Decorated Bus Shelters
Slimbridge Parish Council has been arranging the refurbishment and decoration of the Bus Shelters in Slimbridge. Slimbridge Local History Society is decorating the Shelter on the Gloucester bound side of the A38 just North of Slimbridge Roundabout.
Part of the decoration includes “Graffiti”. Doesn’t every Bus Shelter have Graffiti?
The Royal Manor of Berkeley was originally granted by William the Conqueror to the Norman Roger de Berkeley. However, King Henry II (1154 - 1189) privatised the Estate! He gave most (including Berkeley Castle) to his supporter Robert Fitzharding. The remainder was given to the original family of de Berkeleys who were given the “Barony of Dursley”. Henry changed his mind and wanted to reunite the estate, this was to be achieved by contracting the two families to marry the eldest son and heir to the eldest daughter of the other family. In the end only one marriage took place, Maurice Fitzharding to Alice de Berkeley in 1153 - this was sufficient to reunite the estate with the descendents of Robert Fitzharding adopting the surname “de Berkeley”.
Another image is “Edward Jenner was here”
The phrase “Kilroy was here” became associated with US GIs during WWII, the origin of the phrase is unknown. “Mr Chad” probably originated from a British Cartoonist. At some stage the two merged with the US phrase becoming associated with the British cartoon of a bald man with a large nose looking over a wall.
Obviously “Kilroy” was not in Slimbridge, but Edward Jenner, who pioneered the smallpox vaccine, certainly was. A Doctor living in Berkeley there are records of Edward working in Slimbridge. Several of Edward Jenner’s ancestors are buried in the graveyard of St John the Evangelist.