Dowlish Wake
Encyclopedia
Dowlish Wake is a small village and civil parish
in Somerset
, England, situated 2 miles (3 km) south of Ilminster
and 5 miles (8 km) north-east of Chard
in the South Somerset
district. The village has a population
of 293 and is home to several thatched houses.
The village contains The New Inn pub
, and a Pottery
and Craft Gallery. The post office
closed in 1991.
The parish of Dowlish Wake was part of the South Petherton
Hundred.
The village is situated on Dowlish Brook, which is crossed by a 17th-century packhorse bridge
(widened in the 1990s) and a road bridge dating from the 18th century. There was a flour mill on the brook in the 17th century but only the Mill House survives today. Until the early 1990s parts of the village were regularly cut off by floodwaters between two fords
which cross the main road, however this has largely been prevented by recent drainage improvements.
The village was a centre for the manufacture of silk
and there are the remains of several limestone
quarries. It was on the route of the Chard Canal
, which was built around 1835–40 and was intended to be part of a ship canal
between the Bristol Channel
and the English Channel
, but this was never built.
The sports pavilion on the Lawrence Kellett recreation field was rebuilt in 2007.
In 2004 a stone in a village garden, used by a widow to mark the grave of her pet cat, was identified by the village potter as a 9th-century Saxon
carving of St Peter.
Dowlish Wake has its own parish council with responsibility for local issues, including setting an annual precept (local rate) to cover the council’s operating costs and producing annual accounts for public scrutiny. The parish council evaluates local planning applications and works with the local police, district council officers, and neighbourhood watch
groups on matters of crime, security, and traffic. The council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of parish facilities, as well as consulting with the district council on the maintenance, repair, and improvement of highways, drainage, footpaths, public transport, and street cleaning. Conservation matters (including trees and listed buildings) and environmental issues are also the responsibility of the council. The village is part of the South Somerset
local government district
within the wider Somerset County Council
, having previously been part of Chard Rural District
.
Yeovil is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP)
by the first past the post system of election. The constituency covers the towns of Yeovil, Chard
, Crewkerne
and Ilminster
in Somerset
. Until 1983 Somerset
was split into four constituencies and Yeovil constituency also contained the towns of Ilchester
, Martock
and Somerton
but they were moved into the newly created constituency of Somerton and Frome. From the next election, Yeovil constituency will contain Ilchester
once again to equalise the populations of the Somerset constituencies. The Boundary Commission for England estimate the electorate
of Yeovil constituency after the pending boundary changes to be 77,049. The current MP is David Laws
, a member of the Liberal Democrats.
Residents of Dowlish Wake also form part of the electorate for the South West England
constituency for elections to the European Parliament
, which elects seven MEPs using the d'Hondt method
of party-list proportional representation
.
produced at Perrys Cider Mill, manufacturers of several award-winning Ciders. The barn which is used as the cider mill, and now also contains a museum, has 16th-century origins, and may originally have been used as a smith
y. A cafe opened at the cider mills in 2008.
The hamstone
Manor House has 11th-century origins, with the present building being from all periods from the 15th century. It was known as Dowlish Farm by 1688, having been held by the Wake family from the 12th century; it passed through marriage to the Speke family at the end of the 15th century; they sold it in 1920.
Norman
Church of St Andrew includes fragments of the chancel dating from the 13th century, a 14th-century tower; however, most of the church was rebuilt in 1861–62. It has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade II* listed building.
Speke Hall, next to the church, was used as the day and Sunday school from its erection by William Speke in 1840 until 1949. It now serves as the village hall, hosting regular social functions.
who took part in 3 expeditions to Central Africa
from 1854-1862, the last two in search of the source of the Nile
. He discovered Lake Victoria
and maintained that it was the source of the White Nile. On his 3rd expedition Speke identified Ripon Falls, the outlet of Lake Victoria, as the source of the Nile; this was confirmed by Henry Morton Stanley
in a later expedition. Speke was killed in Neston Park
in Wiltshire
by his own gun while hunting with his cousin on the 18th of September 1864; Dr David Livingstone
and Sir Roderick Murchison
, President of the Royal Geographical Society
attended his funeral. There is a life size bust of Speke and a memorial to him in the church.Meadowbank was the home of the family of Gary Mortimer
, hot air balloonist.
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
in Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
, England, situated 2 miles (3 km) south of Ilminster
Ilminster
Ilminster is a country town and civil parish in the countryside of south west Somerset, England, with a population of 4,781. Bypassed a few years ago, the town now lies just east of the intersection of the A303 and the A358...
and 5 miles (8 km) north-east of Chard
Chard, Somerset
Chard is a town and civil parish in the Somerset county of England. It lies on the A30 road near the Devon border, south west of Yeovil. The parish has a population of approximately 12,000 and, at an elevation of , it is the southernmost and highest town in Somerset...
in the South Somerset
South Somerset
South Somerset is a local government district in Somerset, England.The South Somerset district covers and area of ranging from the borders with Devon and Dorset to the edge of the Somerset Levels. It has a population of approximately 158,000...
district. The village has a population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
of 293 and is home to several thatched houses.
The village contains The New Inn pub
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
, and a Pottery
Pottery
Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...
and Craft Gallery. The post office
Post office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
closed in 1991.
History
South Petherton (hundred)
The Hundred of South Petherton is one of the 40 historical Hundreds in the ceremonial county of Somerset, England, dating from before the Norman conquest during the Anglo-Saxon era although exact dates are unknown. Each hundred had a 'fyrd', which acted as the local defence force and a court which...
Hundred.
The village is situated on Dowlish Brook, which is crossed by a 17th-century packhorse bridge
Packhorse bridge
A packhorse bridge is a bridge intended to carry packhorses across a river or stream. Typically a packhorse bridge consists of one or more narrow masonry arches, and has low parapets so as not to interfere with the horse's panniers.Packhorse bridges were often built on the trade routes that...
(widened in the 1990s) and a road bridge dating from the 18th century. There was a flour mill on the brook in the 17th century but only the Mill House survives today. Until the early 1990s parts of the village were regularly cut off by floodwaters between two fords
Ford (crossing)
A ford is a shallow place with good footing where a river or stream may be crossed by wading or in a vehicle. A ford is mostly a natural phenomenon, in contrast to a low water crossing, which is an artificial bridge that allows crossing a river or stream when water is low.The names of many towns...
which cross the main road, however this has largely been prevented by recent drainage improvements.
The village was a centre for the manufacture of silk
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
and there are the remains of several limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
quarries. It was on the route of the Chard Canal
Chard Canal
The Chard Canal was a tub boat canal in Somerset, England, that ran from the Bridgwater and Taunton Canal at Creech St. Michael, over four aqueducts, through three tunnels and four inclined planes to Chard. It was completed in 1842, was never commercially viable, and closed in 1868...
, which was built around 1835–40 and was intended to be part of a ship canal
Ship canal
A ship canal is a canal especially constructed to carry ocean-going ships, as opposed to barges. Ship canals can be enlarged barge canals, canalized or channelized rivers, or canals especially constructed from the start to accommodate ships....
between the Bristol Channel
Bristol Channel
The Bristol Channel is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from Devon and Somerset in South West England. It extends from the lower estuary of the River Severn to the North Atlantic Ocean...
and the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
, but this was never built.
The sports pavilion on the Lawrence Kellett recreation field was rebuilt in 2007.
In 2004 a stone in a village garden, used by a widow to mark the grave of her pet cat, was identified by the village potter as a 9th-century Saxon
Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
carving of St Peter.
Governance
As a civil parishCivil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
Dowlish Wake has its own parish council with responsibility for local issues, including setting an annual precept (local rate) to cover the council’s operating costs and producing annual accounts for public scrutiny. The parish council evaluates local planning applications and works with the local police, district council officers, and neighbourhood watch
Neighbourhood Watch (UK)
The Neighbourhood Watch scheme in the United Kingdom is a partnership where people come together to make their communities safer. It involves the Police, Community Safety departments of local authorities, other voluntary organisations and, above all, individuals and families who want to make their...
groups on matters of crime, security, and traffic. The council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of parish facilities, as well as consulting with the district council on the maintenance, repair, and improvement of highways, drainage, footpaths, public transport, and street cleaning. Conservation matters (including trees and listed buildings) and environmental issues are also the responsibility of the council. The village is part of the South Somerset
South Somerset
South Somerset is a local government district in Somerset, England.The South Somerset district covers and area of ranging from the borders with Devon and Dorset to the edge of the Somerset Levels. It has a population of approximately 158,000...
local government district
Non-metropolitan district
Non-metropolitan districts, or colloquially shire districts, are a type of local government district in England. As created, they are sub-divisions of non-metropolitan counties in a so-called "two-tier" arrangement...
within the wider Somerset County Council
Somerset County Council
Somerset County Council is the county council of Somerset in the South West of England, an elected local government authority responsible for the most significant local government services in most of the county.-Area covered:...
, having previously been part of Chard Rural District
Chard Rural District
Chard was a rural district in Somerset, England, from 1894 to 1974.It was created in 1894 under the Local Government Act 1894.In 1974 it was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972 when it became part of South Somerset....
.
Yeovil is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP)
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
by the first past the post system of election. The constituency covers the towns of Yeovil, Chard
Chard, Somerset
Chard is a town and civil parish in the Somerset county of England. It lies on the A30 road near the Devon border, south west of Yeovil. The parish has a population of approximately 12,000 and, at an elevation of , it is the southernmost and highest town in Somerset...
, Crewkerne
Crewkerne
Crewkerne is a town in Somerset, England, situated south west of Yeovil and east of Chard in the South Somerset district close to the border with Dorset. The civil parish of West Crewkerne includes the hamlets of Woolminstone and Henley...
and Ilminster
Ilminster
Ilminster is a country town and civil parish in the countryside of south west Somerset, England, with a population of 4,781. Bypassed a few years ago, the town now lies just east of the intersection of the A303 and the A358...
in Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
. Until 1983 Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
was split into four constituencies and Yeovil constituency also contained the towns of Ilchester
Ilchester
Ilchester is a village and civil parish, situated on the River Yeo or Ivel, five miles north of Yeovil, in the English county of Somerset. The parish, which includes the village of Sock Dennis and the old parish of Northover, has a population of 2,021...
, Martock
Martock
Martock is a large village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated on the edge of the Somerset Levels north west of Yeovil in the South Somerset district. The parish includes Hurst, approximately one mile south of the village, and Bower Hinton, which is located at the western end of the...
and Somerton
Somerton
Somerton is a small town and civil parish in the South Somerset district of the English county of Somerset. It gave its name to the county of Somerset, was briefly, around the start of the 14th century, the county town, and around 900 AD was possibly the capital of Wessex...
but they were moved into the newly created constituency of Somerton and Frome. From the next election, Yeovil constituency will contain Ilchester
Ilchester
Ilchester is a village and civil parish, situated on the River Yeo or Ivel, five miles north of Yeovil, in the English county of Somerset. The parish, which includes the village of Sock Dennis and the old parish of Northover, has a population of 2,021...
once again to equalise the populations of the Somerset constituencies. The Boundary Commission for England estimate the electorate
Electoral district
An electoral district is a distinct territorial subdivision for holding a separate election for one or more seats in a legislative body...
of Yeovil constituency after the pending boundary changes to be 77,049. The current MP is David Laws
David Laws
David Anthony Laws is a British politician. He is Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Yeovil and former Chief Secretary to the Treasury....
, a member of the Liberal Democrats.
Residents of Dowlish Wake also form part of the electorate for the South West England
South West England (European Parliament constituency)
South West England is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elects 6 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation, reduced from 7 in 2004.-Boundaries:...
constituency for elections to the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
, which elects seven MEPs using the d'Hondt method
D'Hondt method
The d'Hondt method is a highest averages method for allocating seats in party-list proportional representation. The method described is named after Belgian mathematician Victor D'Hondt who described it in 1878...
of party-list proportional representation
Party-list proportional representation
Party-list proportional representation systems are a family of voting systems emphasizing proportional representation in elections in which multiple candidates are elected...
.
Cider Mill
The village is the home of the ciderCider
Cider or cyder is a fermented alcoholic beverage made from apple juice. Cider varies in alcohol content from 2% abv to 8.5% abv or more in traditional English ciders. In some regions, such as Germany and America, cider may be termed "apple wine"...
produced at Perrys Cider Mill, manufacturers of several award-winning Ciders. The barn which is used as the cider mill, and now also contains a museum, has 16th-century origins, and may originally have been used as a smith
Smith (metalwork)
A metalsmith, often shortened to smith, is a person involved in making metal objects. In contemporary use a metalsmith is a person who uses metal as a material, uses traditional metalsmithing techniques , whose work thematically relates to the practice or history of the practice, or who engages in...
y. A cafe opened at the cider mills in 2008.
Manor house
Hamstone
Hamstone is the colloquial name given to stone from Ham Hill, Somerset, England. Hamstone is a Jurassic limestone from the Toarcian, or Upper Lias, stage. It is a well cemented medium to coarse grained limestone characterised by its honey-gold colour and marked bedding planes. The stone contains...
Manor House has 11th-century origins, with the present building being from all periods from the 15th century. It was known as Dowlish Farm by 1688, having been held by the Wake family from the 12th century; it passed through marriage to the Speke family at the end of the 15th century; they sold it in 1920.
Dower House
The Dower House dates from 1664 and was leased to female members of the Speke family during the later 18th century giving the building its name.Church and hall
The hamstoneHamstone
Hamstone is the colloquial name given to stone from Ham Hill, Somerset, England. Hamstone is a Jurassic limestone from the Toarcian, or Upper Lias, stage. It is a well cemented medium to coarse grained limestone characterised by its honey-gold colour and marked bedding planes. The stone contains...
Norman
Norman architecture
About|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
Church of St Andrew includes fragments of the chancel dating from the 13th century, a 14th-century tower; however, most of the church was rebuilt in 1861–62. It has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a Grade II* listed building.
Speke Hall, next to the church, was used as the day and Sunday school from its erection by William Speke in 1840 until 1949. It now serves as the village hall, hosting regular social functions.
Notable residents
The Manor was the home of the family of John Hanning SpekeJohn Hanning Speke
John Hanning Speke was an officer in the British Indian Army who made three exploratory expeditions to Africa and who is most associated with the search for the source of the Nile.-Life:...
who took part in 3 expeditions to Central Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
from 1854-1862, the last two in search of the source of the Nile
Nile
The Nile is a major north-flowing river in North Africa, generally regarded as the longest river in the world. It is long. It runs through the ten countries of Sudan, South Sudan, Burundi, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda and Egypt.The Nile has two major...
. He discovered Lake Victoria
Lake Victoria
Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. The lake was named for Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, by John Hanning Speke, the first European to discover this lake....
and maintained that it was the source of the White Nile. On his 3rd expedition Speke identified Ripon Falls, the outlet of Lake Victoria, as the source of the Nile; this was confirmed by Henry Morton Stanley
Henry Morton Stanley
Sir Henry Morton Stanley, GCB, born John Rowlands , was a Welsh journalist and explorer famous for his exploration of Africa and his search for David Livingstone. Upon finding Livingstone, Stanley allegedly uttered the now-famous greeting, "Dr...
in a later expedition. Speke was killed in Neston Park
Neston Park
Neston Park is an English country house and estate, 2 miles south of Corsham, Wiltshire, in the village of Neston. The name of the village comes from the name of the house.The house was built just after 1790....
in Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
by his own gun while hunting with his cousin on the 18th of September 1864; Dr David Livingstone
David Livingstone
David Livingstone was a Scottish Congregationalist pioneer medical missionary with the London Missionary Society and an explorer in Africa. His meeting with H. M. Stanley gave rise to the popular quotation, "Dr...
and Sir Roderick Murchison
Roderick Murchison
Sir Roderick Impey Murchison, 1st Baronet KCB DCL FRS FRSE FLS PRGS PBA MRIA was a Scottish geologist who first described and investigated the Silurian system.-Early life and work:...
, President of the Royal Geographical Society
Royal Geographical Society
The Royal Geographical Society is a British learned society founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical sciences...
attended his funeral. There is a life size bust of Speke and a memorial to him in the church.Meadowbank was the home of the family of Gary Mortimer
Gary Mortimer
Gary Mortimer Hot air balloon Pilot and current holder of the South African Hot Air Balloon Altitude record. The record was set on 9 May 2005 when he flew to an altitude of with DJ Lev David, on a flight in the KwaZulu-Natal region of South Africa.He is currently living in the KwaZulu Natal...
, hot air balloonist.