﻿October, 
  1907 
  

  

  AMERICAN 
  HOMES 
  AND 
  GARDENS 
  

  

  395 
  

  

  Port 
  Sunlight 
  

  

  A 
  Significant 
  English 
  Experiment 
  in 
  Village 
  Building 
  

  

  By 
  Mabel 
  Tuke 
  Priestman 
  

  

  HE 
  village 
  of 
  Port 
  Sunlight 
  occupies 
  an 
  

   area 
  of 
  one 
  hundred 
  and 
  forty 
  acres, 
  to- 
  

   gether 
  with 
  ninety 
  acres 
  devoted 
  to 
  the 
  

   buildings 
  of 
  the 
  business 
  for 
  which 
  it 
  was 
  

   created. 
  It 
  is 
  located 
  about 
  five 
  miles 
  from 
  

   Birkenhead 
  and 
  seven 
  miles 
  across 
  the 
  river 
  

   from 
  Liverpool. 
  

   How 
  best 
  to 
  make 
  the 
  village 
  beautiful 
  has 
  been 
  the 
  sub- 
  

   ject 
  of 
  careful 
  consideration, 
  and 
  no 
  dump 
  heaps 
  have 
  been 
  

   allowed 
  to 
  mar 
  the 
  beauty 
  of 
  the 
  landscape. 
  When 
  the 
  estate 
  

   was 
  laid 
  out 
  gutters 
  

   were 
  filled 
  up 
  and 
  

   the 
  land 
  leveled 
  at 
  

   the 
  bottom 
  of 
  the 
  

   ravines 
  until 
  they 
  

   were 
  raised 
  above 
  

   the 
  high 
  water 
  

   mark. 
  These 
  ra- 
  

   vines 
  are 
  being 
  

   made 
  into 
  parks 
  and 
  

   recreation 
  grounds, 
  

   and 
  are 
  becoming 
  

   the 
  feature 
  of 
  t 
  h 
  e 
  

   village. 
  The 
  land 
  

   occupied 
  by 
  ravines 
  

   consists 
  of 
  twenty- 
  

   five 
  acres. 
  

  

  At 
  the 
  junction 
  

   of 
  Bromborough 
  Pool 
  a 
  dam 
  is 
  in 
  course 
  of 
  construction 
  

   which 
  will 
  cut 
  these 
  parks 
  off 
  from 
  the 
  incoming 
  tide, 
  and 
  

   also 
  serve 
  to 
  carry 
  a 
  road 
  at 
  that 
  point 
  across 
  the 
  pool. 
  The 
  

   direct 
  and 
  shortest 
  ways 
  to 
  important 
  points 
  — 
  such 
  as 
  the 
  

   railway 
  station, 
  the 
  ferry, 
  the 
  car 
  terminus 
  and 
  the 
  roads 
  to 
  

   the 
  office 
  and 
  works 
  — 
  are 
  planned 
  in 
  the 
  most 
  direct 
  and 
  

   shortest 
  route, 
  but 
  wherever 
  possible 
  they 
  have 
  curves 
  and 
  

  

  A 
  Street 
  from 
  Without 
  

  

  sweeps 
  following 
  the 
  lines 
  of 
  the 
  ravines, 
  giving 
  a 
  picturesque 
  

   quality 
  to 
  the 
  village 
  only 
  obtainable 
  by 
  such 
  methods. 
  An- 
  

   other 
  plan 
  for 
  civic 
  betterment 
  has 
  been 
  thought 
  of 
  in 
  the 
  

   laying 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  village; 
  that 
  is, 
  none 
  of 
  the 
  houses 
  have 
  

   their 
  backs 
  to 
  the 
  railway 
  line. 
  We 
  are 
  only 
  too 
  familiar 
  

   with 
  the 
  miserable 
  surroundings 
  of 
  most 
  railways 
  near 
  large 
  

   factories, 
  not 
  to 
  appreciate 
  what 
  this 
  alone 
  means 
  in 
  beauti- 
  

   fying 
  Port 
  Sunlight. 
  

  

  The 
  roads 
  are 
  of 
  excellent 
  proportion, 
  being 
  forty 
  feet 
  

   wide, 
  the 
  majority 
  having 
  eight 
  yards 
  of 
  roadway 
  and 
  eight 
  

  

  feet 
  each 
  for 
  foot- 
  

   paths. 
  A 
  few 
  of 
  

   the 
  widest 
  roads 
  

   have 
  twelve 
  yards 
  

   for 
  roadway 
  and 
  

   twelve 
  feet 
  for 
  

   pavements. 
  

  

  Several 
  of 
  the 
  ra- 
  

   vines 
  are 
  spanned 
  

   by 
  well 
  designed 
  

   bridges, 
  which 
  are 
  

   distinctive 
  features. 
  

   Another 
  interest- 
  

   ing 
  feature 
  is 
  t 
  h 
  e 
  

   open-air 
  theater, 
  sit- 
  

   uated 
  in 
  Dell 
  Park. 
  

   The 
  fresh 
  green 
  

   sward 
  of 
  the 
  park 
  is 
  

   It 
  has 
  a 
  seating 
  ac- 
  

   The 
  entire 
  

  

  pleasingly 
  broken 
  by 
  red 
  gravel 
  paths 
  

  

  commodation 
  of 
  two 
  thousand 
  four 
  hundred 
  

  

  floor 
  has 
  been 
  cemented, 
  a 
  most 
  necessary 
  precaution 
  in 
  the 
  

  

  damp 
  climate 
  of 
  England. 
  The 
  natural 
  slope 
  of 
  the 
  banks 
  

  

  of 
  the 
  ravine 
  has 
  lent 
  itself 
  admirably 
  to 
  the 
  arrangement 
  

  

  of 
  seats 
  raised 
  one 
  above 
  the 
  other, 
  on 
  the 
  classic 
  lines 
  of 
  

  

  the 
  Colosseum. 
  

  

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  Shingled 
  and 
  Half-timbered 
  Cottages 
  

  

  