Descriptive Gazetteer Entry for BRISTOL CHANNEL

BRISTOL CHANNEL, the outer part of the estuary of the Severn. It is bounded, on the left, by Somerset and Devon; on the right, by Monmouth, Glamorgan, Carmarthen, and Pembroke. It commences in King Road, at the mouth of the Avon; goes south-westward, to the E side of Bridgewater bay; and proceeds thence westward to the ocean. Its width, at King Road, is about 5 miles; at other parts, throughout its central reaches, from 8 to 22 miles; and at its mouth, between Hartland Point, through Sundy Island, to St. Govan's Head, about 40 miles. Its length, from King Road to Sundy Island, is nearly 80 miles. Its depth in the upper part, between extensive shoals, called the English Grounds and the Welsh Grounds, is from 5 to 16 fathoms; in the part at Cardiff, between the islands called the Steep and Flat Holms, from 5 to 8 fathoms; in the part opposite Noss Point, from 13 to 15 fathoms; and in the open part between Bideford and Carmarthen bays, from 30 to 40 fathoms. The tidal rise is greater than anywhere else on the British coasts; and runs into the mouth of the rivers with a high, upright, rapid wave, locally called a bore, often dangerous to shipping; but is considerably modified by the strength and direction of the winds.


(John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72))

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Administrative units: Somerset AncC

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