St Sampson's, Guernsey
Encyclopedia
Saint Sampson is one of the parish
es of Guernsey
, Channel Islands
.
The Guernésiais nickname for people from St Sampson is roînes (frog
s).
The parish is divided into two non-contiguous sections, the bulk of the parish lying on the east coast, with a smaller section lying on the west coast. The parish of Vale
borders the parish to the north and also extends between the two parts of St. Sampson.
What is currently the northern boundary of the parish originally ran along the south coast of La Braye du Valle, a tidal channel that made the northern extremity of Guernsey, Le Clos du Valle, a tidal island
.
La Braye du Valle was drained and reclaimed in 1806 by the British Government as a defence measure. The eastern end of the former channel became the town and harbour (from 1820) of St. Sampson's, now the second biggest port in Guernsey. The western end of La Braye is now Le Grand Havre. The roadway called The Bridge across the end of the harbour at St. Sampson's recalls the bridge
that formerly linked the two parts of Guernsey at high tide.
The parish church of St. Sampson claims to be the oldest of Guernsey's parish churches, standing on the coast where Samson of Dol
arrived from Brittany
to convert Islanders to Christianity.
The parish of St. Sampson hosts:
Delancey Housing Project
Construction of 34 apartments for the Guernsey Housing Association.
This is the first housing project carried out by the Guernsey Housing Association, its aim being to provide affordable high quality housing for the rental market.
The construction of the 34 one and two bedroom apartments was carried out under an 18 month "design and build" contract, which was completed on time and on budget during the summer of 2004.
Ground conditions dictated the use of piled foundations and ground beams. Surface water drainage required a difficult 400m connection to be made. The close proximity of a busy school and small local roads required considerable organisation and sensitivity during construction.
A series of external paved courtyard areas provide "outdoor living", and the use of natural light within the flats has been maximised. The building sits on an underground residents car park.
The development features two "turret" apartments, one with a flat roof terrace. Specific attention was given to details such as brick dentils, render bands and granite.
The Guernsey Housing Association were delighted with the end result and commended all involved.
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
es of Guernsey
Guernsey
Guernsey, officially the Bailiwick of Guernsey is a British Crown dependency in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy.The Bailiwick, as a governing entity, embraces not only all 10 parishes on the Island of Guernsey, but also the islands of Herm, Jethou, Burhou, and Lihou and their islet...
, Channel Islands
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands are an archipelago of British Crown Dependencies in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two separate bailiwicks: the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey...
.
The Guernésiais nickname for people from St Sampson is roînes (frog
Frog
Frogs are amphibians in the order Anura , formerly referred to as Salientia . Most frogs are characterized by a short body, webbed digits , protruding eyes and the absence of a tail...
s).
The parish is divided into two non-contiguous sections, the bulk of the parish lying on the east coast, with a smaller section lying on the west coast. The parish of Vale
Vale, Guernsey
Vale is one of the ten parishes of Guernsey.Until 1806 the parish occupied territory on the mainland of Guernsey, the Vingtaine de l'Epine, as well as the whole of Le Clos du Valle, a tidal island forming the northern extremity of Guernsey separated from the mainland by La Braye du Valle, a tidal...
borders the parish to the north and also extends between the two parts of St. Sampson.
What is currently the northern boundary of the parish originally ran along the south coast of La Braye du Valle, a tidal channel that made the northern extremity of Guernsey, Le Clos du Valle, a tidal island
Tidal island
A tidal island is a piece of land that is connected to the mainland by a natural or man-made causeway that is exposed at low tide and submerged at high tide. Because of the mystique surrounding tidal islands many of them have been sites of religious worship, such as Mont Saint Michel with its...
.
La Braye du Valle was drained and reclaimed in 1806 by the British Government as a defence measure. The eastern end of the former channel became the town and harbour (from 1820) of St. Sampson's, now the second biggest port in Guernsey. The western end of La Braye is now Le Grand Havre. The roadway called The Bridge across the end of the harbour at St. Sampson's recalls the bridge
Bridge
A bridge is a structure built to span physical obstacles such as a body of water, valley, or road, for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle...
that formerly linked the two parts of Guernsey at high tide.
The parish church of St. Sampson claims to be the oldest of Guernsey's parish churches, standing on the coast where Samson of Dol
Samson of Dol
Saint Samson of Dol was a Christian religious figure who is counted among the seven founder saints of Brittany. Born in southern Wales, he died in Dol-de-Bretagne, a small town in north Brittany.-Life:...
arrived from Brittany
Brittany
Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
to convert Islanders to Christianity.
The parish of St. Sampson hosts:
- the Island prison
- The Track (sports ground)
- Delancey Park
- The island's skate park
- the Guernsey studio of Channel TelevisionChannel TelevisionChannel Television is a British television station which has served as an Independent Television contractor to the Channel Islands since 1962. It is based in Jersey...
and BBC Guernsey - numerous industrial premises, and fuel farm
- Corbet Field – home of Vale Recreation Football Club
- St. Sampson's High School
- The Island Bowl
- The St. Sampson Douzaine
Delancey Housing Project
Construction of 34 apartments for the Guernsey Housing Association.
This is the first housing project carried out by the Guernsey Housing Association, its aim being to provide affordable high quality housing for the rental market.
The construction of the 34 one and two bedroom apartments was carried out under an 18 month "design and build" contract, which was completed on time and on budget during the summer of 2004.
Ground conditions dictated the use of piled foundations and ground beams. Surface water drainage required a difficult 400m connection to be made. The close proximity of a busy school and small local roads required considerable organisation and sensitivity during construction.
A series of external paved courtyard areas provide "outdoor living", and the use of natural light within the flats has been maximised. The building sits on an underground residents car park.
The development features two "turret" apartments, one with a flat roof terrace. Specific attention was given to details such as brick dentils, render bands and granite.
The Guernsey Housing Association were delighted with the end result and commended all involved.