Weston-super-Mare and the Great Reform Bill of 1832

[whole diary]

[Oxonhutch]

Glancing through some old maps kindly georeferenced by the NLS I see that Weston-s-M used to have a column some 250 m SW of the current railway station and marked 'To Commemorate the passing of the Reform Bill 1832'. The map's date  should be known by those knowledgeable, as the new loop station has just been built but disused tracks still lie on the abandoned Weston Branch.

By 1902 - click here for map - it had gone with houses in its place. Is there any information about this column known to the locals? My Google-foo has deserted me.

[stuving]

My Google-foo has deserted me.

You mean you were too lazy to type in "column To Commemorate the passing of the Reform Bill 1832 weston-super-mare" in full? According to this old "Weston View" newsletter, it was called Parsley's Tower, and was converted to a pigsty before being demolished in 1870.

[stuving]

And here's something about local builder Richard Parsley himself - with some alternative facts (or "facts"), such as:

He built a satirical memorial to it on the Whitecross Estate, a massive tower which was crowned with a bishop’s mitre. The satire was in the base of the tower, which was a pigsty. It is from this tower that his estate got its name. The tower was pulled down in 1888.

The 25" map showing the column says "surveyed 1885", which is consistent with the 1888 demolition date.

[Phantom]

Never heard of it before, I am going to walk past there in a few hours
I'll have a nose to see if any mention on any homes etc

[Oxonhutch]

My Google-foo has deserted me.

You mean you were too lazy to type in "column To Commemorate the passing of the Reform Bill 1832 weston-super-mare" in full? According to this old "Weston View" newsletter, it was called Parsley's Tower, and was converted to a pigsty before being demolished in 1870.

Wow, that was a bit strong! I certainly did try with, what I thought were, suitable key words but came up blank. Perhaps I shouldn't have asked but I honestly expected a friendlier reply - sorry.

[stuving]

My Google-foo has deserted me.

You mean you were too lazy to type in "column To Commemorate the passing of the Reform Bill 1832 weston-super-mare" in full? According to this old "Weston View" newsletter, it was called Parsley's Tower, and was converted to a pigsty before being demolished in 1870.

Wow, that was a bit strong! I certainly did try with, what I thought were, suitable key words but came up blank. Perhaps I shouldn't have asked but I honestly expected a friendlier reply - sorry.

Oops. It was only meant as a leg-pull, but (having reread it) I can see it was rather clumsy. My fault, so I apologise for that.

[Oxonhutch]

My fault, so I apologise for that.

Thanks - I shall consider my leg duly pulled!

Reading the link, I see he built it as a pig sty as a protest against enfranchising a small quantity of the masses - it appears that the previous corrupt and wildly undemocratic system with its Rotten Boroughs was more to his liking. He seems to have been 'quite a character'.