Goose Bridge Linking St John with Baskerville (and the medieval road to Lea and Garsdon). Goose Bridge has seen the river flow changed through a 90 degree angle. This stone bridge was strengthened after the 1960s when heavier lorries needed access to the fields beyond, so it now has an enlarged "hump". The river here, The Tetbury Avon, used to flow straight under the bridge and join the Sherston Avon branch near the Old Court House which stands on the sight of the leper hospital (qvt). The "goose bridge" origin is not known as in the 17th century and earlier it was known as the little back bridge or little merle (mill) bridge. Shakespeare in Macbeth refers to a "goose" as being an iron used in making and finishing. Geese were used by the Romans as "guards" as they make a terrific noise when disturbed and of course ducks and geese could have been herded onto the water meadows beyond.
Bridge description by John Bowen
