Godalming is an old town, whose history, since its Saxon beginnings, has largely been dictated by its geography. Early prosperity came from water power supplied by the River Wey and plentiful wool from the sheep folded on the high ground to the West and North. Building stone was quarried from the surrounding hills from a very early date, while ample timber came from the nearby Wealden forest.
The town's position half way between London and Portsmouth brought new wealth in the 18th century, as its many coaching inns bear witness; while the linking of Godalming Wharf to the Thames by the Wey Navigation brought barge traffic to boost the economy until the railway came in the mid-19th century. Since then, the pressure for building land has increased remorselessly, not only in the town itself but also from wealthy people wanting to build houses in the glorious countryside nearby. Fortunately, such architects as Shaw, Lutyens and Voysey were on hand to meet the demand.
Godalming today still stands in an unrivalled setting, on a shelf above flood level where the river valley has broadened out to produce a flood plain which has been Lammas land since time immemorial. All around stand sandstone hills crowned with trees, while to the South the gap once known as the Valley of the Nightingales leads out to great expanses of heath and woodland.
Photographers have long been attracted by the picturesque scenery and the wealth of historic buildings, providing the author of this account of Godalming's past with a rich source of superb pictures which he uses with great skill, each carefully captioned, to illuminate the book. He has also draw on a remarkable reservoir of first-hand recollections of life in the town, provided by elderly residents who have lived all their lives in Godalming and Farmcombe in surprising numbers ... many other towns in the commuter belt have a much higher proportion of people who retire and leave for more pleasant places. It is a tribute to this delightful old country town that its people stay there.
This pictorial history will be welcomed by all with connections to this town.
Contents:
Acknowledgements
Illustration Acknowledgements
Photos
Select Bibliography
