Tunbridge Wells

The principal attraction, however, of the place is the chalybeate water. Nearly the whole of the forest ridge abounds with springs, more or less impregnated with iron, but the spring at the Wells being lower than the generality, it is less liable to be affected by changes of the atmosphere and heavy rains. The spring which is most in estimation, affords about a gallon a minute, and yields, therefore, a plentiful supply. It was for many years surrounded only by a common wooden railing. In 1664, however, Lord Muskerry, Lord of the Manor, enclosed it with a triangular stone wall, and built a hall "to shelter the dippers in wet weather." A very handsome building is now erected on the scite of the ancient enclosure, containing cold, warm, vapour, and shower baths; all excellent in their kind, and well appointed. 'The well, or basin, from which the water is supplied by the dippers, still retains its original situation, though better protected in front of the building. The water itself is extremely clear and bright, without any sort of colour; its taste is pleasantly steely; it has hardly any perceptible smell, though sometimes in a dense air its ferruginous exhalations are very distinguishable; and in point of heat, it is invariably temperate in every change of the atmosphere. It is never affected by rains, but retains an even temperature of 53° at all seasons. It is of great use in all those cases of debility for which other stimulant mineral waters are so celebrated. It is probable that at a very early period the peculiar beneficial properties of these waters were known to the persons residing in the immediate vicinity, but they were not in general repute, nor has the town been erected, till within the last two centuries and. a half. .............. The appearance of Tunbridge Wells, at the present period, is altogether of a different description to that of the time before alluded to. Since the erection of the new church, which was the first visible proof of the enlargement of the place, numerous buildings have arisen in various directions, but more particularly in that part of the Wells designated Mount Pleasant, or what is now more generally styled "The New Town;" built principally on the Calverley estate, belonging to John Ward, Esq. Still, however, the Parade, where the mineral springs are situated, has to boast of its assembly rooms, taverns, libraries, theatre, and a variety of shops for the sale of jewellery, toys, and Tunbridge ware. Mount Sion has also its attractions. On the top of the hill is a beautiful grove of oaks and beeches, covering a piece of land of about four acres, given in 1703, for the amusement and recreation of the inhabitants, by John Earl of Buckingham, who had, not long before, evinced his bounty in the gift of ground for the chapel of ease. extract from Horsefield's History of Sussex published in 1835

Tunbridge Wells directory of homes, farms, churches, schools, inns, and other places of interest that existed prior to 1900 has been compiled from Census data, Ordnance survey maps and books of the period Tunbridge Wells historical notes has been derived from the same sources to highlight Tunbridge Wells' key events in chronological order

Parish & other records		Before 1500	1500 to 1550	1550 to 1600	1600 to 1650	1650 to 1700	1700 to 1725	1725 to 1750	1750 to 1775	1775 to 1800	1800 to 1825	1825 to 1850	1850 to 1875	1875 to 1900	1900 to 1925	1925 to 1950	1950 to 1975	1975 to 2000	After 2000
10179	Births			1	6			6	17	44	412	1300	4961	3360	52	14	3	3
381	Christenings							6	13	29	123	94	94	18	4
124	Marriages											10	24	44	30	6	6	4
134	Deaths									1	2	3	16	23	20	17	18	29	5
35	Burials										1		4	5	3	5	7	7	3

Books and other documents

The History of Tunbridge Wells by Thomas Benge Burr in 1766 - Page 0

The History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent - Volume III by Edward Hasted in 1797 - Page 276

The Tunbridge Wells Guide by J. Sprange in 1797

Tunbridge Wells and its Neighbourhood by Paul Amsinck and Letitia Byrne in 1810 - Page 1

Tunbridge Wells in 1748 in 1829 - Page 65

Guide of Tunbridge Wells in 1830

Descriptive Sketches of Tunbridge Wells and the Calverley Estate by John Britton, F.S.A. in 1832

The History, Antiquities and Topography of the County of Sussex by Thomas Walker Horsfield, F.S.A. in 1835 - Page 421

Directory of Kent, Surrey & Sussex in 1839

New Guide for Tunbridge Wells by John Colbran and edited by James Phippen in 1840

Tunbridge Toys - Roundabout Papers No VII by William Makepeace Thackeray in 1860 - Page 380

A Compendious History of Sussex - Volume II. by Mark Antony Lower, M.A. in 1870 - Page 210

Kelly's Directory of Kent by E. R. Kelly, M.A., F.S.S. in 1882

Pelton's Illustrated Guide to Tunbridge Wells by J. Radford Thomson, M.A. in 1883

Cobbett's Rural Rides by William Cobbett in 1885 - Page 281

Southborough - Its Chalybeate Springs, Climate and Attractions as a Health Resort by E. Paget Thurstan, M.D., B.A., M.R.C.S., L.S.A. in 1885 - Page 62

English Homes and Villages (Kent & Sussex) by Lady Hope in 1909 - Page 1

Society at Tunbridge Wells in the 18th century by Lewis Melville in 1912

Highways and Byways in Kent by Walter Jerrold with Illustrations by Hugh Thomson in 1914 - Page 309

The Sussex Highlands in 1927 - Page 39

Tunbridglographia by John Playford in 1939 - Page 520

People of note	Burton, Decimus (1800 - 1881) Architect Byrne, Letitia (1779 - 1849) Engraver Henrietta Maria, wife of Charles I (1609 - 1669) Royal patronage of the "Wells" Nash, Richard "Beau" (1674 - 1761) Dandy of the Georgian era North, Dudley, 3rd Baron North (1581 - 1666) Discovered the "Wells" Slight, Rev. Benjamin (1800 - 1889) Nonconformist minister Thackeray, William Makepeace (1811 - 1863) Novelist

Tunbridge Wells pictures	The Springs 1664	Tunbridge Wells 1678	Tunbridge Wells 1718	At the Pantiles with Mr Richardson August 1748	Mount Ephraim 1790	A Perspective View of Tunbridge Wells Walks 1797	Mount Pleasant 1797
	Tunbridge Wells c 1800	South View of the High Rocks c 1800	A Perspective View of Tunbridge Wells Walks c 1800	The Theatre c 1800	Sand Rocks on the London Road 1809	Tunbridge Wells Common 1809	The Bath House 1809

Tunbridge Wells Maps	c 1724	c 1795	c 1825	1839

Sussex Maps	1750	1763	1st Sept 1787	1808	1837	1840