Street, Somerset

Coordinates: 51°07′37″N 2°44′24″W / 51.127°N 2.740°W / 51.127; -2.740
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Street
Avon and Somerset
FireDevon and Somerset
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UK
England
Somerset
51°07′37″N 2°44′24″W / 51.127°N 2.740°W / 51.127; -2.740

Street is a large village and civil parish in Somerset, England, with a population of 11,805 in 2011.[1] On a dry spot in the Somerset Levels, at the end of the Polden Hills, it is two miles (three kilometres) southwest of Glastonbury. There is evidence of Roman occupation. Much of the history of the village is dominated by Glastonbury Abbey, and a 12th-century causeway from Glastonbury built to transport local Blue Lias stone to it.

The

C&J Clark which still has its headquarters in Street. In 1993, redundant factory buildings were converted to form Clarks Village, the first purpose-built factory outlet in the United Kingdom. The Shoe Museum
provides information about the history of Clarks and footwear manufacture in general.

The Clark family's former mansion and its estate at the edge of the village are now owned by

independent co-educational boarding school. Street is also home to Crispin School and Strode College
.

To the north of Street is the

biological Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Strode Theatre provides a venue for films, exhibitions and live performances. The Anglican Parish Church of The Holy Trinity dates from the 14th century and has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building
.

History

The settlement's earliest known name is Lantokay, meaning the sacred enclosure of

Anglo-Saxon charters from 725 and 971, where it appears as Stret. It appears as Strete juxta Glastone in a charter from 1330 formerly in the British Museum. The word is the Old English straet meaning 'Roman road'.[3]

The centre of Street is where Lower Leigh hamlet was, and the road called Middle Leigh and the community called Overleigh are to the south of the village. In the 12th century, a causeway from Glastonbury was built to transport stone from what is now Street for rebuilding Glastonbury Abbey after a major fire in 1184.[2] The causeway is about 100 yards (90 m) north of a Roman road running north from Ilchester. It will be seen that the name of the village predates the building of the causeway by more than four hundred years, and so the village is named after the Roman road and not the causeway.

Street from Glastonbury Tor. The village is the spread of houses across the background of this picture. The houses at lower right are Glastonbury.

The parish of Street was part of the

Hundred.[4]

Quarries of the local

ichthyosaurs, one of which has been adopted as the badge of Street.[7] There is a display of Street fossils in the Natural History Museum
in London.

The churchyard of the Parish Church has yielded one Iron Age coin, however the origin and significance is unclear,

Cumbric, and possibly Pictish. The original meaning of llan in Welsh is "an enclosed piece of land", but it later evolved to mean the parish surrounding a church.[10]

One biography of

Dissolution
.

Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1539. From 1539 to 1707 the park was owned by the Duke of Somerset, Sir Edward Seymour, brother of Queen Jane; the Thynne family of Longleat, and the family of Sir Henry Gould. Sir Edward Dyer the Elizabethan poet and courtier (died 1607) was born here in 1543. The house is now a private residence and Grade II* listed building.[11] Sharpham was also the birthplace of the novelist and dramatist Henry Fielding (1707–54), and the cleric William Gould
.

Ivythorn Manor on Pages Hill was a medieval monastic house. It was rebuilt in 1488 for Abbot John Selwood of Glastonbury Abbey. After the Dissolution of the Monasteries it became a manor house owned by the Marshall and Sydenham families. Sir John Sydenham added a wing 1578 which was later demolished. By 1834 the house was largely ruined until its restoration around 1904, and a west wing was added in 1938. It is a Grade II* listed building.[12]

Governance

The

crematoria, leisure services, parks, and tourism. There are currently three electoral wards of the Mendip Council in Street which elect councillors every four years. As of 2010 the two councillors for Street North are both Liberal Democrats, Street West has one Liberal Democrat councillor and Street South is represented by two councillors one of which is a Liberal Democrat and the other is independent of any political party.[14]

waste disposal
and strategic planning.

The total population equates to that shown above.

Street is in the

first past the post system. The current MP is James Heappey, elected in 2015, of the Conservative Party.[15]

Street is

twinned with Isny im Allgäu, a town in south-eastern Baden-Württemberg, (Germany),[16] and Notre Dame de Gravenchon in Normandy, France.[17]
Both twinnings are announced on the signs that welcome visitors to Street.

Geography

Street and Glastonbury Tor taken from Walton Hill

The

Arthurian legend as the home of the Lady of the Lake. Pomparles Bridge stood at the western end of this lake, guarding Glastonbury from the south, and it was here that Sir Bedivere is thought to have thrown the sword Excalibur into the waters after King Arthur fell at the Battle of Camlann.[18] The old bridge was replaced by a reinforced concrete arch bridge in 1911.[19]

Before the 13th century, the direct route to the sea at Highbridge was blocked by gravel banks and peat near Westhay.

Somerset Levels and Moors and managed by the Somerset Wildlife Trust.[21]

The

great green bush cricket
(Tettigonia viridissima) is also of interest.
woodland grasshopper (Omocestus rufipes). Several nationally scarce species of moth, beetle, bee and ant also occur.[23]

moths and 12 grasshoppers and crickets, with several notable rarities. Birds breeding in the carr woodland include the local willow tit[24]

Merriman Park

Merriman Park is named after

Episcopate
.

Climate

Along with the rest of

convective cloud sometimes forms inland, reducing the number of hours of sunshine. Annual sunshine rates are slightly less than the regional average of 1,600 hours.[26] Most of the rainfall in the south-west is caused by Atlantic depressions or by convection. Most of the rainfall in autumn and winter is caused by the Atlantic depressions, which is when they are most active. In summer, a large proportion of the rainfall is caused by sun heating the ground leading to convection and to showers and thunderstorms. Average rainfall is around 700 mm (28 in). About 8–15 days of snowfall is typical. November to March have the highest mean wind speeds, and June to August have the lightest winds. The predominant wind direction is from the south-west.[26]

C. and J. Clark Ltd

A busy pedestrian walkway through an open-air shopping mall
An entrance to Clarks Village

The

Society of Friends established itself here in the mid-17th century, and among the close-knit group of Quaker families were the Clarks: Cyrus Clark started a business in sheepskin rugs, later joined by his brother James, who introduced the production of woollen slippers and then boots and shoes.[27]
Under James's son, William, the business flourished, and most of the profits were ploughed back into employee welfare, housing and education.

C&J Clark still has its headquarters in Street, behind a frontage that includes the clock tower and water tower,[28] but shoes are no longer manufactured there. Instead, in 1993, redundant factory buildings were converted to form Clarks Village, the first purpose-built factory outlet in the United Kingdom.[29] Despite strong concerns being voiced by local retailers at the time, the retail outlets have not led to a demise of the existing shops. The Shoe Museum provides information about the history of Clarks and footwear manufacture in general,[30] and a selection of shop display showcards from the 1930s, the 1950s and the 1960s,[31] and television advertisements.[32]

The Clark family mansion and its estate at the edge of the village are now owned by

youth hostel in Somerset. It is still used for this purpose.[33]

Transport

In Roman times Street was close to the route of the Fosse Way and is now on the route of the modern A39 road which runs from Bath to Cornwall, and the A361.

signal box.[34] The nearest stations are now around 9 miles away, at Castle Cary and Bridgwater. Replica level crossing gates have been placed at the old station entrance.[35]

A number of bus services serve Street including route 376 to Bristol via Wells which is operated by First West of England and runs every 20 minutes Mon-Sat. It is also served by Berrys Coaches daily 'Superfast' service to and from London.[36]

Education

Avalon School
Millfield School cricket ground and pavilion

Primary infant/junior schools include Avalon, Brookside, Hindhayes, and Elmhurst.

The University of Plymouth Colleges network
.

At the edge of village is

Clarks.[40]

Sport and leisure

Street has a Non-League football club Street F.C. who play at The Tannery.

Strode Theatre

Street has two public swimming pools, one indoor and one outdoor. The indoor pool forms part of the Strode complex. The outdoor pool, Greenbank, is open daily from early May until mid September each year.[41]

The only single use cinema in Street was closed down and converted into a nightclub in the 1990s. Strode Theatre, linked to the Crispin School and Strode College complex, is now the only place to see films, exhibitions and live performances.[42] It opened on 5 October 1963 with a performance by the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra.[43] In 1999 the theatre was expanded with a new foyer, bar and box office along with improved rehearsal space and stage access, at a cost of £750,000 by the Steel, Coleman Davis partnership who received an award for the design.[44] The expansion was funded by the Arts Council England.[45]

The village is on the route of the Samaritans Way South West.

Religious sites

Friends' Meeting House

The Anglican Parish

Quaker Friends Meeting House was built in 1850, by J. Francis Cottrell of Bath.[50] The United Reformed Church was built on High Street in 1854–55 and Street Methodist Church built on Leigh Road in 1893.[51]

Notable people

  • Helen Chamberlain, an English television presenter, was born in Street in 1967.[52]
  • Alice Clark, historian and suffragist, author of Working Life of Women, was born and died in Street.
  • Edwin Edwards (organist), organist, composer, Director of Music at Rugby School, was born in Street in 1830.[53]
  • John Hinde was born in Street before going on to become a photographer whose idealistic and nostalgic style influenced the art of postcard photography and was widely known for his meticulously planned shoots.[54]
  • Clemence Housman, an author, illustrator and suffragette, lived with her brother Laurence in Street.
  • A.E. Housman.[55]
  • Catherine Impey, the founder, editor, and publisher of an antirace journal Anti-Caste (1888–1895) was born in Street in 1847. Catherine rejected race, caste, and gender violence. She was friends with Frederick Douglass, Ida B. Wells and other African Americans with whom she continued a global movement against racism, casteism, and gender problems. She died in 1923.[56]
  • Jaye Jacobs, actress[57]
  • John X. Merriman was born in Street in 1841, His parents were Nathaniel James Merriman, curate of the parish of Street and later third Bishop of Grahamstown, and the former Julia Potter. He emigrated to the Cape Colony with his parents in 1849, aged 8. He was the last prime minister of the Cape Colony before the formation of the Union of South Africa in 1910.[25][58]
  • Henry John "Harry" Patch (1898-2009), the last surviving 'Tommy' from the First World War, moved to Street in the early 1940s, and ran a plumbing company in the village until his retirement at age 65.[59]

Freedom of the Parish

The following people and military units have received the Freedom of the Parish of Street.

  • WO 1 Matthew Tomlinson: 16 October 2010.[60]

References

  1. ^ a b "Street Parish (2011)". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Archived from the original on 2 January 2014. Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  2. ^ a b c d Gathercole, Clare. "Street" (PDF). Somerset Urban Archaeological Survey. Somerset County Council. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 July 2011. Retrieved 21 August 2009.
  3. ^ Eilert Ekwall, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Place-names, p.450.
  4. ^ "Somerset Hundreds". GENUKI. Retrieved 22 October 2011.
  5. ^ Ambrose, K.; 2001: The lithostratigraphy of the Blue Lias Formation (Late Rhaetian–Early Sinemurian) in the southern part of the English Midlands, Proceedings of the Geologists' Association 112(2), pp. 97–110.
  6. ^ "The History behind the ichthyosaur logo". Street Parish Council. Archived from the original on 8 October 2011 – via Internet Archive.
  7. ^ "Palaeontological Association Review Seminar" (PDF). The Palaeontological Association. Retrieved 21 August 2009.
  8. ^ "Iron Age Coins". Cardiff University. Retrieved 2 September 2010.
  9. ^ a b "The archaeology of Street Churchyard". Holy Trinity Street and Walton. Archived from the original on 14 August 2007. Retrieved 21 August 2009.
  10. ^ "Llan". Place names. BBC Wales. Retrieved 2 September 2010.
  11. ^ Historic England. "Abbots Sharpham and Sharpham Park Farmhouse (1345069)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 25 November 2006.
  12. ^ Historic England. "Ivythorn Manor (1176171)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
  13. ^ "Street UD". A vision of Britain Through Time. University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  14. ^ "Your Councillors". Mendip District Council. Archived from the original on 4 March 2011. Retrieved 2 September 2010.
  15. ^ "Wells". 2010 General Election Results. BBC. Retrieved 2 September 2010.
  16. ^ "Twin Towns". Teignmouth Twinning Association. Archived from the original on 20 February 2012. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  17. ^ "British and French Twin Towns". France Magazine. Retrieved 22 August 2010.
  18. ^ "Pomparles Bridge". ArthurianAdventure.com. Archived from the original on 17 October 2008. Retrieved 11 November 2008.
  19. ^ "Pomparles Bridge, Northover, Glastonbury". Somerset Historic Environment Record. Somerset County Council. Retrieved 4 July 2010.
  20. ^ "Meare and Ferran Mere". Sacred Sites around Glastonbury. Archived from the original on 2 August 2012. Retrieved 1 November 2008.
  21. ^ "Brue Valley Living Landscape". Somerset Wildlife Trust. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
  22. ^ "Walton and Ivythorn Hills" (PDF). English Nature. Retrieved 21 August 2006.
  23. ^ "East Polden Grasslands" (PDF). English Nature. Retrieved 12 August 2006.
  24. ^ "Street Heath" (PDF). English Nature. Retrieved 21 August 2006.
  25. ^ a b "The Merriman Family" (Word). Street Society. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  26. ^ a b c d "South West England: climate". Met Office. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 14 March 2010.
  27. ISBN 1-902007-01-8
    .
  28. ^ Historic England. "Main roadside frontage to Clarks Factory, Clock Tower, 5 bay right return and Water Tower (1058755)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 23 March 2008.
  29. ^ "Street". Visit Somerset. Archived from the original on 5 May 2013. Retrieved 6 June 2012.
  30. ^ "Shoe Museum". Information Britain. Retrieved 12 July 2009.
  31. ^ "The Shoe Museum, Street". Nothing to see here. Retrieved 12 July 2009.
  32. ^ "The Shoe Museum". Somerset Tourist Guide. Archived from the original on 9 May 2008. Retrieved 12 July 2009.
  33. ^ "Youth Hostel, Street". Youth Hostel Association. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
  34. ^ "Glastonbury". Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway. Archived from the original on 6 May 2011. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
  35. ^ Nevard, Chris. "Glastonbury after closure". Archived from the original on 16 December 2009. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
  36. ^ https://book.berryscoaches.co.uk/superfast-timetables.html Superfast Timetable
  37. ^ "Crispin School". Ofsted. Archived from the original on 16 February 2011. Retrieved 1 April 2009.
  38. ^ "University Level courses" (PDF). Strode College. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 November 2009. Retrieved 5 July 2009.
  39. ^ "Millfield School". Millfield School. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
  40. ^ "Millfield in its Infancy" (Word). Street Society. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  41. ^ "Greenbank Pool". Greenbank Pool. Retrieved 21 August 2009.
  42. ^ "Strode Theatre". Strode Theatre. Retrieved 21 August 2009.
  43. ^ "Strode Theatre". Total Travel.com. Archived from the original on 31 January 2010. Retrieved 4 July 2010.
  44. ^ "Strode Theatre". Steel Coleman Davis Partnership. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
  45. ^ "Strode Theatre". Bailey partnership. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
  46. ^ Historic England. "Church of The Holy Trinity (1058753)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 23 March 2008.
  47. ^ "History". Holy Trinity Street and Walton. Retrieved 17 May 2009.
  48. ^ "Our Churches". Hily Trinity Street and Walton. Archived from the original on 20 July 2010. Retrieved 2 September 2010.
  49. ^ "Street Baptist Church". Street Baptist Church. Retrieved 2 September 2010.
  50. ^ Historic England. "Friends Meeting House (1308052)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 23 March 2008.
  51. ^ "Parishes: Street | British History Online". British-history.ac.uk. Retrieved 12 January 2020.
  52. ^ "Helen Chamberlain". IMDb. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
  53. ISBN 9780720123302
    .
  54. ^ Sarsby, Jacqueline (3 February 1998). "Obituaries: John Hinde". The Independent. Archived from the original on 25 May 2022. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
  55. ^ "Catalogue of Laurence Housman's works". Street Society. Archived from the original (Word) on 13 August 2014. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  56. ^ "Catherine Impey of Street, Somerset, and her radical anti-racist newspaper". Quaker Strong Rooms. 18 September 2012. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
  57. ^ "Jaye Jacobs". Holby.tv. Archived from the original on 25 May 2010. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
  58. ^ Cana, Frank Richardson (1922). "Merriman, John Xavier" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 31 (12th ed.). p. 914.
  59. ^ "Obituary: Private Harry Patch". The Daily Telegraph. London. 25 July 2009. Retrieved 25 July 2009.
  60. ^ "Courageous Royal Marine Matt Tomlinson honoured by his community | Just Plymouth".

External links

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