Milestone South Of Bodmin School (Ngr Sx0778165458)

BODMIN

629-1/0/10019 B3268 07-JAN-09 Milestone south of Bodmin School (NGR SX0778165458)

GV II DESCRIPTION The milestone, c1769, is of carved granite and is rectangular in plan with two dressed faces and a rounded top. It is approximately 65cm high. Large deeply incised lettering gives the distance to Bodmin. The inscription reads: '1/B'

HISTORY The milestone is one of a series erected by the Bodmin Turnpike Trust which was established by an Act of Parliament in 1769. From the outset the trust used waymarkers on its routes. This example is one of the earliest milestones erected by the Trust and is the first of a series of four on the route south of Bodmin. There were at least five milemarkers on roads radiating from Bodmin; only two are now known to survive.

The milestone on the B3268 south of Bodmin School is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

• It is one of the first milestones erected by the Bodmin Turnpike Trust in 1769. * It is intact and stands close to its original location. * It compares well and has group value with other nearby listed milestones. * It is a good example of an C18 milestone, illustrating the standardisation of roads and the introduction of turnpikes to facilitate the transport needs of the increasingly industrial landscape of Cornwall.