If you’re a fan of Jane Austen you’ll be familiar with the concept of ‘taking the waters’. In fact the title of today’s episode comes from a letter Jane wrote to her sister Cassandra who was staying in the spa town of Cheltenham in September 1816. People have been visiting places renowned for their mineral rich waters for centuries. These special wells, streams and pools were believed to cure all manner of ailments either by drinking or bathing in the water.

In the first part of today’s episode I’m joined by multidisciplinary artist Gaylene Gould and local historian and guide Emanuela Aru Kay to tell me more about the Mary Woolaston, a Black woman who managed a healing well in seventeenth century London. Then Chris Jones of the Tunbridge Wells Civic society chats to me about the rise and fall of the Kentish spa town Tunbridge Wells.

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Useful Links

Find out more about Gaylene Gould on her website or follow here on Instagram. You can also find an essay on Black Mary in Thirst. Black Mary also features in the exhibition of the same name at the Wellcome Collection.

Follow Emanuela Aru Kay on Instagram and more about the tours she runs through History from Below (which includes a tour uncovering hidden waters). You can also read Emanuela’s essay on ‘Reviving London’s Hidden Healing Legacy: The Black Mary Project And The Story Of Black Mary’s Well’ which includes images of where Black Mary’s Well was located (spoiler alert – the area has been densely built up over the years so the well and the stream that feeds it are no longer visible.)

For a more tranquil idea of a healing well visit the Calthorpe Community Gardens (find out more via their website or Instagram) where you can view Marcia Bennett-Male’s statue of Mary. Find out more about Marcia who is the UK’s only black female sculptor on her website and Instagram.

The Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration opens in May 2026

The Tunbridge Wells Civic Society produces are number of books on the history of the area including The Pantiles: A Brief History by Philip Whitbourn & Chris Jones.

The Chaleybeate Spring in The Pantiles

Suggested Reading

For a list of nineteenth century spas and their purported benefits take a look at B. Bradshaw’s dictionary of mineral waters, climatic health resorts [&c.] ... of the world (1882)

Cures and Curses: Ritual and Cult at Holy Wells by Janet Bord (available to download as a free pdf)

Holy Wells in Britain: A Guide by Janet Bord (available to download as a free pdf)

You can find out more about St Winefride’s Holy Well here or in this short YouTube video.

The Journeys of Ceilia Fiennes (1947) available via Internet Archive.

A Medical topography of Tunbridge Wells by Dr Robert Powell (1846)

The History and Description of the Parish of Clerkenwell by Thomas Cromwell (1828)

Don’t forget you can follow me on Instagram or Bluesky @mrssbilton or find out more about my work on sambilton.com.

A huge thank you to Thomas Ntinas of The Delicious Legacy for doing the sound mixing on this season of the podcast.

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