Brean
| Brean | |
| Somerset | |
|---|---|
 Brean Sands and village from Brean Down | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | ST296560 |
| Location: | 51°18’-0"N, 3°-0’40"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 635 (2011[1]) |
| Post town: | Burnham-on-Ses |
| Postcode: | TA8 |
| Dialling code: | 01278 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Somerset |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Wells |
Brean is a village and parish between Weston-super-Mare and Burnham-on-Sea in the Bempstone Hundred of Somerset. The name is derived from "Bryn" Brythonic and Modern Welsh for a hill and it has a population of 635.
Close to the village is Brean Down, a promontory standing 320 ft high and extending a mile and a half into the Bristol Channel, on which stands Brean Down Fort, marking the end of Weston Bay.
The village is on a strip of land between the sea and the River Axe. It is the home of Brean Leisure Park, a tropical bird garden,[2] other tourist attractions and several caravan parks. The sandy beach has been used for land sailing since 1970.[3] Sometimes, Brean can also be linked with the nearby village, Berrow so the villages can also be called Berrow & Brean.
History
During the Bristol Channel floods of 1607 the village was flooded, with seven of its nine houses being destroyed and 26 inhabitants drowned.[4]
Windmill House, on South Road, was one of the terminuses for the PTAT-1 transatlantic communications cable from Manasquan, New Jersey, United States. [5] It was constructed in 1989 by Mercury Communications and closed in 2004. [6]
Religious sites
The Church of St Bridget dates from the 13th century, but the fabric is predominantly from the 15th century and was extensively rebuilt around 1882. It is designated as a Grade-II* listed building.[7] The dedication to St Bridget, Abbess of Kildare, who died in 525, is an indication of a Celtic Christian settlement.
References
- ↑ "Civil Parish population 2011". http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadKeyFigures.do?a=7&b=11121123&c=TA8+2RL&d=16&e=62&g=6461500&i=1001x1003x1032x1004&m=0&r=0&s=1445680542641&enc=1.
- ↑ "Brean Down Tropical Bird Garden". http://www.burnham-on-sea.co.uk/brean_bird_garden/.
- ↑ "Brean Land Yacht Club". http://breanlandyachtclub.weebly.com.
- ↑ "1607 Flood in the Bristol Channel - Was it a UK tsunami?". 2015. http://www.burnham-on-sea.com/1607-flood.shtml.
- ↑ Sedgemore District Council - Planning Application 06/88/00020
- ↑ Sedgemore District Council - Planning Application 06/88/00020
- ↑ National Heritage List 1262963: Church of St Bridget
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Brean) |
- Brean Parish Council web site
- Brean at Curlie