleeve. Folio. 8 x 12.25 inches. [2] + 247-270 pp. Illustrated with royal arms on title page and vignette initial at start of main text which is in black letter.
Notes
This turnpike Act amends the 1709 and 1724 Acts, for repairing and improving the road between Sevenoaks and Tunbridge via Woodsgate. It renewed the 1724 Act for a further period of twenty one years and, because this stretch had 'become so bad and ruinous', extended the short Kipping's Cross spur via Pullen's Hill and Lamberhurst, to Flimwell-vent, in the parish of Ticehurst, just over the Sussex border. The Act made detailed provisions for the collection of tolls, erection of gates, exemptions ('Fish to be Toll-free' and no toll on election days), penalties for evasion, erection of milestones and for the system of financial administration and accountability required to operate the turnpike system. The amounts due in tolls are specified in seven categories, including various types of passenger coaches (drawn by more than four or by three or four horses or mares), waggons and carts drawn by horses and oxen, laden or unladen animals not drawing, droves of oxen, cows or neat cattle and of calves, hogs, sheep or lambs. The turnpike surveyors were to cooperate with the parish Surveyors of Highways, employing a 'Statute Work' labour force. 108 named trustees, composed of local nobility, gentry and clergymen were appointed and invested with powers to oversee the administration and operation of the trust. Although ESTC records only one copy (in the US), we do not regard this as a scarce item in the UK.
[Stock No. 20308]
