| Oakhill
The
name is derived directly from the Old English words "ac" and "hyll".
It was only a small hamlet until 1769 when a brewery was opened!
Oakhill stout proved very popular and some while later a small railway
was built to link the brewery to the nearest station at Binegar.
John Billingsley, whose family home was the nearby Ashwich Grove
House (demolished 1955), was a large landowner (4 000 acres) and
farmer. He was actively involved in Turnpike Trusts, brewing and
canal building. He wrote a book in 1795 about modernising farming
practices, which including instructions for hedge building and crop
rotation (also how to treat sick animals with hay tea and improve
cucumber production with horse dung!). One eulogy exaggerates considerably
referring to him as having “drained Sedgemoor and enclosed
Mendip”! |
Paulton
Paulton
is the largest village in the old Avon area with a population of
over 6000. It has five churches, two of which are Methodist, the
strong tradition of Methodism no doubt being rlated to John Weseley's
18 visits here. It was also known for womens' wrestling!!
Paulton is intimately associated with the Somerset coal industry.
Downhill to the north of Paulton is Cam Brook and it is there that
the northern branch of the Somerset Coal Canal began in an area
generally referred to as Paulton Basin (see
more detailed information). This northern branch ran through
Dunkerton and Coombe Hay to join the southern branch at Midford.
The canal then connected up to the Kennet and Avon canal at Dundas
Aqueduct. Virtually all pits near Paulton connected into the canal
by tramways. These did not run on rails as we know them. They consisted
of flanged plates, each one about a metre long, spiked down onto
stone sleeper blocks. Front tipping wagons ran down them under gravity,
controlled by a man operating a long handbrake, and were then towed
back uphill by horse.
Up in Paulton there were three pits. Paulton Ham and Paulton Hill,
which were both working in the 1840's but had closed by 1864, and
Simon's Hill which was working between 1791 and 1844. The batch
at Simon's Hill is extensive and provides an excellent vantage point
for all the surrounding area -- and for watching football on the
nearby pitch. Upper and Lower Paulton Engine pits were located close
to Paulton Basin. They were early pits, dating from 1750, which
closed in the 1870's. A very informative noticeboard, just before
a Wildlife Reserve, marks the site of the Lower Engine site -- the
reserve is in fact the batch (spoil heap). Close by a sewage works
has been built on the site of Upper Engine. The Paulton Basin wharves
were across the Cam Brook and on the north side there were tramways
down from pits on the west and southwest of Timsbury (e.g. Mears,Tyning
and Withy Mills). A little east along the canal tramways came in
from Radford and Congyre pits.
The site of Paulton Foundry, built in 1809, is near Hanham House,
on the way down from Paulton to the Cam. It was an iron and brass
works closely associated with the coal industry, suppling for example
winding engines to the collieries and iron fittings for the canal.
It also produced a great number of cast iron gate posts which can
still be spotting all over the local area. The foundry moved elsewhere
in 1890 and finished up at Frome Hill in Radstock.
A little outside the village to the south and below a trig point
(155m) is the Arhem Memorial. This remembers 2 glider pilots and
21 men of the 9th Airborne Field Company of Royal Engineers who
were killed in this field when their glider crashed on 7th September
1944. The glider had taken off from Keevil in Wiltshire towed by
a Stirling Bomber, and had been on its way to Arhem. |
Priston
One
source suggests the name comes from the Old English words "proest"
and "tun", meaning "priest's enclosure", while another
suggests "prysg" and "tun", meaning "enclosed
thicket". If correct the later would suggest that the area
was heavily wooded in Anglo-Saxon times.
In 931 the estate at Priston was granted by the West Saxon King
Athelstan to the abbey church of St.Peter in Bath. A 12th century
copy of the Priston Charter describes the estate boundaries in 113
words of Old English. (You can look it up in The Cartularium Saxonicum,
an 18th century collection of Saxon Charters).
St.Luke's church has a Norman nave. The tower dates from 1751 and
a 1589 inscription over the porch entrance is a memorial to the
parson Thomas Watts that urges "Priston repent!". Nowadays
the giant cockerel on the roof is its most prominent feature. |
Queen
Camel
Camel
Hill, the prominent ridge to the NW, is the reason for the name
of the current village. It is the "bare ridge" described
by the Welsh words "mael" and "cant", which
became Cantmael and then Camel.
Earliest records show that the village was given as a dowry by Godwin,
Earl of the Wessex Saxons, to his wife Gytha in 1019. Gytha was
of royal blood, being the daughter of Svein Forkbeard, King of Denmark
(himself a brother of King Canute). Their eldest daughter married
Edward the Confessor and the third of their eight children became
King harold. Gytha was a widow by the time Harold, together with
two younger sons Gyrth and Leofwine, was killed at hastings in 1066.
William the Conqueror granted the village to his queen Matilda and
it remained crown property for five centuries. Because it was normally
included in royal estates, specifically assigned to the Queens of
England, the prefix "Queen" was eventually added to the
name during the reign of Edward ! (One source says 1275 when given
to his first wife Eleanor, another 1299 when granted to second wife
Margaret!). in 1558 Queen Mary exchanged the manor for one in Little
Weldon, Northants, and hence its ownership passed to her chancellor
Sir Walter Mildnay. That family retained the village and Hazelgrove
Manor until the 1920's. The next owners the Strangeways, sold Hazelgrove
Manor and 20 acres to Bruton Junior School in 1952.
Queen Camel was on the Castle Cary to Yeovil turnpike road and another
turnpike road between Ilchester and Wincanton ran along Camel Hill
to the north of the village. It was always a place of note and was
flourishing in the mid 16th century with twice weekly markets and
four fairs a year. Both linen and woolen cloth were made. Cottagers
did spinning in their own homes and several looms were situated
in buildings along the main street. It was in line to become a town
but a disastrous fire on St. Barnabus Eve in 1639, which destroyed
70 houses, marked the beginning of a decline. At 800 its population
now isn't much greater than the 600 it was in 1670, shortly after
its heyday.
The first mention of a church, in 1291, is in Rymer's Foedera. Extensive
rebuilding occurred during the 14th and 15th centuries, during which
time the tower (1380) and chancel were added. This 30m high tower
supported by set-back buttresses was built in five stages and is
unique in Somerset. It is claimed that the bells are the heaviest
peel of six bells in the world! A south porch was added in the mid
19th century there was a complete restoration at the time of the
Golden Jubilee. |
| Radstock
Recorded
as Stoche in the Domesday Book, its name is thought to mean "the
stockade by the Roman road" from the Old English words "rad"
and "stoc". The Roman road in this case is the Fosse Way.
7th century Saxon burial sites have been found in Radstock and Bronze
Age tumuli are on the outskirts towards Bath. Roman coins have been
found on the Fosse Way. The Domesday entry lists 9 villagers, 12
small-holdings, 3 cottages and a mill. In 1795 there were still
only 415 inhabitants but the population exploded soon afterwards
with the coming of the Industrial Revolution and extensive coal
mining.
A river running west to east bisects the town. This river, which
also runs through nearby Midsomer Norton seems to be known as Wellow
Brook in Radstock and the River Somer in Midsomer Norton! The Somerset
Coal Canal was built along it east from Radstock around 1800, but
this was soon converted to a tramway (in 1850 there were 23 pits
connected into this tramway) and later a full railway line (in the
1870s) on the S & D.
The Waldegraves were Lords of the Manor of Radstock. They initiated
work which led to the first discovery of coal in this area, in 1763
at Old Pit, and came to own many pits in the locality. One notable
Waldegrave was Lady Frances who married four times. She was a close
friend of one of Admiral Nelson's daughters, which is why Radstock
landed up with Admiral Nelson's grandson, Horatio Nelson-Ward, as
a rector between 1853 and 1888.(The "living" at Radstock
was in the gift of the Lords of the Manor).
At
one time two unconnected railway lines run through Radstock (see
map). the Somerset and Dorset railway ran from Bath through
Midford and wellow to Radstock, and then headed for Evercreech and
beyond via Shepton Mallet. the other railway, eventually the GWR,
ran from Bristol through Pensford and Hallatrow to Radstock, and
then continued via Mells Road to Frome. Their lines crossed between
Radstock and Midsomer Norton and ran almost parallel to each other
for about a mile near Radstock. The centre of Radstock had two sets
of level crossing gates and two stations! The GWR level crossing
was where the mini-roundabout is now.
The large winding wheel opposite the fascinating museum came from
Kilmersdon( Haytor) Pit, the last pit operating in this area. |
Rowley
and Wittenham
Rowley is a deserted medieval village, which has been identified
as the lost village of Wittenham. Wittenham was recorded in a charter
of 987 and was once an independent parish. A parish church dedicated
to St.Nicholas was probably in existence well before the first known
reference to it in 1299. After 1300 the name Rowley is used for
the parish; it is possible that this was originally a smaller adjacent
settlement which became dominant. The village was in decline by
the late 14th century, possibly due to the Black Death, and in 1428
the parish of Rowley was amalgamated with Farleigh Hungerford. Rowley
rapidly disappeared and today only a few furrows in a field remain
as evidence of these settlements. The longest hollow is the remains
of the original main street. |
Stanton
Prior
Stanton Prior is a small farming hamlet recorded in the Domesday
Book as Stantone. The name is derived from the Old English words
"stan" and "tun" meaning "stone enclosure".
St.Lawrence church dates from at least 1297 and earlier Norman architecture
survives in its walls. Bath Abbey owned the estate here throughout
the Middle Ages and their arms are carved into a wooden roof boss.
Although most of the church is essentially an 1869 restoration the
north porch is 13th century and the west tower is the original perpendicular
style. Interesting features include water stoops (basins) immediately
inside and outside the main door, and a niche (which once held a
statue) on the wall opposite the door.
Southwest uphill from the church, an ancient lane flanked by tall
hedges is the current parish boundary. It has been a boundary since
Saxon times. In the Priston Charter it is referred to as "tha
straet" (the street) while in the Marksbury Charter it was
"stanwei" (stoneway) and it marked the boundary between
Stanton Prior and Priston estates. |
|
Shepton
Mallet
Excellent views open up as you walk across the top of Inglesdon
Hill. Initially you can see Cranmore Tower close by to the east
and St.Alfred's Tower way in the distance. Beacon Hill is the wooden
area directly to the north. Later the Tor at Glastonbury is seen
framed above the viaduct and Shepton Mallet.
In the Domesday Book the name is Sepeton which comes from a faulty
transliteration of the Old English word for "sheep". (In Old English
"sheep" is variously spelt as scoep, sceap, scepe and scip!!) and
“tun” meaning enclosure. The full name first appears
in 1291 and is a consequence of a widespread practice of rewarding
conquering supporters with land. In this case the recipients of
dispossessed Saxon land were a Norman family called Malet. There
is no record of the original Malet and William Malet (1166-1215)
is the first Malet known.
The abandoned railway is part of the Somerset and Dorset branch
line which linked Evercreech to Bath via Radstock. The viaduct dominates
the field of view descending to Shepton Mallet. A branch of the
GWR also passed through Shepton Mallet, linking Wells with Witham.
A section of this line is still used at Cranmore for steam train
outings. |
|
South
Cadbury
The hill was briefly
a fortified town called Cadanbyrig in the reign of Ethelred and
the area is recorded as Cadeberie in the Domesday Book of 1086.
These names derive from the old Celtic words "cadaer"
and "borgh", which together have the meaning of "fortified
hill".
South Cadbury Castle is one of the finest Iron Age camps in Somerset.
The site was first occupied in the Neolithic Age about 3300 BC and
was again settled in 800 BC in the late Bronze Age. Hill ramparts
were constructed in the Late Iron Age, around 500 BC, to enclose
7 hectares (about 18 acres). These ramparts were modified several
times, resulting in a multivallate hillfort with four massive earthen
banks and accompanying ditches. There were three entrances, the
NE one being the main one today. Evidence of several iron Age buildings,
including a temple, has been found. At that time cadbury was probably
a "capital", a centre of craft, trade and religious worship,
of the DUROTRIGES, whose territory included Dorset and central and
southern Somerset. Occupation continued into Roman times with old
skeletons providing evidence of a massacre by them here in 70 AD.
At the same time the SW gate was burnt down and the ramparts slighted.
Between 400 and 600 AD new timber framework ramparts were constructed
and the hillfort again occupied. After the 7th century settlement
on the hill ceased until the late saxon period. Then, probably as
a refuge from Viking attacks, the hilltop was again defended when
it briefly became a fortified town called Cadanbyrig in the reign
of Ethelred II ("The Unready"). For ten years it replaced
Ilchester as the administration and commercial centre and an emergency
minting of coins occurred here in 1010 and 1020 AD. When Viking
raids ended the hilltop was abandoned.
A number of legends associate King Arthur with the hillfort and
the area around it. For example, even 400 years ago the highest
part was being identified as Arthur's palace.
Opposite the entrance to Cadbury castle is castle Farm House, dating
from 1687. The grounds of the church contain several fine interesting
trees, including a tulip, a yew and a ginkgo. Only the arcade remains
of the original Early English church built here in the late 13th
century. The present church, dedicated to Thomas a Beckett, was
rebuilt in typical Somerset perpendicular style but retains a tower
with corner buttresses and gargoyles dating from the 14th century.
The chancel was rebuilt again in 1874. |
| South
Stoke
Southstoke
House, on the road into Southstoke, is built over the site of a
Roman villa. Along the road, further out of the village, is Packhorse
Farm which was, until 1853, the Packhorse Inn with stabling for
30 packhorses. Wool was the main commodity transported along this
ancient trail between Bath and Salisbury. In 1780 the Inn was known
as a haunt for tea-smugglers! St.James church stands in the grounds
of the 17th century Manor Farm, which has a superb old barn with
a dovecote gable. In the 13th century an Early English church replaced
almost all of a Norman church, leaving only the impressive northern
doorway intact. The tower was built in 1525, the nave was rebuilt
and the roof replaced in 1712, and in 1845 walls were lowered to
accommodate a higher pitched roof and the south aisle added. Of
many interesting graves is that of Captain George Gosling who served
as a midshipman during the battle of Copenhagen -- at the age of
only 11!! The Priory (1850) once housed two pensioned off maids
of Queen Victoria. |
Sutton
Montis
The Domesday Book
name in 1086 is Sutone, meaning enclosure from the Old English words
"su" and "tun". Montis is a vagrant of Montague.
The Mont-Acuto family came with the Conqueror and was granted land
in this area. Droge Mont-Acuto, for example, held lands in the parish
in the 12th century but the double name doesn't appear on records
until 1291. By 1490 descendants were calling themselves Montague.
Holy Trinity church is unusual in NOT having been pulled down and
rebuilt in the middle ages; most Somerset churches have a characteristic
"perpendicular" style dating from the 14th and 15th century.
In plan and major structure this church is Norman (1100-1140). Restoration
has been faithful to the original with only a vestry (on the north
side of the Chancel) and an entrance door and porch (on the south
side of the knave) being added. The fine chancel arch is Norman
(and the only one in the area), as is the entrance at the west end
of the knave. The chancel windows have fine inner arches and date
from the early English period (1189-1288).
An Arthurian legend claims that the village is haunted by Arthur
and his knights who ride down from the hill above to water their
horses at a well in the grounds of Abbey House, a 15th century priest's
house near the church. |
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