Milestone 27 Metres South South West Of The Spread Eagle Public House

719/0/10093 18-JUN-07

MARGARETTING ROMAN ROAD Milestone 27m SSW of The Spread Eagle Public House

II

Milestone and cover plate. C18 and C19. Limestone and cast iron. One vertical surface of the cast iron cover plate is embossed with 'Chelmsford 4' and the other with 'Ingatstone 2'. A sloping surface above is embossed with 'To London 25 Margareting'.

HISTORY: This is one in a series of milestones erected in the C18 by the Essex Turnpike Trust to mark the distances along the 'Great Essex Road', which ran from London to Harwich. The design of the cover plate, which was added later, was initiated by James McAdam and adopted by the Trust in 1819 to reduce the frequent cost of re-cutting the inscriptions in the stones.

SOURCES: www.milestonesonline.co.uk; www.milestone-society.co.uk

SUMMARY OF IMPORTANCE: Milestones survive in large numbers as important indicators of road use and to merit listing they must survive in their original position and be largely intact. This is a good example of a milestone erected along the 'Great Essex Road'. It appears to be in its original location and retains its cast iron cover plate.