Search results for ""Landmark Trust""

In 1968 Mr Albion Harman, the last owner of Lundy Island, in the Bristol Channel, died. His surviving two sisters, faced with a challenging future running the island, put Lundy up for auction. An appeal fund for £150,000 was started but unfortunately this failed. At the last minute of the auction Jack Hayward (later Sir Jack Hayward) bid the asking price and bought the island. He immediately donated it to the National Trust, who in turn leased it to the Landmark Trust, who still manage and look after this amazing wildlife and marine conservation area today. In 2019 the National Trust and Landmark Trust celebrate those fifty landmark years. Following on from the success of Lundy Through Time, author Simon Dell has written this book looking back at those fifty years and charting the significant changes in that time.

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Lundy Island lies far out in the Bristol Channel, between the coasts of North Devon and South Wales. Its position makes it a natural fortress and an attractive refuge since man first inhabited this rocky but fertile outcrop throughout its piratical history up to the present day. Now owned by the National Trust it is a haven for wildlife both above and beneath the waves; cared for and managed by the Landmark Trust. This book explores the island using photographs, many of which have never or rarely been published before, looking at the buildings, the land and the very life and soul of this popular destination for birdwatchers, holiday makers or those simply seeking quiet and solitude. It will be of great interest to those who have come to know and love this beautiful island haven, just three miles long by half a mile wide.

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Now managed by the Landmark Trust, Lundy lies in the Bristol Channel 23 miles to the west of Ilfracombe. Isolated, it has remained for the most part a moorland wilderness and has escaped the inroads of development that have encroached elsewhere. Yet today Lundy is visited by boatloads of visitors throughout the summer, lured there by its extraordinary history and plentiful wildlife. The Island of Lundy, the successor to the author's previous account of the islands, provides a wide-ranging and in-depth survey of its history, geology and daily life. The first human habitation of Lundy was during the Paleolithic age, with later arrivals from the European mainland bringing with them a knowledge of agriculture and skill in the working of stone. Archaeological treasures of these early inhabitants have been discovered in recent years, including a Bronze Age settlement and a unique Dark Age cemetery. In medieval times the island was at war with the mainland, but it retained it independence under the Ormonde family. Later it came to the Grenville family, but after the Civil War the island came under the jurisdiction of James I. Its subsequent history reflects the political and religious turmoil of the period, and tales of pirates and shipwrecks abound. In the nineteenth century, again under privates ownership, the commercial development of the island was begun and it began to attract visitors, and in 1969 it was sold to the National Trust. Today, the island provides modern facilities for its visitors, and this guide to the island also describes what can be seen today, its climate and cultivation, flora and fauna. This new book has been written by long-time Secretary of the Lundy Field Society, and now one of its Vice-Presidents. Illustrated with over 70 black and white line drawings and contemporary photographs, it will be welcomed by those who lie in the region as well as by the island's many visitors.

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Set atop the rocky plateau of Lundy Island in the Bristol Channel, the Old Light stands proudly - a monument to the skill of its builder, Joseph Nelson. It is of a pleasing construction, both solid and graceful, and when built in 1820 it had two lights - an upper and a lower, and was the highest lighthouse in the country. In this fascinating history of the old lighthouse and the fog signal station, the author has combined her wide knowledge of the island's history with information gleaned from extensive research into Trinity House's archives. Some tantalising insights into the life of the keepers and their families have emerged - the keeper who was too tall for the lantern room; the keeper's wife who tragically died of water contamination, and the gunners who poached their dinners and hid their numerous children when the Elder Brethren came to inspect the cottages! Interwoven throughout the story are details of the numerous wrecks from the 15th century until 1897. Accounts from newspapers are often included, and the wrecks are linked to the lighthouse keepers of the time and the heroic rescues performed by the lighthouse staff. There are also some wonderful snippets of island history - one owner regarded Lundy as independent of mainland authorities and issued his own 'puffin' coins and stamps - the latter are still in use to cover postage to the mainland although the coins are now collectors' items. The height of the Old Light soon proved to be its downfall and eventually the reason why it was extinguished. Due to Lundy's plateau-top fogs which completely obscured the lantern, although there was clear visibility at ground level, a programme of alterations and intensifications took place under the advice of Professor Faraday. In 1862, a fog signal station was built on the west coast, providing shipping with another warning. This was not wholly successful either and it was not until 1897 that the Old Light was replaced by new lights on lower levels at the north and south ends of the island. Since the light was extinguished, the Old Light and the fog signal station reverted to the owners. The Landmark Trust restored the lighthouse and holiday-makers can now stay in the keepers' quarters, climb the 147 steps to the lantern room, and enjoy the breathtaking views across the whole island to the coasts of Wales and Cornwall. Owned by the National Trust, Lundy Island is an outstanding area of great natural beauty which attracts many visitors, who frequently return year after year to enjoy this special place.

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