Freshford
Encyclopedia
- There is another village called Freshford in IrelandIrelandIreland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
.
Freshford is a village and civil parish
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 the Avon
River Avon, Bristol
The River Avon is an English river in the south west of the country. To distinguish it from a number of other River Avons in Britain, this river is often also known as the Lower Avon or Bristol Avon...
valley 6 miles (10 km) south-east of Bath, in the county of 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
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The parish has a population of 530. It is in the Cotswolds
Cotswolds
The Cotswolds are a range of hills in west-central England, sometimes called the Heart of England, an area across and long. The area has been designated as the Cotswold Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty...
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is an area of countryside considered to have significant landscape value in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, that has been specially designated by the Countryside Agency on behalf of the United Kingdom government; the Countryside Council for Wales on...
(AONB), within the Green Belt
Green Belt (UK)
In United Kingdom town planning, the green belt is a policy for controlling urban growth. The idea is for a ring of countryside where urbanisation will be resisted for the foreseeable future, maintaining an area where agriculture, forestry and outdoor leisure can be expected to prevail...
and is in a conservation area
Conservation area
A conservation areas is a tract of land that has been awarded protected status in order to ensure that natural features, cultural heritage or biota are safeguarded...
.
The village of Freshford includes the smaller hamlets
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
of Friary, Sharpstone, Park Corner, Woodside and Staples Hill, which are separated from the village centre by a few hundred metres of open fields.
The village history goes back to Saxon times
History of Anglo-Saxon England
Anglo-Saxon England refers to the period of the history of that part of Britain, that became known as England, lasting from the end of Roman occupation and establishment of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in the 5th century until the Norman conquest of England in 1066 by William the Conqueror...
and it expanded with the growth of local industry but is now largely residential.
History
The village has existed since Saxon timesHistory of Anglo-Saxon England
Anglo-Saxon England refers to the period of the history of that part of Britain, that became known as England, lasting from the end of Roman occupation and establishment of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in the 5th century until the Norman conquest of England in 1066 by William the Conqueror...
, and existed before the land at Fersceforde was given to Bath Abbey
Bath Abbey
The Abbey Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, Bath, commonly known as Bath Abbey, is an Anglican parish church and a former Benedictine monastery in Bath, Somerset, England...
after the Norman Conquest. A mill existed here as early as 1086 and there are still remains of one built in the 1540s.
Freshford was part of the hundred of Bath Forum
Bath Forum (hundred)
The Hundred of Bath Forum 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 was...
.
Freshford Bridge over the River Frome dates from the early to mid 16th century.
In the 19th century freestone and fuller's earth
Fuller's earth
Fuller's earth is any non-plastic clay or claylike earthy material used to decolorize, filter, and purify animal, mineral, and vegetable oils and greases.-Occurrence and composition:...
were mined in the parish and employment included the manufacture of cloth, operation of malt-kilns, breweries, and fulling-mills. The importance of weaving can be seen at the now derelict site of Freshford Mill, and the numerous weavers’ cottages in the village. Dunkirk Mill, which was built in 1795 for Thomas Joyce, is now a residential property located just over the parish boundary in Hinton Charterhouse
Hinton Charterhouse
Hinton Charterhouse is a small village and civil parish in the Bath and North East Somerset unitary authority, Somerset, England. The parish, which includes the village of Midford, has a population of 477....
.
The war memorial in the village commemorates the 17 men from the village who died in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and four from World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Titfield Thunderbolt
The village is notable in that the houses have names instead of numbers, as was noted in the Ealing comedy The Titfield ThunderboltThe Titfield Thunderbolt
The Titfield Thunderbolt is a 1953 British comedy film about a group of villagers trying to prevent British Railways from closing the fictional Titfield branch line. The film was written by T.E.B...
, which was filmed locally in 1952 and where Freshford village served as the set for the idyllic English village under threat. The railway scenes were filmed on the Camerton
Camerton, Somerset
Camerton is a village and civil parish in Somerset, south west of Bath, lying on the Cam Brook. The parish has a population of 660.-History:...
branch line of the Bristol and North Somerset Railway
Bristol and North Somerset Railway
The Bristol and North Somerset Railway was a railway line in the West of England that connected Bristol with towns in the Somerset coalfield. The line ran almost due south from Bristol and was 16 miles long.-The main railway:...
. Passenger services started in 1910 and were suspended for the First World War in 1915; they resumed in 1923 but were withdrawn entirely in 1925. Freight services, mostly of coal, on the branch line ceased in 1951. The line achieved some fame after closure by its use in the 1952 film, but the track was taken up in 1958. The cricket scene was filmed near the former Viaduct Hotel at Limpley Stoke
Limpley Stoke
Limpley Stoke is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, in the Avon Valley, between Bath and Freshford. The village is below the A36 road.The civil parish, which had a population of 637 in 2001, also includes the hamlet of Waterhouse, and the outskirts of the Somerset village of Midford. The 18th...
. Cricket is still played on this pitch, part of which is used by the local school.
Governance
Freshford shares its parish council with Sharpstone and the surrounding hamlets. The parish council has 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 watchNeighbourhood 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 parish council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of parish facilities, such as the village hall
Village hall
In the United States, a village hall is the seat of government for villages. It functions much as a city hall does within cities.In the United Kingdom, a village hall is usually a building within a village which contains at least one large room, usually owned by and run for the benefit of the local...
or community centre
Community centre
Community centres or community centers or jumping recreation centers are public locations where members of a community tend to gather for group activities, social support, public information, and other purposes. They may sometimes be open for the whole community or for a specialised group within...
, playing field
Playing field
A playing field is a field used for playing sports or games. They are generally outdoors, but many large structures exist to enclose playing fields from bad weather. Generally, playing fields are wide expanses of grass, dirt or sand without many obstructions...
s and playground
Playground
A playground or play area is a place with a specific design for children be able to play there. It may be indoors but is typically outdoors...
s, 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 of interest to the council.
The village is part of the ward of Bathavon South in the unitary authority
Unitary authority
A unitary authority is a type of local authority that has a single tier and is responsible for all local government functions within its area or performs additional functions which elsewhere in the relevant country are usually performed by national government or a higher level of sub-national...
of Bath and North East Somerset
Bath and North East Somerset
Bath and North East Somerset is a unitary authority that was created on 1 April 1996 following the abolition of the County of Avon. It is part of the Ceremonial county of Somerset...
. The ward is currently represented by Councillor
Councillor
A councillor or councilor is a member of a local government council, such as a city council.Often in the United States, the title is councilman or councilwoman.-United Kingdom:...
Neil Butters, a member of the Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
. Bath and North East Somerset was created in 1996, as established by the Local Government Act 1992. Its area covers part of the ceremonial county
Ceremonial counties of England
The ceremonial counties are areas of England to which are appointed a Lord Lieutenant, and are defined by the government as counties and areas for the purposes of the Lieutenancies Act 1997 with reference to the metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties of England and Lieutenancies Act 1997...
of 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...
but it is administered independently of the non-metropolitan county. The authority's administrative headquarters are in Bath. Between 1 April 1974 and 1 April 1996, it was the Wansdyke
Wansdyke (district)
Wansdyke was a non-metropolitan district within the County of Avon, in the west of England from 1974 to 1996.The district was formed by the Local Government Act 1972 on 1 April 1974 as part of a reform of local authorities throughout England and Wales...
district and the City of Bath of the county of Avon, with Freshford lying in Wansdyke. Before 1974 the parish was part of the Bathavon Rural District
Bathavon Rural District
Bathavon was a rural district in Somerset, England, from 1933 to 1974.It was created in 1933 with the abolition of Bath Rural District and Keynsham Rural District....
.
It is also part of the North East Somerset parliamentary constituency
North East Somerset (UK Parliament constituency)
North East Somerset is a county constituency created by the Boundary Commission for England as the successor seat to the Wansdyke Parliamentary Seat. It came into being at the 2010 general election.- Boundaries :...
, and part of the South West England constituency
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:...
of 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...
.
Geography
The village is in the valley of the River AvonRiver Avon, Bristol
The River Avon is an English river in the south west of the country. To distinguish it from a number of other River Avons in Britain, this river is often also known as the Lower Avon or Bristol Avon...
close to the point at which it is joined by the River Frome
River Frome, Somerset
The River Frome is a river in Somerset. It rises near Witham Friary, flows north through the town of Frome and joins the River Avon at Freshford, south of Bath....
. The Kennet and Avon Canal
Kennet and Avon Canal
The Kennet and Avon Canal is a waterway in southern England with an overall length of , made up of two lengths of navigable river linked by a canal. The name is commonly used to refer to the entire length of the navigation rather than solely to the central canal section...
is visible across the Avon valley from the village, but the nearest crossings of the Avon are at Avoncliff
Avoncliff
Avoncliff is a village in Wiltshire.It is the point at which the Kennet and Avon canal crosses the river and railway line via the Avoncliff Aqueduct, which was built by John Rennie and chief engineer John Thomas, between 1797 and 1801...
and Limpley Stoke
Limpley Stoke
Limpley Stoke is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, in the Avon Valley, between Bath and Freshford. The village is below the A36 road.The civil parish, which had a population of 637 in 2001, also includes the hamlet of Waterhouse, and the outskirts of the Somerset village of Midford. The 18th...
.
Freshford's village centre is a conservation area
Conservation area
A conservation areas is a tract of land that has been awarded protected status in order to ensure that natural features, cultural heritage or biota are safeguarded...
which was created in 1975 and extended in April 2007, designated under the provisions of Section 69 of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990
Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990
The Planning Act 1990 is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom that altered the laws on granting of planning permission for building works, notably including those of the listed building system in England and Wales....
.
Economy
A significant number (20%) of local residents work from home using the internet. The village has a long-standing tradition of attracting "retired people of status". It is also a dormitory town for people working in Bath and BristolBristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
(27%).
Landmarks
Most of the buildings and boundary walls are built from the local oolitic limestone.The 19th-century brewery and attached cottages are now used as offices. The tall ashlar
Ashlar
Ashlar is prepared stone work of any type of stone. Masonry using such stones laid in parallel courses is known as ashlar masonry, whereas masonry using irregularly shaped stones is known as rubble masonry. Ashlar blocks are rectangular cuboid blocks that are masonry sculpted to have square edges...
chimney has a tapered octagonal shaft with moulded cap and provides an obvious landmark around the village.
Freshford manor is an 18th-century manor house. It was built on the site of an earlier house known as Pittes Place which dated from before 1603.
The local 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...
is called The Inn, and sits beside the River Frome
River Frome, Somerset
The River Frome is a river in Somerset. It rises near Witham Friary, flows north through the town of Frome and joins the River Avon at Freshford, south of Bath....
, a tributary of the River Avon. The Inn (which has never been an inn) is noted for its regular offering of music including jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
every Thursday night. Every third Monday musicians, professional and amateur alike, are welcome to come and play.
Freshford Mill
The Freshford Mill site comprises a mixture of buildings the oldest of which, the mill owner's house, dates back to the 17th century. There are also three major blocks from the late 18th/early 19th centuries, all in natural stone and clay tile or slate, and three more modern buildings from the 1950s and 1980s. The site features a mill channel with an internal wheel although a narrower mill leatLeat
A leat is the name, common in the south and west of England and in Wales, for an artificial watercourse or aqueduct dug into the ground, especially one supplying water to a watermill or its mill pond...
was blocked many years ago. The site was used until 1993 by Peradins for the manufacture of rubber components for the car industry. Since the firm relocated to their new premises in Trowbridge
Trowbridge
Trowbridge is the county town of Wiltshire, England, situated on the River Biss in the west of the county, approximately 12 miles southeast of Bath, Somerset....
the site has been essentially empty. In 2003 an application was made to turn the site into a rural recreation area, nature sanctuary and workshops. The site was sold to new owners and more recent proposals are for a residential estate. This has been opposed by local residents and the parish council. They have argued that the increase in the population of the village and the effect on the infrastructure such as the roads and school would be too great. There are also concerns because the site is within a Zone 3 floodplain
Floodplain
A floodplain, or flood plain, is a flat or nearly flat land adjacent a stream or river that stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls and experiences flooding during periods of high discharge...
, which is designated by the Environment Agency
Environment Agency
The Environment Agency is a British non-departmental public body of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and an Assembly Government Sponsored Body of the Welsh Assembly Government that serves England and Wales.-Purpose:...
as having an annual probability of river flooding of 1% or greater. The site contains several protected species of bat
Bat
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera "hand" and pteron "wing") whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. By contrast, other mammals said to fly, such as flying squirrels, gliding possums, and colugos, glide rather than fly,...
.
Transport
Freshford is close to the A36A36 road
The A36 is a trunk road and primary route in England that links the port city of Southampton to the city of Bath. At Bath, the A36 connects with the A4 road to Bristol, thus enabling a road link between the major ports of Southampton and Bristol. Originally, the A36 continued onto Avonmouth, but...
.
It is served by Freshford railway station
Freshford railway station
Freshford railway station serves the village of Freshford, Bath and North East Somerset. It also serves the nearby village of Limpley Stoke in Wiltshire. This station has a small car park for five cars....
, which opened in 1857. It has two platforms and is served by First Great Western
First Great Western
First Great Western is the operating name of First Greater Western Ltd, a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup that serves Greater London, the South East, South West and West Midlands regions of England, and South Wales....
. A half-hourly peak and hourly off-peak service is currently provided northbound to Bath and Bristol
Bristol Temple Meads railway station
Bristol Temple Meads railway station is the oldest and largest railway station in Bristol, England. It is an important transport hub for public transport in Bristol, with bus services to various parts of the city and surrounding districts, and a ferry service to the city centre in addition to the...
and southbound to Bradford on Avon
Bradford on Avon
Bradford on Avon is a town in west Wiltshire, England with a population of about 9,326. The town's canal, historic buildings, shops, pubs and restaurants make it popular with tourists....
, Trowbridge
Trowbridge
Trowbridge is the county town of Wiltshire, England, situated on the River Biss in the west of the county, approximately 12 miles southeast of Bath, Somerset....
, Westbury
Westbury, Wiltshire
Westbury is a town and civil parish in the west of the English county of Wiltshire, most famous for the Westbury White Horse.-Name:The most likely origin of the West- in Westbury is simply that the town is near the western edge of the county of Wiltshire, the bounds of which have been much the same...
and then further to Weymouth and Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
. In February 2006, Platform 2 at Freshford was raised by 30 cm to reduce the large stepping gap between the train and the platform. It was lowered in 1988 as part of the realignment of the track through the station to allow trains to pass at a faster speed. At the same time the platform was raised, the station also received additional improvements including better lighting and the construction of a new waiting shelter.
Education
Freshford Primary School, a co-educational primary school for children aged 4 to 11, was founded in 1847 and has been recently modernised.Religious sites
St Peter's Church, on the north side of the village, has a very old Christian marking on the back of the church and parts of the church date back to the fifteenth century. The church has been designated by English HeritageEnglish 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. The churchyard has a number
of Georgian chest tombs, dating from the late 18th and early 19th century, four of which are listed in their own right.
The Methodist
Methodism
Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement within Anglicanism. His younger brother...
Chapel was built around 1783 and extended in 1850. It was opened by John Wesley
John Wesley
John Wesley was a Church of England cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, as founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...
, who preached here several times and mentioned it in his journals.
Public services
Freshford Village Memorial Hall plays host to many events, including painting classes, aerobics, badminton, drama productions, and much more. It is particularly useful for childrens' parties, wedding receptions and similar events, the scale of charges being very competitive, and a thriving pre-school also uses the facility. It is situated on Freshford Lane between the centre of Freshford and Park Corner; it is well maintained, but is of typical mid-20th century construction and fails to meet the present requirements for energy conservation and contains some asbestos. The Hall and adjacent playing field are owned by a charity which is run by a management committee of Trustees including representatives of the regular users. The object of the charity's Foundation is "the provision and maintenance of a village hall for the use of the inhabitants of Freshford and the neighbourhood without distinction of sex or political, religious or other opinion, and in particular for use for meetings, lectures and classes, and other forms of recreation and leisure-time occupation, with the object of improving the conditions of life for the said inhabitants."The replacement of the existing hall by a modern construction with enhanced and additional facilities is under active consideration by the Trustees and local residents.Notable people
The village was the birthplace of John BytheseaJohn Bythesea
John Bythesea VC CB CIE was an officer of the Royal Navy. He was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. He was awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions in...
, a naval officer awarded the Victoria Cross
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
.