Just a house, but a house with a story to tell…

Saltford House

“Admiral Kelly joined the Royal Navy in 1798 at the age of just 13, going on to battle French and Dutch forces before being appointed to command HMS Pheasant in 1818, carrying out anti-slavery patrols off the west coast of Africa. During the four years he spent on HMS Pheasant, he freed more than 350 slaves and gave compelling evidence to the Court of Sierra Leone on the conditions and treatment he witnessed, describing them as “shocking to every principle of humanity”.

Admiral Kelly retired from the Navy in 1822 because of poor health, going to London where he became a director of the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company, director of the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway and the Bristol and Exeter Railway and managing director of London Bridge station.

He moved to Saltford in 1856, purchasing Saltford House and carrying out extensive renovations, and supporting the local school. He died in 1867 at the age of 82, leaving a large bequest to pay for the building of Kelly School in Tavistock, and the blue plaque at his former home reads “Admiral Benedictus Marwood Kelly (1785-1867) – Naval officer, liberator of slaves, benefactor.” Keynsham Voice

As it’s been another lovely September day (though less sunshine that yesterday and far windier), after a visit to the post office, with time to spare before my return bus, I went for a wander around Saltford village in search of a blip. And here it is, along with a local history lesson!

(Woke to the terrible news about the earthquake in Mexico City. Glad to hear that my sister-in-law’s family are all ok, though her brother’s house has suffered some damage. Very sadly not everyone was as lucky as them…)