Coleford, Somerset

Coordinates: 51°14′39″N 2°27′07″W / 51.2442°N 2.4519°W / 51.2442; -2.4519
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Coleford
Avon and Somerset
FireDevon and Somerset
AmbulanceSouth Western
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Somerset
51°14′39″N 2°27′07″W / 51.2442°N 2.4519°W / 51.2442; -2.4519

Coleford is a village and

civil parish in Somerset, England, situated on the Mells River in the Mendip Hills five miles west of Frome. The parish has a population of 2,313 in 2011.[1]

History

Coleford was listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Colford, meaning the hill ford, possibly from the Old French col and ford, or alternatively the coal ford, a ford over which charcoal was carried.[2][3]

There are visible remains of a famous unfinished engineering project, the Dorset and Somerset Canal aqueduct, known locally as the 'Huckyduck', which was abandoned in 1803.[4]

The village once had several coal mines as part of the now closed

Somerset coalfield. Just north of Coleford there were the collieries of Newbury and Mackintosh. Mackintosh opened in 1867 but closed in 1919, due to flooding.[5] The Natural Stone Products factory is built on the site of Newbury Colliery. This pit started around the beginning of the 19th century and closed in 1927.[5] The Coal Barton mine was the scene of a firedamp explosion which killed nine miners in 1869.[5]

Governance

The

neighbourhood watch
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, 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.

For local government purposes, since 1 April 2023, the parish comes under the unitary authority of Somerset Council. Prior to this, it was part of the non-metropolitan district of Mendip (established under the Local Government Act 1972). It was part of Frome Rural District before 1974.[6]

The village falls within the 'Coleford and Holcombe'

Stoke St. Michael. Mells
is also included. The total ward population as at the
2011 census was 4,700.[7]

It is also part of the

first past the post
system of election.

Religious sites

The

Methodist Chapel is a little more recent having been built in 1865.[9]

References

  1. ^ a b "Coleford Parish". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  2. ISBN 1-874336-03-2
    .
  3. ISBN 0-7153-7297-1
    .
  4. ISBN 0-85033-461-6
    .
  5. ^ a b c "Coal Mining". Somerset Ramblers. Archived from the original on 27 October 2009. Retrieved 12 November 2006.
  6. ^ "Frome RD". A vision of Britain Through Time. University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  7. ^ "Coleford and Holcombe ward 2011". Retrieved 7 March 2015.
  8. ^ Historic England. "Church of The Holy Trinity (1058736)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 30 November 2008.
  9. ^ Historic England. "Methodist Chapel (1175643)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 30 November 2008.

Media related to Coleford at Wikimedia Commons

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