Le Don Hilton or La Caumine à Marie Best as it is also known, is an old guard house on the western side of Le Chemin de L’Ouzière, St. Ouen. It is also called ‘the white cottage’ due to its distinctive whitewashed walls and it was used as a landmark for sailors. The property resembles a small cottage, with a solid roof of vaulted masonry.

Dominating the St. Ouen’s Bay and surrounded by Alderney Sea Lavender and Jersey Thrift, Le Don Hilton is a fantastic site to hire, to enjoy barbecues and relax !

Description

The two windows on the south facade appear to be original, and if so, they were probably the only windows. The north facing window has a partly brick surround and is probably 19th or very early 20th century. The west facing window is obviously 20th century. The original roofing material is a matter for debate. The present vault appears to have flat metal strengthening bars inside and it is possible that it is largely or wholly made of concrete. It has been suggested that the roof was originally thatched bearing in mind the steep pitch of the roof and the use of the word “caumine”, meaning a cottage with a thatched roof. The thatch for the cottage would have been available (with permission from the Seigneur) from La Mare au Seigneur (St. Ouen’s Pond). Also the property would not have had a chimney or have been painted white as it would have attracted enemy fire.

The eastern extension to the caumine has a German concrete ceiling and has been used as a garage. Its original purpose is not obvious nor is that of the walls extending toward the sea. There is a cement covered platform around the building.

The land surrounding the property is salt-drenched during stormy weather, creating ideal conditions for rare Alderney Sea Lavender. This plant is only known to grow along St. Ouen’s Bay, in Alderney and along the opposite coast of France.

The Sea Lavender grows in good quantity behind the sea wall on the more open areas exposed to the salt spray on normal tides and drenched by sheets of salt water on spring tides. The Sea Lavender flourishes after the earlier sea-pinks (known as Thrift). Jersey Thrift does not reach the British Isles or the other Channel Islands. The flowers are 9 or 10 inches high and flower in May and early June, but it is in full flower on the dunes in August. Both Common Thrift and Jersey Thrift are to be found in the bay.

History

The building was first mentioned in 1665 and was originally St. Peter’s Guard House and Magazine when the defence of the bay was shared with the Parish of St. Ouen. The property was rebuilt in 1765 with a stone vaulted roof to replace the earlier structure, which was blown up.

An attempted invasion in 1779, by a party of Frenchmen led by the Prince of Nassau arrived in St. Ouen’s Bay. The attack was repulsed but highlighted the need for more fortifications in the area. Thirty towers had already been planned but the building of these was hastened due to the threat of more attacks. The northern and central parts of the site were bought by the Crown in 1795.

In 1817, the site was named the ‘Middle Battery’. Boulevards (gun placements) had been constructed around the coast for at least 100 years, with the guns belonging to each parish being housed in the Parish Churches and manned by the Militia. The cannon at Beaumont may well have been brought to this site.

It has been suggested that the site may have acquired its later name ‘La Caumine à Marie Best’, after it was used as a temporary home by Marie Best and her children after 1815, when many of the coastal batteries were dismantled and abandoned. They may have sought refuge in the old Guard House to escape the widespread smallpox epidemic of the time. Mary Best died in 1832, at the age of 41, and it was after this date that the property fell into decay. The fireplace lintel was removed and later, the buildings, roof structure may also have been lost.

The southern part of the site was acquired by the Crown on 12th February 1866, by an exchange of land with Philip Le Feuvre. At that time, La Caumine was also the home of John Bechelet, a Frenchman who moved to the island for work. It was his job to gather and farm the vraic from the nearby bays and inlets.

On 21st November 1925, the entire property, except an eight foot wide strip in the centre to serve as a public footpath between the road and the sea-wall, was sold by the War Department to Mr. William Gregory. It should be noted that when the Crown sold the property it had no right in doing so as it was the property of the States of Jersey. But when the guard-house was sold in 1925, both the War Department and the States of Jersey were under the (wrong) impression that it was under the ownership of the War Department !

Captain John Aston Hilton acquired the northern part of the property, which included the guard-house on 17th May 1932. The cottage was donated to the Trust in 1975, along with four vergées of land, by Mrs. Marie Geneviève Hilton (née Hind), widow of Lt. Colonel John Aston Hilton.

It is from Captain Hilton that the property is named.