Wiveliscombe facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Wiveliscombe |
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 Court House, Wiveliscombe, built by the Hancock family (a local brewing family) in 1881 |
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 Wiveliscombe
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| Population | 2,893 (2011) |
| OS grid reference | ST080279 |
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| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | TAUNTON |
| Postcode district | TA4 |
| Dialling code | 01984 |
| Police | Avon and Somerset |
| Fire | Devon and Somerset |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| EU Parliament | South West England |
| UK Parliament |
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Wiveliscombe is a small town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated 9 miles (14 km) west of Taunton in the Somerset West and Taunton district. The town has a population of 2,893. The Square, fronted by several listed structures, held the former market. The parish includes the nearby hamlet of Maundown.
History
Settlement in the neighborhood is of long standing. The Neolithic hillfort at King's Castle is 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) east of the town. North west of the town is Clatworthy Camp, an Iron Age hill fort. Nearby is Elworthy Barrows, an unfinished Iron Age hill fort, rather than Bronze Age barrows. A rectangular enclosure south of Manor Farm is the remains of a Roman fort; in the 18th century its vestiges of fortifications and foundations were identified as being of Roman origin, and it was locally called "the Castle". In the 18th century a hoard of about 1600 Roman coins of third and fourth century dates was uncovered.
The Anglo-Saxon settlement, the combe or valley of a certain Wifele, was mentioned in the Domesday survey (1086), when it was quite large, consisting of twenty-seven households, with an annual value to the lord, the Bishop of Wells St Andrew, of £25. During the Middle Ages the bishops maintained a residence here.
The parish of Wiveliscombe was part of the Kilmersdon Hundred,
The Town Hall was built in 1840 by Somerset surveyor Richard Carver for Lord Ashburton. It housed a fish market, a butchers’ market and a pig market with an assembly room above them. It is a Grade II listed building. It was bought by The Cooperative Society in 1929 and converted to shops, the hall being left unused. By 2010, plans were drawn up for the creation there of an Arts, Media, Cultural and Heritage Venue. The Abbotsfield cottages were built by businessman Lukey Collard in the 1870s; they became a Grade II listed building in 1975.
In 2010 a new 10 Parishes Centre was announced which will provide a new community facility alongside the Children’s Centre being built at Croft Way.
Geography
Wiveliscombe is a former borough, market and cloth making town, 5 miles (8 km) from the border between Devon and Somerset. It is situated at the foot of the Brendon Hills and acts as a gateway to Exmoor.
The town used to have a station on the Devon and Somerset Railway which closed in 1966. Clatworthy Reservoir is nearby.
Demography
The town's population in 1777 was 1,533. While the modern population of 2,893 is small for a town, its shops and services meet the needs of a much larger population, spread through the western fifth of Taunton Deane, in scattered farms and villages. A survey in 1997 revealed that there were at least 300 businesses within a 5-mile (8 km) radius of the town; 14 of these were trading internationally and a further 20 nationally. Wiveliscombe is also home to three breweries, Cotleigh Brewery, Exmoor Ales and Black Bear Brewery. It is also one of the first towns in the UK to set up a completely free goods and services exchange forum for the local ten parishes area.
The community radio station 10Radio is based in the town, serving the community of the ten parishes from which its name is derived. 105.3FM in the local area and via the internet at www.10radio.org.
Education
Wiveliscombe Primary School serves most of the surrounding villages. Kingsmead School, for pupils aged 11 to 16, houses a Theatre and Sports Hall and a youth club complementing the town's Recreation Ground where the Tennis, Rugby, Cricket and Football Clubs have their bases.
Images for kids
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The tower of the Church of St Andrew
See also
In Spanish: Wiveliscombe para niños
