Milestones: What they are, where they are, and the battle to preserve them (From Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard)

Milestones: What they are, where they are, and the battle to preserve them

The earliest milestones in Britain were erected by the Romans and throughout the centuries they have served the purpose of directing travellers towards their destinations.

Although few from Roman times still remain - and only one in situ - there are still large numbers dating from the 17th to 19th centuries. These are those which the Turnpike Trusts were obliged by law to erect on their own lengths of road.

Gloucestershire's roads are still well-furnished with these reminders of travel in earlier times, and they have the benefit of their welfare being under the watchful eyes of members of the Milestone Society.

Considering the long history of the subject of its interest, the Milestone Society is a surprisingly recent one, founded nationally only in 2001. Gloucestershire is fortunate in having two county co-ordinators for both the eastern and western areas. James Weightman, who lives in Cirencester, is East Gloucestershire co-ordinator.

He and his fellow members have mapped stones on all the roads radiating from Cirencester and recorded their condition, also photographing many. They are a variety of sizes, shapes - rectangular or tombstone shaped, of styles of lettering and use of numerals.

Older stones, such as that which gives the information 'XVI to Cirencester, VI to Tetbury and XVII to Bath' date from before Roman numerals were replaced in the 18th century by the more frequently found Arabic ones.

Some, such as this, give distances to the large towns as well as local information, and others only closer mileages such as 'Minety 2 miles, Malmesbury 5 miles'. Some, such as on the road to Lechlade, are mostly all on the same side of the road, in this case the southern side, while anybody searching along the road to Stroud might find them on either side - although actually spotting them while travelling is no easy task.

Where inscriptions have worn away with time they have been replaced by metal plates and there are a good number of these in the county. Some are on the A417 out to Fairford and Lechlade from Cirencester, a 'run' which has very few stones missing. Here, at Fairford, near the football ground and on the formerly-used Cirencester-Gloucester road at Birdlip are stones that have had the advantage of being fixed within a wall - one of the best forms of protection for them, says James Weightman.

From Cirencester to Cheltenham, a complete 'run', all with legible inscriptions, is recorded. Motorists should have no difficulty knowing how far they have travelled on the Stroud road and the stones have also survived well on the roads to Quenington.

On the roads leaving Stow-on-the-Wold, many have lost their inscriptions but heading South towards Northleach, all but four stones are still in place.

As well as from the work of the Milestone Society, these reminders of our travelling past also benefit from care by highway authorities. In Gloucestershire they have also received attention from volunteers in a project by the Cotswolds Conservation Board three or four years ago; they sought out its milestones, photographed them, raised those that had fallen down, carried out some repainting and organised replacement plates for missing inscriptions.