PEOPLE in Avoncliff have commemorated the 100 year anniversary since the Red Cross left the Workhouse in Avoncliff after operating as an auxiliary hospital for over a thousand convalescing soldiers from 1917-1919.
On Armed Forces Day , the current villagers of Avoncliff jumped on the Kennet and Avon Canal Trust barge, from Avoncliff to Bradford on Avon to mark the historic weekly trips that the convalescing soldiers and nurses took.
A new book, ‘A Gem in the Avon Valley’ written by Trevor Turpin, a resident of Ancliff Square was also launched during the celebrations.
When what is now known as Ancliff Square was a hospital, the soldiers would be taken to Bradford on Avon every week where they enjoyed the hospitality of the town.
They travelled on the canal in a barge, the Bittern, which was loaned to the hospital for this purpose. For the trip, many of the current villagers dressed as convalescing soldiers and Red Cross nurses.
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