The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Forest of Dean, by H. G. Nicholls

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Title: The Forest of Dean
An Historical and Descriptive Account

Author: H. G. Nicholls

Release Date: February 3, 2008 [eBook #24505]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)

***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FOREST OF DEAN***

This ebook was transcribed by Les Bowler.

[Picture: Portraits of two Iron-Miners]

[Picture: Title Page]

THE
FOREST OF DEAN;
AN HISTORICAL AND DESCRIPTIVE ACCOUNT,
DERIVED FROM PERSONAL OBSERVATION, AND OTHER SOURCES, PUBLIC,
PRIVATE, LEGENDARY, AND LOCAL.

BY H. G. NICHOLLS, M.A.,
PERPETUAL CURATE OF HOLY TRINITY, DEAN FOREST.

John Murray, Albemarle Street.
1858.

PREFACE.

Disappointment expressed by others and felt by myself that a History of
the Forest of Dean should never have appeared in print, and an impression
that a considerable amount of interesting information relative to it
might be brought together, combined I may add with the fact that there
seemed no probability of such a work being otherwise undertaken until old
usages and traditions had passed away, have induced me to attempt its
compilation. I here venture to publish the fruit of my labours, in the
hope that the reader may derive some portion of that pleasure which the
prosecution of the work has afforded me, and trusting that the same
indulgent consideration which led the officers of the Government, the
gentlemen of the neighbourhood, and many of the intelligent Foresters to
aid in the execution, will by them and the public be extended to the work
itself.

I have endeavoured to make it as complete as possible by supplying every
known circumstance, mostly in the words of the original narrator, and yet
trying so to harmonize the whole as to engage the attention of the
general reader, but more particularly of the residents in the district,
by acquainting them with the past and present state of one of the most
interesting and remarkable localities in the kingdom.