Frome

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Frome
Somerset

Cheap Street
Location
Grid reference: ST775477
Location: 51°13’40"N, 2°19’17"W
Data
Population: 24,050  (est.)
Post town: Frome
Postcode: BA11
Dialling code: 01373
Local Government
Council: Mendip
Parliamentary
constituency: 		Somerton and Frome

Frome is a town in Somerset, found at the eastern end of the Mendip Hills. The town is built on uneven high ground, and centres around the River Frome. The town is approximately 13 miles south of Bath, 43 miles east of the county town, Taunton. In the 2001 census, the population was given as 24,510. It gives its name to the Frome Hundred.

One charming aspect of the town is the Leet, a stream running from down the centre of Cheap Street (from a well at the top). Every one of the true townsfolk must have fallen in the Leet at some point in their lives.

This was once a major town of the county; from AD 950 to 1650 it is reckoned that Frome was larger than Bath and originally grew due to the wool and cloth industry. It later diversified into metal-working and printing, although these have declined. The town grew substantially in the 20th century but still retains a very large number of listed buildings, and most of the centre falls within a conservation area.

The town has road and rail transport links and acts as an economic centre for the surrounding area. It also provides a centre for cultural and sporting activities, including the annual Frome Festival and Frome Museum. A number of notable individuals were born in, or have lived in, the town. Frome was recently described as the "sixth coolest town" in Britain by The Times.[1]

Name

The name Frome comes from the river, which is in turn named for British language (or Old Welsh) word ffraw, meaning fair, fine or brisk and describing the flow of the river.[2]

Frome is one of the very few places in Britain whose name is found in an identical form in Old English.

Geography

House on Bath Street

The town rests on Forest Marble which dates back to the Middle Jurassic,[3] and has been used for local building. The area surrounding the town is Cornbrash, Oxford Clay and Greensand.[2]

Frome is unevenly built on high ground above the River Frome, which is crossed by the 16th-century town bridge in the town centre.

The main areas of the town are (approximately clockwise from the northwest): Innox Hill, Welshmill, Packsaddle, Fromefield, Stonebridge, Clink, Berkley Down, Easthill, Wallbridge, The Mount, Keyford and Lower Keyford, Marston Gate, The Butts, Critchill, Trinity, and Gould's Ground.

Although the royal forest of Selwood no longer exists, the nearby countryside is still richly wooded, for example on the Longleat, Maiden Bradley and Stourhead estates.

To the west of the town, on the edge of the Mendip Hills, there are large active limestone quarries, such as Whatley Quarry and Merehead Quarry, along with disused quarries. The working quarries are served by a dedicated railway line which branches off the main line at Frome, passes through the town centre and out through the Welshmill and Spring Gardens areas in the north-west quadrant of the town.

History

There is some limited evidence for Roman settlement of the area. The remains of a villa were found in the village of Whatley, 3 miles (5 km) to the west of Frome.[4]

In April 2010, the Frome Hoard, one of the largest-ever hoards of Roman coins discovered in Britain, was found by a metal detectorist. The hoard of 52,500 coins dated from the third century AD and was found buried in a field near the town, in a jar 14 inches below the surface.[5] The coins were excavated by archaeologists from the Portable Antiquities Scheme,[6] and some are now on display in the British Museum. The find was the subject of a BBC TV programme Digging for Britain in August 2010.

A monastery built by St. Aldhelm in 685 is the earliest evidence of Saxon occupation of Frome.[2] The Saxon kings appear to have used Frome as a base from which to hunt in Selwood Forest and in 934 a witenagemot was held there, indicating that Frome must already have been a significant settlement. King Eadred (son of Edward the Elder), died in Frome on 23 November 955.[7][8]

At the time of the Domesday Book, the manor was owned by The King, and was the principal settlement of the largest and wealthiest hundred in Somerset. Over the following years, parts of the original manor were spun off as distinct manors; for example, one was owned by the minster, later passing to the Abbey at Cirencester, which others were leased by the Crown to important families. By the 13th century, the Abbey had bought up some of the other manors (although it did let them out again) and was exploiting the profits from market and trade in the town.[7] Local tradition asserts that Frome was a mediæval borough, and the reeve of Frome is occasionally mentioned in documents after the reign of Edward I, but there is no direct evidence that Frome was a borough and no trace of any charter granted to it. However, Henry VII did grant a charter to Edmund Leversedge, then lord of the manor, giving him the right to hold fairs on 22 July and 21 September.[7]

Hales Castle was built, probably in the years immediately after the Norman conquest in 1066.[9] The circular ringwork is 120 feet in diameter and stands on the northern slope of Roddenbury Hill, close to the Iron Age Roddenbury Hillfort. It comprises banks and outer ditches and has an unfinished bailey.[10]

Wool Drying House, now part of The Black Swan Arts Centre

The manufacture of woollen cloth was established as the town's principal industry in the 15th century,[7][11] and Frome remained the only Somerset town in which this staple industry flourished.[2] Families of clothiers gradually came to be the principal landowners in the town, with the manor of Frome itself finally passing into the ownership of a cloth merchant in 1714. From 1665 to 1725 major expansion, including the building of a new artisans' suburb to the west of Trinity Street, occurred.[12] Daniel Defoe remarked that the town had:

"so prodigiously increased within these last 20–30 years, that they have built a new church, and so many new streets of houses, and those houses are so full of inhabitants, that Frome is now reckoned to have more people in it than the city of Bath, and some say, than even Salisbury itself, and if their trade continues to increase for a few years more ... it is likely to be one of the greatest and wealthiest towns in England"
—[13]

On 27 June 1685, the forces of the Duke of Monmouth camped in Frome, following their defeat in a skirmish with the King's forces at Norton St Philip. Large numbers of his army deserted during the few days he stayed in the town before his eventual defeat at the Battle of Sedgemoor.[2] Following the putting down of the Monmouth Rebellion, 12 men were hanged in the town.[14]

The former (Butler & Tanner) Selwood Printing Works

Poverty, the decline of the wool industry in the mid-18th century, increased industrialisation, and rising food prices led to some unrest amongst the inhabitants of Frome, and there were riots during the century. By 1791, the town was described in less flattering terms than those Defoe had used 70 years earlier.[7] In the early 19th century, plans were developed to reinvigorate the town and once again elevate it to its former position as a more important town than Bath. These plans, the idea of a local businessman, Thomas Bunn, mostly failed to come to fruition, although some public buildings were erected and a wide new approach road to the town centre from the south was cut (named Bath Street after the landowner, Lord Bath of Longleat House).[15]

Whilst wool remained an important part of the town's economy into the 19th (and even 20th) centuries, other industries were established in the town. A bell-foundry started in 1684 by William Cockey grew to be a major producer of components for the developing gas industry and employer of 800 people. The J W Singer brass foundry and bronze-casting works,[16] was a major employer and produced bronze statues.[17] John Webb Singer was born in Frome and established his art metal work foundry in 1851. They made brass ornaments for local churches and as the Oxford Movement rose within the Church of England its adherents came to Singer for all the sparkly church ornaments they sought.[18] In addition to church ornaments the firm developed the facilities and expertise to create large statues. One of the first statues cast was a copy of General Gordon riding a camel. The firm was also responsible for the bronze statue of Boudica with her daughters in her war chariot (furnished with scythes after the Persian fashion), which was commissioned by Prince Albert and executed by Thomas Thornycroft. It was not cast in bronze until 1902, 17 years after Thornycrofts death, and now stands next to Westminster Bridge and the Palace of Westminster in London.[19] The statue of Lady Justice on the dome above the Old Bailey was executed by the British sculptor, F W Pomeroy and cast by Singers famously bearing a sword and scales in her left, eyes vigilant over the City. The statue of Alfred the Great at Winchester was a further commission.[20] The statues from Singers have also been exported around the world.[21] Printing was another major industry, with the Butler and Tanner printworks being set up in the middle of the century. Brewing was also a source of employment.[15]

During the 20th century the old wool industry in Frome declined, although the last fabric mill at Wallsbridge did not close until 1965.[22] As a result, the population fell and in the 1930s it was slightly smaller than it had been in the mid 19th century. Other industries such as printing, light engineering, metal casting, carpeting and dairying continued,[14] many taking old premises from the cloth mills and others being sited at the new Marston Road Trading Estate which led to growth after Second World War, including the construction of council houses.[2]

Culture

ECOS amphitheatre outside the Merlin Theatre

The high-point of arts in Frome is the annual ten-day Frome Festival in July, which in recent years has included more than 160 events held at various venues in and around the town.[23] The town is host to a number of artists, many of whom open their studios to the public during the Festival.[24] An Artisan Market is held on Catherine Hill monthly between April and October.[25]

There are two theatres in Frome: The Memorial Theatre was built in 1924 in memory of the fallen of the World War I,[26] whilst the 240-seat Merlin Theatre is part of the Community College campus.[27] Frome is also home to Somerset's first and only pub theatre, with Nevertheless, Productions promoting new dramas four times a year at The Cornerhouse pub. The Cheese and Grain, a former farm produce warehouse which was converted into a market and concert hall in 1997, has a capacity of up to 800 and hosts regular pop concerts.[28]

Frome Museum on North Parade

The Frome & District Agricultural Society holds an annual Agricultural & Cheese Show in September.[29] This was formerly held on the Showground at Fromefield, but in recent years has moved to West Woodland, 2.0 miles (3.2 km) to the south of the town.

The Frome Society for Local Study was founded in 1958, and helped to establish and run Frome Museum.[30]

Churches

Church of St John the Baptist, Frome

The parish church of St John the Baptist, was built between the late 12th century and early 15th century replacing a Saxon building that had stood since 685. The building was in very poor condition by the mid-19th century, and major restoration work – almost a complete rebuilding – was carried out in the 1860s, at a cost of almost £40,000.

One of the more unusual pieces of work carried out was the construction of the Via Crucis, which is thought to be unique in an Anglican church. Another unusual feature are the carved roundels above the nave arcades depicting parables and miracles, which were added later in the century.[15][31] Outside the east end of the church is the tomb of Bishop Thomas Ken.[32] The tower has eight bells, which bear inscriptions indicating that they were cast at various points between 1622 and 1792.[33]

Christ Church, was built in 1818, a daughter church of St John's.[34] although considerable changes were made throughout the 19th and 20th centuries,[15] and Holy Trinity, was built in 1837–38 by Henry Goodridge in the style of Commissioners' Gothic.[35]

St Mary's at Innox Hill was built in 1863, by C.E. Giles,[36] as another Chapel of Ease to St John's. It is small with a decorated sanctuary ceiling.[15]

There is a long history of non-conformity in Frome, and once there was a wealth of chapels, amongst them Congregationalist, Baptist and Methodist

  • Church of England:
    • St John The Baptist
    • Christ Church
    • St John's
    • St Mary's
  • Baptist
  • Methodist
  • Roman Catholic: St Catharine's

Sights of the town

The older parts of Frome – for example, around Sheppard's Barton and Catherine Hill – are picturesque, containing an outstanding collection of late 17th and 18th century small houses.[7] The Trinity area, which was built in the latter half of the 17th century and first half of the 18th century, is a fine (and rare) example of early industrial housing. Over 300 houses were built between 1660 and 1756 in a very unusual early example of a planned grid-pattern. Although about half the area was demolished in the 1960s under a Slum Clearance Order, before its historical importance was realised, the remainder was saved and was restored at a cost of £4 million between 1980 and 1984.[15] Also in this area is the elaborate former Selwood Printing Works.

Catherine Hill

Stoney Street, which leads into Catherine Hill, is a steep, cobbled road climbing out of the town centre. Also in the centre of the town, Cheap Street contains buildings dating to the 16th and 17th centuries, and has a stream running down the middle, fed by the spring at St John's Church. Cheap Street has never been used for vehicular traffic and its layout is based on land plots dating to approximately 1500. Despite a fire in 1923, the buildings have remained substantially unchanged since 1830, apart from shop-frontages.[15]

The town bridge, which was originally built in the 14th century, was rebuilt in the 16th century and widened in the 18th century,[37] at which time houses were built on it.[7][15]

A remarkable circular dye-house, known to have been in existence by 1813, stands near the middle of town on Justice Lane, one of two surviving in the town (the other in Willow Vale). It was restored in 1994 and is now the Tourist Information Centre.[7][15]

Media

  • Newspapers:
    • The Frome & Somerset Standard
    • The Frome Times
  • Radio and television:
    • FromeFM (a community station, not-for-profit)
    • FromeTV, (non-profit' organisation online channel

Outside links

 ("Wikimedia Commons" has material
about Frome)

References

  1. ↑ [1]
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Belham, Peter (1985). The Making of Frome (2 ed.). Frome society for local study. 
  3. ↑ Weishampel, David B; et al. (2004). "Dinosaur distribution (Middle Jurassic, Europe)." In: Weishampel, David B.; Dodson, Peter; and Osmólska, Halszka (eds.): The Dinosauria, 2nd, Berkeley: University of California Press. Pp. 538–541. ISBN 0-520-24209-2.
  4. ↑ "Whatley Combe Villa". Somerset Historic Environment Record. 26 January 2010. http://webapp1.somerset.gov.uk/her/details.asp?prn=28414. Retrieved 8 July 2010. 
  5. ↑ "Huge Roman coin find for hobbyist". BBC News. 8 July 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/10546960.stm. Retrieved 8 July 2010. 
  6. ↑ Booth, Anna (8 July 2010). "The Frome Hoard". Portable Antiquities Scheme. http://finds.org.uk/blogs/fromehoard/. Retrieved 8 July 2010. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 Gathercole, Clare (2003). "Frome". Somerset Urban Archaeological Survey. Somerset County Council. http://www1.somerset.gov.uk/archives/hes/downloads/EUS_FromeText.pdf. Retrieved 2 February 2010. 
  8. ↑ Anglo-Saxon Chronicle  Parker Chronicle (955) Her forþferde Eadred cining on Sancte Clementes mæssedæg on Frome, 7 he rixsade teoþe healf gear ("Here died King Eadred on St Clement's Day in Frome, and he ruled nine and half years"
  9. ↑ Prior, Stuart: The Norman Art of War: a Few Well-Positioned Castles, ISBN 0-7524-3651-1. p.71.
  10. ↑ "Hales Castle". Pastscape National Monument Record. English Heritage. http://www.pastscape.org.uk/hob.aspx?hob_id=202864. Retrieved 22 July 2011. 
  11. ↑ "History of Frome Town". Frome Town. http://users.breathe.com/djsteward/history.html. Retrieved 30 September 2008. 
  12. ↑ Havinden, Michael. The Somerset Landscape. The making of the English landscape. London: Hodder and Stoughton. p. 215. ISBN 0-340-20116-9. 
  13. ↑ Daniel Defoe's Tour Through the Whole Island of Great Britain, 1726 (Somerset)
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Lambert, Tim. "A brief history of Frome". Local histories.org. http://www.localhistories.org/frome.html. Retrieved 30 September 2008. 
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 15.5 15.6 15.7 15.8 Goodall, Rodney. The buildings of Frome, 2nd Ed. Frome: Frome society for local study. p. 149. ISBN 0-9510157-5-3. 
  16. ↑ "JW Singer & Sons". Frome Museum. http://www.fromemuseum.org/singer1.htm. Retrieved 6 February 2010. 
  17. ↑ "J W Singer website". http://www.jwsinger.com/. 
  18. ↑ "The Founder". Frome Museum. http://www.fromemuseum.org/singer2.htm. Retrieved 6 February 2010. 
  19. ↑ Mark Stocker, ‘Thornycroft, Thomas (1815–1885)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, September 2004 online edn, October 2006 [2], accessed 2 January 2009
  20. ↑ "Statuary". Frome Museum. http://www.fromemuseum.org/singer3.htm. Retrieved 6 February 2010. 
  21. ↑ "List of Singers Statues". Frome Museum. http://www.fromemuseum.org/singer6.htm. Retrieved 6 February 2010. 
  22. ↑ Bush, Robin. Somerset: The complete Guide. Wimborne: Dovecote Press. pp. 101–104. ISBN 1-874336-27-X. 
  23. ↑ "Frome Festival". Frome Festival. http://www.fromefestival.co.uk/. Retrieved 29 September 2008. 
  24. ↑ "Frome Open Studios guide". Frome Festival. July 2010. http://www.fromefestival.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/brochure-trail-map.pdf. Retrieved 17 August 2010. 
  25. ↑ "Artisan Market". St Catherine's. http://www.stcatherinesfrome.co.uk/artisan-market. Retrieved 17 August 2010. 
  26. ↑ "Frome Memorial Theatre". Frome Memorial Theatre. http://www.fromememorialtheatre.org.uk/. Retrieved 29 September 2008. 
  27. ↑ "Merlin Theatre". Merlin Theatre. http://www.merlintheatre.co.uk/. Retrieved 29 September 2008. 
  28. ↑ "The Cheese and Grain". The Cheese and Grain. http://www.cheeseandgrain.co.uk/. Retrieved 29 September 2008. 
  29. ↑ "Frome Cheese Show". http://www.fromecheeseshow.co.uk. 
  30. ↑ "The Frome Society for Local Study & Frome Civic Society". The Frome Society for Local Study & Frome Civic Society. http://www.fsls.org.uk/. Retrieved 6 February 2010. 
  31. ↑ National Heritage List 1345441: Parish Church of St John the Baptist
  32. ↑ National Heritage List 1057889: Tomb of Bishop Ken
  33. ↑ Belham, Peter (1987). Guide to the Church of St John the Baptist, Frome Selwood. St John's Parish Church Council.
  34. ↑ National Heritage List 1057853: Christ Church
  35. ↑ National Heritage List 1174175: Holy Trinity
  36. ↑ National Heritage List 1296276: Church of St Mary
  37. ↑ National Heritage List 1057856: The Bridge
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