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Name | Wellow |
Alt names | Shoscombe | source: extra parochial area within parish | | Baggridge | source: hamlet in parish | | Single Hill | source: hamlet in parish | | Twinhoe | source: hamlet in parish | | White Ox Mead | source: hamlet in parish |
Type | Ancient parish, Civil parish |
Coordinates | 51.323°N 2.374°W |
Located in | Somerset, England |
See also | Wellow Hundred, Somerset, England | hundred in which it was located | | Bath Rural, Somerset, England | rural district 1894-1933 | | Bathavon Rural, Somerset, England | rural district 1933-1974 | | Wansdyke District, Avon, England | district covering the area 1974-1996 | | Bath and North East Somerset District, Somerset, England | unitary authority which took over from Avon on its abolition in 1996 |
- the text in this section is based on an article in Wikipedia
Wellow (#17 on map) is a large civil parish in Somerset, England, about five miles south of Bath. It used to have a railway station on the Somerset and Dorset Joint Line, which closed in 1966, and a tunnel on the Radstock arm of the Somerset Coal Canal. There is a low water crossing (Irish Bridge) and late mediaeval packhorse bridge over Wellow Brook. The parish church is dedicated to St. Julian and has origins before the 12th century although the present building dates from 1372. The church is a grade I listed building.
The parish, which includes the hamlets of Shoscombe, Twinhoe, White Ox Mead, Baggridge, Single Hill and part of Midford (see South Stoke). Coal mining replaced agriculture as the predominant occupation in the 19th century. Wellow had a population of 529 in the UK census of 2011.
Shoscombe
Shoscombe was a extra parochial area under the auspices of the parish of Wellow until 1926. It became a civil parish in 1955. It is located in the valley of the Wellow Brook, about seven miles south of Bath. It had a population of 433 in an estimate published in 2013.
There was a coal mine in Shoscombe from 1828 until the 1850s. (source:Wikipedia). It was one of the Writhlington Collieries which spread out from Radstock to the southwest. From 1929 until the line closed in 1966, Shoscombe had a railway station, Shoscombe and Single Hill Halt, on the main line of the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway.
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Governance
Wellow was originally a parish in Wellow Hundred, one of the hundreds or early subdivisions of the county of Somerset. In 1894 it was placed in the Bath Rural District and when the rural district was abolished in 1933, it was transferred to the Bathavon Rural District until 1974.
In 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, all urban and rural districts across England were abolished and counties were reorganized into metropolitan and non-metropolitan districts. In addition, this area of Somerset with the city of Bristol and part of Gloucestershire were declared a new county named Avon. Like other counties, it had non-metropolitan districts covering the more non-urban areas. The area directly south of Bristol and east to the border with Wiltshire was placed in the Wansdyke District, while the section west to the Bristol Channel was placed in the Woodspring District. The county of Avon only lasted until 1996. When it was abolished a slight restructuring of non-metropolitan districts occurred to allow those parts of Avon to return to Somerset and Gloucestershire. The parish of Wellow is now in the unitary authority of Bath and North East Somerset.
Historic Descriptions
1822 - Somersetshire delineated by Christopher & John Greenwood
A parish in the hundred to which it gives name, 4½ miles S. from Bath ; containing 163 inhabited houses, and 175 families, 125 of whom are employed in agriculture. The river Cam runs through this parish, in its way to the Avon, parallel with which a canal was formed from Midford to Radstock : it is now filled up, and made into a railway. In this parish several tessellated pavements and other Roman antiquities have been discovered at different periods. The church is a handsome edifice, dedicated to St. Julian, and was. built by Sir Walter Hungerford about the year 1372; it consists of a nave, chancel, and two side aisles, with a tower at the west end containing a clock and eight bells. The living is a curacy, in the deanery of Frome ; Rev. Frederick Gardiner, incumbent; instituted 1801. Population, 1801, 77O — 1811, 728 — 1821, 817.
1831 - A Topographical Dictionary of England (Samuel Lewis)
Wellow, a parish in the hundred of WELLOW, county of SOMERSET, 4½ miles (S.) from Bath, containing 817 inhabitants. The living is a discharged vicarage, in the archdeaconry of Wells, and diocese of Bath and Wells, rated in the king's books at £20. 6. 10d., and in the patronage of Edward Gardiner, Esq. The church, dedicated to St. Julian, was built by Sir Walter Hungerford, about 1732. There is a place of worship for Wesleyan Methodists. A railway from the Welton collieries, communicating with the Avon and Kennet, and the Radford coal canals, passes through the parish. Ten poor children are educated for £10 a year, the bequest of Rachael Coles, in 1756 ; and two for a rent-charge of £2, the gift of Daniel Sumner, in 1699.
Among numerous other Roman relics discovered in the neighbourhood, a tesselated pavement was found in 1644, another in 1670, and a third in 1685, with altars, pillars, and fragments of paterae, and other vessels. At the extremity of the parish is an immense barrow, called Woodeborough, and another smaller one has been found to contain several stone coffins.
1868 - National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland
Wellow, a parish in the hundred of Wellow, county Somerset, 4½ miles S. of Bath, and 5 W. of the Freshford station on the Wilts, Somerset, and Weymouth railway. The village is situated under Woodeboro' barrow, on the tram-road from the Welton collieries communicating with the Avon and Kennet and Radford canals. It is noted for its strawberry gardens, and has Bray's Down collieries near the hamlet of Shoscombe. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Bath and Wells, value £350. The church, dedicated to St. Julian, was nearly rebuilt in 1370, and restored in 1845. The interior contains an oak roof, open oak seats, and several monuments to the Hungerford family. The register dates from 1561. The Wesleyans have a chapel. There are National and Sunday schools, the former endowed with £10 per annum. The parochial charities produce about £13 per annum. Among numerous other Roman relics, tesselated pavements, altars, pillars, and fragments of pateræ, were discovered here in 1644, 1670, and 1685. On the manor of Littleton is a Celtic burial-place, and near the extremity of the parish is the large barrow called Woodeboro'. A fair is held on the 20th October for cattle and sheep.
Research Tips
- GENUKI page on Wellow.
- The Somerset Heritage Centre (incorporating what was formerly the Somerset Record Office and the Somerset Local Studies Library) can be found at its new location at Langford Mead in Taunton. It has an online search facility leading to pages of interest, including maps from the First and Second Ordnance Survey (select "Maps and Postcards" from the list at the left, then enter the parish in the search box).
The Heritage Centre has an email address: archives@somerset.gov.uk.
- Three maps on the A Vision of Britain through Time website illustrate the changes in political boundaries over the period 1830-1945. All have expanding scales and on the second and third this facility is sufficient that individual parishes can be inspected.
- Somerset Hundreds as drawn in 1832. This map was prepared before The Great Reform Act of that year. Note the polling places and representation of the various parts of the county.
- Somerset in 1900, an Ordnance Survey map showing rural districts, the boundaries of the larger towns, the smaller civil parishes of the time, and some hamlets and villages in each parish
- Somerset in 1943, an Ordnance Survey map showing the rural districts after the changes to their structure in the 1930s
- Maps provided by the National Library of Scotland are also very useful. This map is currently set to an area now in the Sedgmoor District as it existed in the late 19th century, but can be moved to anywhere in the county using a variety of background maps. There is a very good search facility.
- A Vision of Britain through Time has a group of pages of statistical facts for almost every parish in the county
- GENUKI gives pointers to other archive sources as well as providing some details on each parish. The emphasis here is on ecclesiastical parishes (useful before 1837)
- A listing of all the Registration Districts in England and Wales since their introduction in 1837 and tables of the parishes that were part of each district and the time period covered with detailed notes on changes of parish name, mergers, etc. The compiler has gone to a lot of work to provide this material. Respect his copyright.
- The FamilySearch Wiki for Somerset provides a similar but not identical series of webpages to that provided by GENUKI
- English Jurisdictions, a supplementary website to FamilySearch outlining local parish boundaries in the middle on the 19th century. The information provided is especially useful for establishing the relationship of the ecclesiastical parishes in large towns and cathedral cities.
- The Victoria History of the Counties of England – History of the County of Somerset, produced by The Institute of Historical Research at the University of London is a scholarly website with articles tracing the history of individual parishes which are sorted into their hundreds, the early subdivisions of the county. It traces the ownership of estates and manors, describes the local church in detail, and usually provides a map of each parish. The volumes for Somerset are much more recent than those for other counties. It appears to be a work in progress, only covering about half the county so far. A map of the places covered in the series is given in Volume 6, but 3 more volumes have been published since then. If a parish is included there will be a note in its Research Tips.
- The Somerset and Dorset Family History Society
- The Weston super Mare Family History Society
- The Bristol and Avon Family History Society
- A list of all Somerset parishes with online transcripts of parish registers The size of Somerset makes this a huge project. If it does not yield what you are looking for, try getting in touch with the organizer with patience and politeness.
- Somerset Online Parish Clerk project home page
- A collection of West Somerset Parish Register Transcriptions are online courtesy of Martin Southwood
- Wellow Village Website
Categories: Somerset, England | Wellow, Somerset, England | Wellow Hundred, Somerset, England | Bath Rural, Somerset, England | Bathavon Rural, Somerset, England | Wansdyke District, Avon, England | Bath and North East Somerset District, Somerset, England
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